The former England and Richmond scrum half is set to make her move into the English pack after being named at hooker for England’s uncapped game against France on Wednesday, kick off 6pm GMT, at the Jean Bouin Stadium in Marseille.

Switching from scrum-half to hooker in international rugby is an unusual move but for Turner the move isn’t that unique as she first started her rugby career in the Number two shirt.

Turner said: “I have always seen myself as a hooker falling into the scrum half position to be perfectly honest. I was not a scrum half who just wanted to try something new.

“Not many people will know this but I actually played all my junior rugby as a hooker. It just so happened then that our scrum half injured herself and I was the only player there who could consistently pass from the left and right so I stood in. From there I was asked to go to regional trials and it just sort of snow balled. I loved playing scrum half as I could kick the ball, pass and I could do whatever I wanted really, it was just that it was all rather accidental.

“I have always said to myself that when I achieved what I have done as a nine that I would give hooking another go. It’s comfortable and it feels right for me now. Looking ahead I have now got four years to go before the next world cup and my challenge is to be the best hooker in the world by then.”

The match will also mark a significant day for Turner who has not actually played international rugby since England’s defeat to New Zealand in the 2010 Rugby World Cup final. Since that defeat, the 27-year-old has been beset by injuries as well as having to make the transition to the front row and earn her honours in that position.

“After the world cup final I went back to premiership rugby and I expressed my intention to the England and Richmond coaches,” she added. “They were good about it but before I had a chance to make the move I injured myself playing sevens in Dubai. Initially, it was just going to be six weeks out and an operation and I knew I could deal with that. But then there were further complications as I injured myself again, and then again.  So I had to have another operation and basically I spent a year on the side-lines injured which was hugely frustrating.

“Throughout the year I was kept in the picture by the English coaches. The coaches were concerned that I might not be able to last a full 80 at hooker but I have been doing a lot of work on body positions, striking off the ball and working with Simon Hardy, the England Specialist Coach, and he has been awesome. We had a hooking camp recently with him and just being in an environment like that for two days was massively beneficial and now I am in with a shot.”

And if Turner can do enough to impress on Wednesday night, she is hoping that Head Coach Gary Street will make her dreams come true by giving her a starting cap at hooker against France on Saturday in the full international test match at the Pierre de Coubertin Stadium in Chateaurenard.

“For me, I never got a starting cap at nine. I came off the bench for my first cap but it really would mean the world to me to start my first game at hooker but that is something quite rare. I may have 50 plus caps at scrum half, but now I see myself as not having any. If I get that starting cap at hooker I will be over the moon. That is the highest privilege as far as I am concerned. I am now more excited and more motivated than ever. I have got my teeth into a new position and I have a new hunger to my game.”

England team v France

15        Kay     Wilson            (Bristol)

14        Michaela        Staniford        (Wasps)

13        Georgina       Roberts          (Darlington Mowden Park Sharks)

12        Kimberley      Oliver  (Bristol)

11        Lydia  Thompson     (Worcester)

10        Ceri     Large  (Worcester)

9          Natasha         Hunt   (Lichfield)

1          Rochelle        Clark   (Worcester)

2          Amy    Turner            (Richmond)

3          Rosemarie     Crowley         (Lichfield)

4          Harriet            Millar-Mills     (Lichfield)

5          Rowena         Burnfield       (Richmond)

6          Alexandra      Matthews       (Richmond)

7          Hannah         Gallagher      (Saracens)

8          Sarah Hunter            (Lichfield)

Replacements:

16        Victoria           Fleetwood     (Lichfield)

17        Laura  Keates            (Worcester)

18        Tamara           Taylor(Darlington Mowden Park Sharks)

19        Isobel Noel-Smith    (Bristol)

20        Rose   Jay      (Lichfield)

21        Sarah             McKenna       (Wasps)

22        Katherine      Merchant       (Worcester)

England Women Autumn International Series

• Nov 2nd France v England, Jean Bouin Stadium, Marseille, KO 6pm GMT
• Nov 5th France v England, Pierre de Coubertin Stadium at Chateaurenard, KO 2pm GMT
• Nov 26th England v New Zealand, Twickenham Stadium, KO 5pm
• Nov 29th England v New Zealand, Esher RFC, KO 7pm
• Dec 3rd England v New Zealand, Esher RFC, 2pm

Tickets for the game at Twickenham on November 26th are available from Ticketmaster.co.uk and group booking are available from the RFU by calling 0871 22 22 017, option 6. Prices range from £65 to £35. Junior tickets cost just £15.

Tickets for the international tests at Esher RFC on November 29th and December 3rd will be available on the gate and cost £10 for adults and £5 for juniors.

The 24-year-old Kiwi, who is the younger brother of Saturday’s man-of-the-match Richard Mayhew, plays at hooker but is also averse to the back row.

Speaking only moments after touching down at Newcastle Airport, Mayhew told Falcons TV: “It’s great to finally arrive and it has been a very long flight. I’m very much looking forward to getting amongst it.”

