Six Nations: Woodward plays down Johnson axe

England boss Clive Woodward has claimed that ‘‘no-one should read anything’’ into Martin Johnson’s surprise appearance on the bench for Sunday’s Lloyds TSB Six Nations Championship appointment with Italy.

Johnson will be among five Lions Test players waiting in the wings when England wind up their campaign at Rome’s Stadio Flaminio.

Although Johnson, who has led England more than 20 times and captained them against Scotland, Ireland and France during the current Six Nations season, is available again after serving a 21-day suspension, Woodward has retained flanker Neil Back as skipper.

It will be Back’s 50th cap, making him the 11th England player to reach that landmark after Johnson, Jason Leonard, Rory Underwood, Will Carling, Rob Andrew, Jeremy Guscott, Brian Moore, Peter Winterbottom, Wade Dooley and Mike Catt.

‘‘Neil did an excellent job of captaining the team against Wales 10 days ago, and also against Australia at the end of last year, and I had no hesitation in making him captain for this game,’’ Woodward said.

‘‘No-one should read anything into Martin Johnson starting on the bench.

‘‘It is purely because I want to see Danny Grewcock and Ben Kay play together again, and Martin will have a major part to play in the game.’’

That star-studded replacements’ contingent also includes Wasps talisman Lawrence Dallaglio and Leicester back Austin Healey, who has been dropped to make way for fit-again former rugby league star Jason Robinson as the solitary change following England’s record 50-10 victory over Wales last time out.

That said, Johnson will still find himself in a totally unfamiliar position.

All of his previous 66 caps, stretching back to an international debut against France in 1993, were collected from the starting XV.

Dallaglio, meanwhile, is back in an England match-day 22 for the first time since April last year, when he helped the red rose brigade destroy France 48-19.

Dallaglio suffered a serious knee injury during Wasps’ Premiership play-off defeat against Bath a month later, and then underwent reconstruction surgery following a brave, but failed, bid to make an impact on the Lions tour to Australia.

He has made just one 80-minute comeback appearance since then, starring for Wasps when they beat league leaders Leicester in front of Woodward three days ago.

During his 11-month absence, 47 times-capped Dallaglio missed eight England games.

‘‘I welcome back Lawrence to the 22-man squad after a long lay-off due to a knee operation,’’ Woodward said.

‘‘He proved his fitness to me at the weekend, and he is included in the squad on merit.’’

Along with Johnson, Dallaglio and Healey, scrum-half Matt Dawson and prop Leonard complete the Lions bench contingent.

Four players Bath’s Iain Balshaw, Leicester full-back Tim Stimpson, Tigers flanker Martin Corry and Wasps back-row man Joe Worsley are omitted from the 22 on duty against Wales.

Robinson, England’s most damaging strike-runner, was always going to return once he recovered from an abdominal muscle injury, and that left Woodward facing a choice between Healey, who deputised at full-back for Robinson against Wales, Dan Luger and Ben Cohen for the two wing slots.

England go into the weekend still with a chance of retaining their Six Nations title.

But those championship hopes hinge entirely on Ireland defeating tournament and Grand Slam favourites France in Paris 24 hours earlier.

If Ireland can repeat their Stade de France heroics of two years ago, when centre Brian O’Driscoll’s try hat-trick saw them secure a famous victory, then an anticipated runaway England success against Italy would see them crowned champions on points difference.