Six England players quit after Rugby World Cup bronze medal match

Ben Youngs is one of six England players who will bring down the curtain on their England careers in Friday's World Cup bronze final against Argentina at Stade de France. The nation's most-capped men's player with 126 Test appearances makes his first start of the tournament but also his final Red Rose outing, having launched his international odyssey against Scotland 13 years ago.

Steve Borthwick has saluted a scrum-half master who has been first choice for most of his career until slipping down the pecking order at this World Cup due to the emergence of Alex Mitchell.

Owen Farrell leads a team showing eight changes in personnel and two positional switches, one of them Curry's move to blindside flanker to accommodate Sam Underhill's first appearance of the World Cup in the number seven jersey.

Head coach Borthwick fields an entirely new front row made up of Ellis Genge, Theo Dan and Will Stuart, with tighthead prop Dan Cole poised to make potentially his final England appearance off the bench.

The two defeated semi-finalists have had about a week to pick themselves up from their disappointment, and prepare for the bronze final, the penultimate match of Rugby World Cup 2023, and a curtain raiser to the showpiece match on Saturday.

England, after coming so close to beating defending champions South Africa on Saturday, will want to sign off from a tournament that has exceeded expectations with one more win – and give the likes of Dan Cole, Danny Care and Ben Youngs one last Rugby World Cup hurrah.

Here are the six players who are expected to retire after Friday night's game:

Ben Youngs

The scrum-half veteran of four World Cups has said that retiring from rugby now is "absolutely the right decision"

He has been playing Test rugby for 13 years, the majority of which he has spent as first-choice scrum-half before his slide down the pecking order at France 2023.

Speaking about being picked for the game against Argentina, he said: ""This will be my last game in an England shirt. Steve told me that I was playing and after he told me I told him, as I hadn't spoken to him about it, 'look, this will be my last game'.

"I'm grateful for the chance to do that. I've got brilliant memories. I am so honoured and privileged to have done it for this long. I'm also really privileged and feel honoured that I get to end it on my terms and walk away which feels like absolutely the right time to do so."

Speaking about why now is the right time, he added: "I've done it for so long. There is great talent within the nine jersey and it just feels right. I feel so content. The fact that I had this in my head for a long time and the fact that I didn't even hesitate about it makes me realise it's absolutely the right decision. Even now, there is not a part of me that thinks 'what if?'. I am absolutely making the right call. I've also got a young family, all those bits come with it. I'll go back and play my club rugby and I look forward to doing that.

"I've got great memories. It's been a long journey. But 13 years just goes like that. You've seen me at my highest highs and lowest lows so it'll be nice to finish on a high this weekend."

Jonny May

Jonny May has said in past interviews that his international career will be over when England’s World Cup campaign comes to an end.

The 33-year-old wing was left out of England’s initial squad for the tournament but was handed a reprieve when Anthony Watson was ruled out through injury.

He made his debut against Argentina in 2013, and is England’s second highest try-scorer. At the start of 2021 he had set his heart on a place on the British & Irish Lions tour of South Africa but, after England endured a torrid Six Nations campaign, he was one of a clutch of Eddie Jones’s players to miss out.

In an interview with The Guardian before the tournament, he said: "This will definitely be my last World Cup, most likely my last time playing for England. Never say never but probably, most likely, this will be the last campaign I’ll have with England and I’m incredibly grateful to be here. So just rip in and give everything I can for this last period of time."

Dan Cole

The 36-year-old's call up to the squad was described as an an astonishing Rugby World Cup comeback..

He has been playing his fourth World Cup against all the odds, after carrying the can for England’s scrum stuffing by South Africa in the 2019 final.

Dropped, he spent three years resigned to never wearing the Rose again, but was named as part of the squad for this World Cup.

At the time he said: “For three of the last four years I didn’t think it would happen. After 2019, the final, what happened, I wouldn’t say it would have been easy to pack it in, but it would have been easy just to drift.

“I still remember what went on, I haven't forgotten it. The world keeps turning but you come back from a World Cup and you have a bit of a point to prove or a grievance. You have that annoyance in yourself that you want to put things right.”

He is now expected to call time on a 13-year international career that has seen him rack up 106 caps

Danny Care

The 36-year-old, who had been left out of the initial squads, began his England career back in 2008, and just like team-mate Marler, he admitted that a conversation with Borthwick made him realise that selection for this year's World Cup was possible.

"When Steve picked the phone up and offered me the chance to come in and try and fight for a spot I have never put the phone down more excited," he explained.

Under contract at Harlequins only until the end of the season, it seems likely that Care will not only call time on his international career over the coming months, but hang up his boots altogether.

Joe Marler

The 33-year-old prop has enjoyed his third World Cup with England, but it looks like the end of his Test career after 10 years. He will leave with 89 caps to his name.

Marler, who has previously retired from international rugby twice, had dropped hints earlier that the 2023 Rugby World Cup would signal his exit from the sport at this elite level. Read here about why his wife was 'fuming' with him.

Courtney Lawes

The England vice-captain announced earlier this week that he would be retiring at the end of the World Cup.

The 34-year-old has played in four World Cups and two British and Irish Lions tours and is one of only five Englishmen to be capped 100 times.

The flanker told the press: "I think it's time. I've done four World Cups, so I'm pretty happy with that. I haven't told Steve yet! But I will let him know.

"It's a bit of an end of an era, but it's been a real honour for me to represent England for so long. It flies by.

"I'm proud of the journey I've been on. To be able to finish with this group, it's something I'll treasure forever."

He made his England debut against Australia in 2009 when Borthwick was team captain.