BUDE RFC’s Alfie Johns has been selected for an England Under 17s development squad training camp at the weekend.

The 17-year-old forward, who is with the Exeter Chiefs Academy and attends Exeter College, is equally adept in any of the three back-row positions and has caught the eye with a string of impressive displays throughout the season.

He is one of six Chiefs named in the 57-man squad by head coach Jonathan Pendlebury and his assistant Will Parkin that will attend the camp at St George’s Park in Burton-upon-Trent.

The others are forwards Tyler Knightley (Truro College), Mawgan Talling (Exeter College) and Harry Westlake (Ivybridge Community College) plus backs Charlie Bosanko (Ivybridge Community College) and Harry Pidwell (Truro College).

Speaking before Saturday, Will Parkin said: “As we reach the apex of our season at under 18 level, this weekend offers a window for our staff to integrate some new faces to our pathway.

“The focus of our spring under 17s men’s camps is to welcome a number of players to the pathway for the first time. As it is for all our pathway groups, this camp will be all around the players developing and getting better within our environment here at England.

"What we also have ahead of us are upcoming camps in May with a fixture against Hartpury, as we start to prepare for what lies ahead in the summer with a tour to South Africa. This is a chance for some of these players to put their hands up ahead of that.

“The programme for each day is designed to be an intense introduction to the expectations we set for the under 18 men’s team with two rugby sessions, review and strength and conditioning all being covered. The staff and I are eager to see how the team come into a new environment, put themselves under pressure and own their own development.”