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Nowell joins England injury list

Wasps flanker Sam Jones broke his leg during a judo session while with England and Bath wing Anthony Watson fractured his jaw during a collision in training.

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Exeter boss Rob Baxter, speaking after his side's 27-27 Premiership draw with Gloucester on Saturday, said Nowell had suffered a torn thigh during England training.

Baxter accused England of going too hard on the 23-year-old Nowell, who only recently returned to full fitness after a two-month injury lay-off following thumb surgery.

"Jack [Nowell] had a run-out with us last weekend and had his first bit of rugby," said Baxter. "England seemed to have loaded him more than we would have done.

"We were told that the injury was minor but when we scanned him, he had a 9-10 centimetre tear in his quad which will put him out for weeks."

Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall previously labelled the timing of last weekend's England camp in the south coast town of Brighton as "madness" and "flabbergasting".

Wallaby great Michael Lynagh joined in the criticism over the timing of the camp, telling AFP on Friday: "It's just ludicrous.

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"You can't have a guy playing for Saracens or whoever on a Sunday, then going doing judo sessions on Monday and Tuesday and then playing Wasps on a Saturday. It's just too much."

It is not yet certain whether Nowell will be fit in time for the first of England's four end-of-year internationals, against South Africa at Twickenham on November 12.

England have won all nine Tests they've played under Australian coach Jones, appointed after the team's first-round exit at last year's World Cup.

That sequence includes a Six Nations Grand Slam and a 3-0 series win in Australia.

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Source: Agence France-Presse

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