Leonard leads return of England's absentees

After successfully nursing England through the first three rounds of the Six Nations' Championship and keeping them on course for the Grand Slam despite a long casualty list, Clive Woodward finally has something to smile about.

Jason Leonard, England's prop of the century and the world's most capped front row player, is over the hamstring injury which cut short his 100th Test appearance against France last month. The wing Ben Cohen has finished rehabilitation on his thigh strain and will be available for the Calcutta Cup match, and Jason Robinson has sorted out a knee problem. What with Neil Back fit again as well things are really looking up.

Back's Leicester colleague Martin Johnson, the England captain, looks to have recovered from a niggling Achilles tendon injury and should return to the second row, where he might be joined by Danny Grewcock. The Bath lock sustained a knock during Bath's home defeat by Northampton and suffered mild concussion, which usually would mean a mandatory three-week recovery period, but he is expected to be given medical clearance to play because that ruling need not apply in the élite game if a player is cleared to train and play by a neurologist.

Chris Mallac, Bath's head of physical preparation, has been in contact with the England team doctor, Simon Kemp, who will assess Grewcock further when the national squad report for duty in Surrey later today. Grewcock, who won his 38th cap when England beat Italy nine days ago, would be in a straight selection battle with Ben Kay for the Calcutta Cup, given Johnson's impending return.

But it did not all go Woodward's way yesterday. Another Leicester man, Ollie Smith, has pulled out of the squad after picking up a shoulder injury in the Tigers' Premiership defeat at Newcastle on Sunday. And still on the crocks' list are the props Phil Vickery and Julian White, together with the flanker Lewis Moody, but England's casualty count is getting smaller.

There was some good news for winless Wales as well. The hooker Jonathan Humphreys, recalled to the side, and to the captaincy, for the match against England only to suffer injury and miss the defeat against Scotland at Murrayfield, is fit to face England's Grand Slam rivals Ireland in Cardiff on Saturday. Humphreys had been out with a shoulder injury but yesterday he said: "I am fine in myself and more or less definite to make it."

That is not the case for two Frenchmen, however. The back-row forward Sébastien Chabal and the scrum-half Mathieu Barrau have pulled out of Sunday's game with Italy with ankle injuries suffered in club matches at the weekend.

Agen's Barrau will be replaced by Stade Toulousain's Jean-Baptiste Elissade, who last appeared for the national side in 2000, but Chabal's successor will not be known until today when Bernard Laporte and his men gather for training at Marcoussis, although the likeliest candidate is Stade Français' Patrick Tabacco.

Club rugby is increasing in popularity with a fistful of record attendances at the weekend led by London Irish with their best ever 18,585; and 10,693 Bristol fans showed their support during a difficult time, making the local derby against Gloucester the highest attended of the season, while Newcastle's 9,105 was their highest ever crowd at Kingston Park.