Brian McDermott issues Mikey Lewis verdict after latest England selection call

England boss Brian McDermott considered naming Mikey Lewis in his starting XIII on Saturday but ultimately decided to stick rather than twist.

The Hull KR man has been on the outer of McDermott's England squad so far this autumn with the head coach opting to go for Harry Smith and skipper George Williams in the pivot spots for the opener against Tonga and this Saturday's upcoming clash with France.

Lewis has been named as a reserve on both occasions, meaning he has been forced to watch on from the sidelines.

England were second best against Tonga with last tackle plays and a lack of clinical edge in attack being among their major downfalls, but the head coach has resisted the urge to switch things up.

"For sure," McDermott told the press when asked if he'd considered Lewis this week. "Mikey Lewis is a tremendous player and you've got to wonder whether he'd give us something that we haven't got.

"For sure it's been considered but I thought George was good. I know he was involved in a couple of errors when we started playing too hot but I think he's been unfairly assessed.

"I thought Harry Smith was really good. We were coordinated both in yardage attack and good ball attack.

"We got held up over the line four times in the game and there was another try-saver from Tonga."

On Lewis specifically, the England boss added: "He's good. It was a frustrating end to the season for him but he won a World Club Challenge at the start of the year and was involved in a final.

"He's been great around the camp and knows his role. He's shown a lot of humility in the camp, as have a few other players.

"He's been really good to work with."

Rovers' Jez Litten was involved on Saturday and he'll feature this week, too, but once more his contribution will come off the bench.

Brad O'Neill started against Tonga and played 57 minutes before Litten entered the fray. However, while the Rovers man livened things up around the ruck during the final 23 minutes of the contest, it seems McDermott will employ a similar strategy.

"Yeah and between him or Brad O'Neill, they're both quality nines," McDermott added.

"I thought Brad was enormous defensively in particular in that game. We're very fortunate to have Jez as back-up to a quality nine like Brad O'Neill."

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