FORMER Plymouth Albion players Henry Slade and Luke Cowan-Dickie will get the chance to push their World Cup claims next Sunday when an England XV play the Barbarians at Twickenham.

The pair have been named in 24-man squad to take on the Baa-Baas in a non-cap international.

Utility back Slade impressed in the match last season and he will be hoping to do the same this year with England head coach Stuart Lancaster having to cut a 50-man World Cup training squad down to 31 by the end of August.

Former Ivybridge youngster Dave Ewers was also set to feature but in the end could not be considered for the match due to concussion.

Lancaster said: “This is an exciting squad with a good mix of young players who have performed well in the Premiership this season, players on the fringes of the World Cup squad and those already selected.

“It gives us some valuable time together before the training camps begin next month to assess those who could come into the group before the World Cup and also a chance to assess those who should come into the reckoning beyond 2015.”

The England match will be played at 3pm after Graham Dawe’s Cornwall side take on Lancashire at 12noon in the County Championship final.

To add more interest for Albion fans, former coach James Shanahan will be playing at Twickenham prior to Dawe’s Cornwall.

Shanahan is captain of Eastern Counties who will take on Surrey in the County Plate final at 10am.

Although Championship players are not permitted to play county rugby, Shanahan, who left his role as head coach at Albion in April, is able to feature as it turns out he was registered as a player with Old Albanians from December.

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