After years of searching, Eddie Jones and England finally have several solutions to their back row conundrum

England may finally have some viable choices at openside flanker for the first time since Neil Back and Richard Hill hung up their boots

Tom Curry showed his Test qualities in South Africa, where he was a stand-out performer (Getty)

Come in number seven, your time may be now.

Whisper it, but come the first of their four November Tests and England may finally have some viable choices at openside flanker for the first time since Neil Back and Richard Hill hung up their boots more than a decade ago.

There have been several false dawns before and Eddie Jones alone has named seven different players in England’s problem position since he took over in 2015.

But, all of a sudden the pool seems to be widening and Jones could be set to reap the benefits.

Last week Matt Kvesic, Tom Curry and Sam Underhill – each one bona fide English No7s – started for their clubs on the opening day of the Gallagher Premiership

The trio now offer Jones a realistic prospect of pinning down the fetcher he craves.

The end of the six and a half may be nigh.

Out of nowhere, there’s strength in depth in a position so vital to any team with serious pretentions to win a World Cup but one which a succession of England coaches have failed to fill adequately. Bulldozing brawn has been more prized the breakdown excellence and footballing savvy.

James Haskell, Chris Robshaw and Tom Wood have all had a shot and never given less than 100 per cent. But it’s always felt as if they were sixes playing out of position.

Matt Kvesic in action for Exeter Chiefs (Getty)

Last Saturday Exeter’s Kvesic – who said in August his “ship has sailed” under Jones – delivered the type of high-tempo, all-action openside’s performance the England coach will find hard to ignore. Play like it again six times before the autumn and Kvesic will be well positioned to earn a fourth England cap.

Exeter’s opponents may have been a leaden-footed, underpowered Leicester outfit but it was the obvious improvement in the 26-year-old’s conditioning which provided enough hope to believe this could, finally, be his breakthrough season.

“Matt looked like the player we know he can be,” said Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter. “He looked like a player who has spent the summer wisely.”

This Saturday, Kvesic will have another chance to prove his display against Leicester was no flash in the pan when Exeter travel to Wasps for what should be an entertaining game between two sides with talented footballers and gifted strike runners to match the brute power demanded of the modern game.

Exeter, last season’s beaten Premiership finalists, are strong favourites. But with Brad Shields starting at six and former All Black fly half Lima Sopoaga set to make his debut off the bench, Kvesic and co will have their hands full.

Meanwhile at the Recreation Ground, Underhill will start his second game of the Gallagher Premiership season after his welcome return from last season’s concussion-fogged season.

Underhill, the most direct and combative of England’s openside options has a long way to go to recapture the form which marked him out as a youngster of enormous potential last season, but the signs are encouraging.

His relentless work-rate and commitment make Underhill a force of nature when fit and firing and he – along with Bath and England fans alike – will be praying he can stay fit long enough to push for England contention again. He is so-much more than just a tackling machine and he showed last autumn why England’s coaches rate him so highly before the dreaded concussion curse struck.

Underhill’s work-rate makes him a force of nature (Getty)

Talking of which, last Saturday saw Curry – who made an impressive contribution to England’s summer tour to South Africa – knocked out after just four minutes of Sale’s opening day defeat to Harlequins.

Of course, this is concerning for Curry, who like all the best No7s bases his game on exceptional fitness and almost incomprehensible commitment at the breakdown. We must all hope Steve Diamond’s unnecessarily flippant dismissal of the 20-year-old’s removal from the field in a neck brace does not come back to haunt him.

Thankfully common sense has prevailed and Curry will miss Sunday’s visit of Worcester to the AJ Bell Stadium, replaced by his twin brother Ben.

We wish him a speedy recovery as, in many ways, the former Oundle schoolboy could be England’s best prospect of the lot. The 20-year-old showed his Test match qualities in South Africa, where he was among England’s stand-out performers in the 2-1 series defeat. With pace, dynamism and a dog-fighter’s competitive streak, Curry has a huge future with England.

He is a player with attitude.

“You’ve got to see what’s best for the team, but if you ever get a chance to go up against their seven you’ve either got to smack him or smoke him,” he said recently. “You’ve got to win, whether it’s a clean-out, a tackle or a carry. Everyone has to have 100% intent.”

It’s the sort of fighting talk England fans want to hear. Perhaps, this season will finally be the one when England’s seven becomes their lucky number.