Welwyn Rugby Club have four representatives and Harpenden one in the England squad announced for the Women's Six Nations.

Hannah Botterman, who started her career at Datchworth, Zoe Harrison and Helena Rowland keep their places in a 40-strong training squad picked by head coach Simon Middleton.

The fourth choice though is a newcomer, Ella Wyrwas yet to be capped by the senior team.

Sarah McKenna is the former Harpenden player to be included as she looks to add to her 39 caps.

The group will meet at St George’s Park for the first of two camps at the East Midlands venue before fine-tuning their preparations at Bisham Abbey.

England open their Six Nations campaign in Scotland on March 26 before travelling to Italy on April 3.

Kingsholm in Gloucester is the first venue for their two home games, the match against Wales coming on April 9, before Leicester Tigers' Welford Road welcomes Ireland on April 24.

They finish their campaign with a potential winner-takes-all trip to Bayonne to face France on April 30.

But while the tournament represents a key part in any season for the Red Roses, this year also has an even bigger target.

Middleton said: “This is our last competitive tournament before we go into the World Cup so it’s an opportunity for players to put their best foot forward.

“We’ve got a summer’s preparation to go but ultimately how people perform on the biggest stages is critical to us.

“We’re really excited and can’t wait to get started.

“This year’s Six Nations has got the potential to be a consistently competitive tournament. Scotland will be buoyed by qualifying for the World Cup and have that preparation time behind them already so they’ll be building on that which will put them in a better place.

"Scotland in Scotland is always going to be a challenging fixture.

"Wales have introduced their new contracts structure which is a real positive for the game and they will be wanting to make a statement. They’ll have had more contact time with players for a few months and I expect them to be well-drilled, well organised – they’re always competitive and this season will be no different.

“Italy away is always a tough fixture. It’s one we did really well in last year and were really pleased with how that went.

“Ireland will also be wanting to make a statement. Depending on what happens, France has the potential to be the biggest of international games.

“We’re really looking forward to going to Kingsholm and Welford Road. It’s really exciting. Hopefully we can build on the momentum of the autumn internationals in terms of the crowds and delivering a game that gets the fans excited.

"We see that as an integral part of our duty, not just to win but to entertain too. We’ll be looking to do that.

“We have a tremendous amount of competition in the squad both in terms of the established players and especially in terms of the younger players now coming through, which is great.”

England 2022 Women’s Six Nations squad

Forwards
Zoe Aldcroft (Gloucester-Hartpury, 28 caps)
Sarah Beckett (Harlequins, 22 caps)
Sarah Bern (Bristol Bears, 40 caps)
Hannah Botterman (Saracens, 26 caps)
Shaunagh Brown (Harlequins, 24 caps)
Rowena Burnfield (Wasps, 50 caps)
May Campbell (Saracens, uncapped)
Bryony Cleall (Wasps, 5 caps)
Poppy Cleall (Saracens, 50 caps)
Amy Cokayne (Harlequins, 60 caps)
Vickii Cornborough (Harlequins, 64 caps)
Lark Davies (Loughborough Lightning, 35 caps)
Vicky Fleetwood (Saracens, 79 caps)
Rosie Galligan (Harlequins, 1 cap)
Detysha Harper (Loughborough Lightning, 5 caps)
Sarah Hunter (Loughborough Lightning, 130 caps)
Sadia Kabeya (Loughborough Lightning, 2 caps)
Alex Matthews (Worcester Warriors, 45 caps)
Harriet Millar-Mills (Wasps, 66 caps)
Maud Muir (Wasps, 4 caps)
Marlie Packer (Saracens, 79 caps)
Connie Powell (Gloucester-Hartpury, 1 cap)
Abbie Ward (Bristol Bears, 50 caps)

Backs
Holly Aitchison (Saracens, 4 caps)
Jess Breach (Harlequins, 19 caps)
Heather Cowell (Harlequins, 2 caps)
Abby Dow (Wasps, 22 caps)
Zoe Harrison (Saracens, 34 caps)
Natasha Hunt (Gloucester-Hartpury, 55 caps)
Leanne Infante (Bristol Bears, 48 caps)
Ellie Kildunne (Harlequins, 18 caps)
Sarah McKenna (Saracens, 39 caps)
Lucy Packer (Harlequins, 1 cap)
Amber Reed (Bristol Bears, 58 caps)
Helena Rowland (Loughborough Lightning, 10 caps)
Emily Scarratt (Loughborough Lightning, 96 caps)
Emma Sing (Gloucester-Hartpury, uncapped)
Lagi Tuima (Harlequins, 12 caps)
Lydia Thompson (Worcester Warriors, 50 caps)
Ella Wyrwas (Saracens, uncapped)