England release three for club duty

England have released three players from their Portugal training camp to feature in next Saturday's Guinness Premiership programme.

Sale Sharks back Mathew Tait, together with London Irish pair Delon Armitage and Nick Kennedy, will all be given the chance of important game time.

Sale visit Worcester on Saturday, while Irish tackle Gloucester in a top-of-the-table clash at Kingsholm.

Full-back Armitage, England's star performer during the autumn Tests, and lock Kennedy recently recovered from injuries. They are probable starters for the RBS 6 Nations opener against Italy at Twickenham on February 7.

All three players will return home tonight.

Bath flanker Michael Lipman, meanwhile, did not train on the Algarve today because he was undergoing assessment by England's medical team.

Lipman took a heavy blow to the head during Bath's Heineken Cup clash against Toulouse two days ago, and was forced off midway through the first half.