Genge starts at loose-head prop on Saturday, with Bevan Rodd backing him up on the replacements bench. However, injuries to fellow front-rowers Will Stuart, Asher Opoku-Fordjour and Fin Baxter have ushered some new faces into the wider England squad.
Bath’s Vilikesa ‘Billy’ Sela and Northampton’s Emmanuel Iyogun, both uncapped, have been called up for the Six Nations.
Twenty-year-old Sela’s rise has been especially rapid.
He was part of England’s under-20 world title win in July 2024, but with South Africa’s Thomas du Toit, Stuart and Wales’ Archie Griffin all tight-head options at Bath, senior action has been hard to come by.
Sela has made three league starts and another two in the Investec Champions Cup this season.
Genge, who made his debut as a 21-year-old against Wales in May 2016, says the new generation of front-row talent are better prepared for the Test game than he was.
“They are big lumps, not like when we were younger,” he said.
“Billy is bigger than me I think – size 15 feet. All the youngsters who come in, they are young, but they are ready.
“I wasn’t ready for Test match rugby until 23, 24, maybe a bit older if I am honest.
“Now the boys come in and they are huge, they are robust, their neck strength is there, they have played a lot of Prem rugby.
“In the front row you have to be a little bit gnarly and have that about you. It is tough to bring boys up to speed, but until they prove otherwise, for me they are definitely ready to play.”
