Wednesday 6 February 2019 19:05, UK
Dylan Hartley has a good chance of returning from injury to play a part in England's Six Nations campaign, according to defence coach John Mitchell.
The England co-captain has been out with a knee injury since December and was omitted from Eddie Jones' initial squad for the tournament, with Owen Farrell skippering England to a 32-20 victory over Ireland in Dublin last Saturday.
But the 32-year-old Northampton hooker has joined up with the England camp ahead of Sunday's game against France at Twickenham and could feature later in the tournament if his recovery continues to progress.
"It's good to see Dylan, he looks in great shape," Mitchell told Sky Sports News. "He is an excellent advertisement for a lot of the guys.
"He's been our captain and a leader and for him to come in, in the shape that he's in is a credit to him.
"It's a great reference to others in the group because ultimately that's what we want and that's exciting especially when a player at the camp is in good nick.
"It's been good to see him, good to chat with him, have an update. Ultimately he gets two extra days a week in the programme so I think we should hope to see him feature at some point in the Six Nations."
Pressed on whether it is realistic to see Hartley line up for England later in the Six Nations, Mitchell replied: "Based on what we're seeing at the moment that can eventuate".