Teaming up with older brother Richard, the 6ft 1” No.2 said: “It’s good to see him again and he looks like he’s out of the Lion King with that haircut!

“I can’t wait to get stuck in and try my best. I’ve been really impressed with the whole set-up and it’s very professional and welcoming.”

Mayhew’s arrival on Tyneside gives the northeasterners an added boost ahead of Saturday’s trip to Exeter, with South African centre Corne Uys also expected to complete the relevant paperwork within the next two to three weeks, prior to his move to Kingston Park.

Head coach Alan Tait said: “I’ve looked at the videos of him playing for North Harbour and he is a quality player.

“We need cover at hooker and the signing of Michael means we will not be exposed in that area. His brother had a great game on Saturday, against Bath and he will want to prove himself in a Falcons jersey.”

22 year old Charles, who has recently finished the Super Rugby season with the Western Force, moves to Kingsholm on a short team deal as Argentinian international Matias Cortese has had surgery on a minor knee injury.

Cortese’s injury, along with Scott Lawson’s absence on Scotland international duty, means that Gloucester Rugby enter their preseason friendly campaign with only two fit hookers in England U20 international Koree Britton and Darren Dawidiuk.

Charles started his Super Rugby career with the ACT Brumbies and is a former Australian Schoolboys and U20s international.

And in October 2010 at 21 years of age, he was selected to the Qantas Wallabies Training Squad for the 2010 Spring Tour.

Currently on tour in Samoa with the Western Force, he will link up with the Gloucester Rugby squad very shortly and will be a welcome addition to the squad according to Head Coach Bryan Redpath:

“Nathan’s a very highly rated hooker in Australia. He’s got Super Rugby experience and has trained with the Wallabies.  We’re fortunate to be able to bring him in to cover Matias’ absence.”

“We had to act because if anything happened to Koree or Darren in the preseason games, we’d have no hooker cover for the start of the Aviva Premiership season. So, it’ll be good to have him on board.” 

David joined the London Irish Academy in 2003 and went on to become an integral part of the club’s U19 team that won the National Cup that season. What was meant to be a year long stay turned into a permanent move after he was promoted to the first team and has since gone on to make 136 senior appearances for the club, scoring six tries.

The Australian born hooker has represented England Saxons and gained full international selection when he played against New Zealand in July 2008.

London Irish head coach, Toby Booth said: “I have worked very closely with David since he first joined us in 2003. He is an accomplished lineout thrower and is great in the loose. We are all delighted that he will be with us for a further three seasons.”

Commenting on his decision to extend his current contract, David said: “I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at London Irish and I am sure I will continue to do so. We have a squad full of class players and I want to be with them challenging for titles over the coming seasons.”

Cronin, 24, was educated at Ardscoil Rís in Limerick and has previously played with Munster and Connacht, whom he joined in the summer of 2008.

A former Ireland Schools representative, Cronin featured in the AIB League for Shannon and he earned his first Ireland cap against Fiji in the RDS in November 2009, incidentally in the same match as Jonathan Sexton and Sean O’Brien.

He won his first start against New Zealand in the 2010 Summer Tests and also started against Australia. Cronin has also represented Ireland Schools, U-19, U-21, and ‘A’ (Ireland Wolfhounds) levels.

The Limerick man played three games in the recent Guinness series against Samoa, New Zealand and Argentina and has featured 7 times for Ireland to date.

Sean Cronin said: “I am delighted to put pen to paper on a deal to join Leinster this summer and I believe that with the exciting players in the squad, the future looks bright.

“I have been hugely impressed by Leinster’s displays both in the Magners League and in the Heineken Cup so far this season and the province’s ambitions mirror my own. Hopefully I can establish myself in the squad when I join up in a few months time.

“I am grateful for the opportunity that Connacht have given me over the last three years to play for a fantastic club. They will continue to grow from strength to strength under Eric Elwood and the existing management team and I will do my utmost to help improve our Magners League standing over the coming months.”

Commenting on Cronin’s signing, Leinster Coach Joe Schmidt said: “It’s great that Sean has confirmed that he will join us this summer. He is a dynamic and talented front rower who will add experience at hooker following the retirement of John Fogarty earlier this season.”

15 Steve McColl
14 Andy Wright
13 Oli Goss
12 PJ Gidlow
11 Matt Williams
10 Tristan Roberts
9 Chris Hallam
1 Dan Frazier
2 Steve Boden
3 Michael Cusack
4 Glen Kenworthy
5 Matt Challinor
6 Zack Farivarz
7 Neil Cochrane
8 Andy Boyde
16 Lewis Thiede
17 Steve Lawrie
18 Dom Parsons
19 Chris Walker
20 Chris Briers
21 Brett Davey
22 Dougie Flockhart

Titterrell requires surgery on his ACL which leaves the Yorkshire side with only one senior hooker available for this weekend’s clash with Sale with Steve Thompson away on international duty with England.

