Chris Robshaw is so important for England, says Harlequins teammate Jamie Roberts

Action | Robshaw in action during the Old Mutual Wealth Series match between England and South Africa
Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images
Chris Jones4 January 2017

It would be a “huge blow” for England and Harlequins if Chris Robshaw needs a shoulder operation, says his club-mate Jamie Roberts.

The results of a scan are expected on Friday, with England head coach Eddie Jones accepting that, should surgery be required, he would be without one of his most influential forwards heading into the Six Nations. England begin the defence of their title against France on February 4.

Roberts travels to Quins training each day with Robshaw and knows how influential the flanker has been for club and country.

The Wales centre said: “Fingers crossed the injury doesn’t require surgery but if he is ruled out for any period of time, it will be a huge blow for England and Quins.

“Chris is top of most of the statistics charts week in, week out and is a quality player and an important cog for both England and Quins.”

Although Jones took the captaincy away from Robshaw (right), he predicted the player could become the best No6 in the country and has consistently picked him in that position during England’s 13-game unbeaten run.

Billy and Mako Vunipola and Wasps captain Joe Launchbury have already been ruled out of the clash with France, while Saracens lock George Kruis is battling to recover from a broken cheekbone.

Jones, whose squad were gathered in Brighton today for the final day of a two-day camp, said: “In 2017 we will be missing potentially four of the starting pack. Robshaw is a doubt and with Kruis we are hopeful.

“We’re missing two Vunipolas so it is a test of our depth. Chris is a massive ‘glue’ player who does the unseen work. He is a really strong, consistent player and is a massive leader for us in an informal sense. With this joint, you can recover quite quickly or need an operation.”

Jones has also spent time during the camp reminding the players about the slump Leicester City have suffered following their amazing Premier League title triumph last season. Jones knows that another Grand Slam would allow England to set a world record with 19 successive Test wins.

“We addressed it at the first meeting,” said Jones. “We went through the example of what’s happened to Leicester and do we want that to happen to us?

“We’ve come up with some strategies we believe will help us overcome any complacency. You don’t defend a Grand Slam, you’ve got to win it again.”

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