Tom and Ben Curry will become the first twin brothers to play for England in the team's Six Nations opener against two-time defending champions Ireland in Dublin on Saturday.

The 26-year-olds, who both play for English Premiership club Sale, will fill the flanker positions either side of number eight Ben Earl.

Harlequins wing Cadan Murley will make his debut after being given the nod ahead of Ollie Sleightholme, who filled the position in England's most recent outing against Japan in November.

Alex Mitchell has recovered from a knee problem to start at scrum-half, with Marcus Smith at fly-half and Freddie Steward at full-back.

Head coach Steve Borthwick has opted for a six-two split between forwards and backs on the bench with Ollie Chessum, Chandler Cunningham-South and Tom Willis set to provide heavyweight reinforcements in the second half.

Maro Itoje, who has replaced Jamie George as captain, will skipper England for the first time.

Hooker Luke Cowan-Dickie makes his first England start for more than two years following a career-threatening battle with a nerve issue in his neck, taking over from George, who has a hamstring strain.

The Curry brothers' only previous appearance in an England matchday 23 came against New Zealand in November but with Ben replacing Tom in the second half, they were not present on the pitch at the same time.

Tom Curry became the youngest player to start an international for England in 90 years when he made his debut as an 18-year-old against Argentina in 2017 and now has 56 caps.

Ben won the first of his six caps so far against the United States in 2021.

Ben, the older brother by 90 minutes, described the occasion as "very special".

"When you go back home and you look in your room and there is artwork that you have made at primary school and high school -- there is one of me in an England shirt," he told the BBC.

"Everything has led up to this moment."

Borthwick was hit by a string of withdrawals last week, with George, Alex Coles, Alex Dombrandt and Jack van Poortvliet all dropping out of the squad.

England won just five of their 12 Tests in 2024, a sequence that included five straight defeats and three losses in a row at Twickenham.

They were the only side to beat Ireland in last year's Six Nations but have not beaten the Irish in Dublin since 2019.

"We're looking forward to the challenge of facing the tournament favourites," Borthwick said.

"We know it'll be a tough contest against a team that's very familiar with each other. We'll need to work tirelessly and maintain our discipline from the first whistle to the last."

England (15-1)

Freddie Steward; Tommy Freeman, Ollie Lawrence, Henry Slade, Cadan Murley; Marcus Smith, Alex Mitchell; Ben Earl, Ben Curry, Tom Curry; George Martin, Maro Itoje (capt); Will Stuart, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Ellis Genge

Replacements: Theo Dan, Fin Baxter, Joe Heyes, Ollie Chessum, Chandler Cunningham-South, Tom Willis, Harry Randall, Fin Smith

Coach: Steve Borthwick (ENG)

jw/ea