Commenting on the news Director of Rugby Andy Key said, “We are bitterly disappointed for Andy however he will have the operation very soon and I am sure, given his nature and athletic strength that he will be battling to be back as soon as possible. Whilst we have suffered a number of injuries this season, this is only the second time that a serious injury has occurred in training, with Dan White breaking his leg earlier this year which makes it even more frustrating for Andy.

“Unfortunately in the short term, with Steve Thompson away with England, that only leaves us with Phil Nilsen to cover at hooker. We have two very talented young hookers in Harry Hannan and Scott Freer but both are coming back from long term injuries. In the case of Scott, hopefully he will get some rugby under his belt in the next week and I am sure he will be pushing for inclusion in the first team squad in due course. We have to make sure that we do not rush into a decision in case there are other options out there.”

Bedford’s impressive 23-16 points victory at Bristol on Sunday means they have recorded five wins from the six Championship games played to date, and are presently second in the league table behind Worcester. The Pirates are third.

The Blues, whose only loss in this campaign was a narrow 19-16 defeat away to Rotherham Titans, ended up fourth in the league table last season and have since acquired the services of players including former Plymouth Albion hooker Joe Clark, and a former Exeter duo in centre Tom Bedford and lock Sean Tomes. Owen Farrell and James Short (their top try-scorer with 4), are two of a number of players who are dual-registered with Saracens, and their top points scorer is James Pritchard on 67.

In four games played against Bedford last season, the Pirates won 25-24 and 22-18 at home, but lost 19-16 and 42-18 away. The latter loss understandably dented pride, so the Pirates will strive to make amends this weekend. Their selection shows a number of changes, one in the backs and five in the forwards, from the side that started against Plymouth Albion last Sunday. Tom Luke comes into the side at inside centre in place of the unavailable Steve Winn, and in the pack flankers Phil Burgess and Chris Morgan return, as does lock Laurie McGlone who has recovered from injury and will partner Mike Myerscough in the second-row. The experienced Alan Paver is named at loose-head prop, and Dave Ward was an obvious to be named at hooker following the broken ankle injury suffered by Rob Elloway. Listed among the replacements is the highly promising Tom Cowan-Dickie, who will make his Championship debut if called off the bench.

Cornish Pirates: R. Cook, G. Pointer, M. Hopper, T. Luke, W. Davies, J. Bentley, G. Cattle (capt), B. Cowan, P. Burgess, C. Morgan, L. McGlone, M. Myerscough, R. Brits, D. Ward, A. Paver.
Replacements: R. Storer, T. Cowan-Dickie, C. Rimmer, I. Nimmo, K. Marriott, R. McAtee, N. Jackson.

Head Coach Franco Smith has decided to make some changes to the squad that won 29-13 last Saturday.

Flanker Marco Filippucci and hooker Franco Sbaraglini will make their Magners League debut while Props, Pedro Di Santo and Augusto Allori and captain Antonio Pavanello all return to face the Blues.

Benetton Treviso Team:

15 Brendan Williams
14 Joseph Maddock
13 Tommaso Benvenuti
12 Alberto Sgarbi
11 Luke McLean
10 Kristopher Burton
9 Tobias Botes
8 Manoa Vosawai
7 Alessandro Zanni
6 Marco Filippucci
5 Corniel Van Zyl
4 Antonio Pavanello (Captain)
3 Pedro Di Santo
2 Franco Sbaraglini
1 Augusto Allori

Replacements

16 Leonardo Ghiraldini
17 Ignacio Fernandez Rouyet
18 Lorenzo Cittadini
19 Enrico Pavanello
20 Robert Barbieri
21 Paul Derbyshire
22 Fabio Semenzato
23 Simon Picone

The Titans have beaten Bristol and Bedford in their opening fixtures but have been self-critical in analysis of their performance levels ahead of a challenging trip to Worcester this weekend.
“We’re learning all the time and Andre has taught us a couple of new scrummaging tricks this week which we’ll put to use,” said Baines.
“Winning matches is obviously very pleasing but we’ve got to be hard on ourselves and say that certain things need to improve and we’re working hard to address that.
“There’s more to come from us because we are still getting familiar with how each other plays.”
Baines has stepped up two divisions to take his place in the Rotherham ranks and intends to keep his place in the back row.
“In all honesty, I didn’t expect to be in the team at the start of the season,” he said.
“It’s a big step for me to play in the Championship but hopefully the supporters will recognise that I take a lot of pride in playing for Rotherham.
“The noise and passion from the supporters really stood out on Sunday and I’m glad that the team were able to repay them for helping us through.”
There’s been no let-up in training this week with the players having endured a taxing Tuesday evening session having been given Monday to recover.
“We’re still doing 400 metre sprints and putting a lot of time into our scrummaging,” said Baines.
“It works for us and the coaches are hard on us because they know we will see the benefits if we work hard.”

Meanwhile, Head Coach Andre Bester has confirmed that Tongan hooker Ilaisa Ma’asi won’t be joining the club despite having appeared in provisional squad lists.