England coach Wayne Bennett’s bid to reunite the Burgess brothers on the international stage has been thwarted by injury.
Front rower George Burgess, ignored for the 2017 World Cup following a dip in form, played himself back into Bennett’s 19-man squad for next Saturday’s one-off Test against New Zealand in Denver.
He was recalled alongside twin Tom and older brother Sam but was forced to pull out after picking up an injury in South Sydney’s 42-24 win over Parramatta on Friday.
Taylor, who will fly out with team-mate Jake Connor after Hull’s Betfred Super League game against Wigan on Saturday, will be hoping to win his fourth cap against the Kiwis in Colorado.
He made his England debut against France in Avignon in October 2016 and also played against Scotland in the Four Nations Series that followed.
?SQUAD UPDATE@ScottTagTaylor to replace @burgessgeorge in 19-man squad for Denver Test
READ ➡️ https://t.co/j8TPMTvN6u pic.twitter.com/mjDhLjTEkK
— England Rugby League (@England_RL) June 15, 2018
The former Hull KR and Wigan forward was in the 20-man squad that flew to Sydney for a mid-season Test against Samoa in 2017 but did not take the field and made just one appearance in the 2017 World Cup, the final group game against France in Perth.
Meanwhile, former Hull KR forward Clint Newton will represent the Australian players’ association in Denver.
Newton, who raised player welfare concerns over playing the match at the Mile High Stadium, will fly to the States in his role as RLPA’s general manager of stakeholder relations and plans to speak with both Bennett and New Zealand coach Michael Maguire.
