Six Nations 2011: Squad rivalry nurtured to sharpen England's edge

England are considering rushing Courtney Lawes and Tom Croft back into their match-day squad for their Calcutta Cup contest against Scotland on Sunday and are optimistic Toby Flood will also be fit enough to feature at Twickenham. With a first Six Nations title since 2003 up for grabs, the range of options now available to Martin Johnson is as luxurious as it has ever been. Johnson could easily have afforded to delay the return of Lawes and Croft, their mere presence in Bagshot this week having reminded the squad that resting on laurels is out of the question. On Tuesday night, however, the Leeds flanker Hendre Fourie and the Leicester lock George Skivington were released back to their clubs, signalling that Croft and Lawes are firmly in contention for bench roles against the Scots. Sale's Charlie Hodgson has also been deemed surplus to requirements, indicating that doubts about Flood's sore achilles have receded. The Leicester fly-half has been restricted in terms of training over the past week but has clearly been considered fit enough to train fully at the University of Surrey sports village in Guildford on Wednesday. Gone, either way, are the days when the withdrawal of one individual created ripples of collective self-doubt. There is no point immediately promoting Lawes and Croft above Louis Deacon and either Tom Wood or James Haskell but the latter trio will now have to raise their games even further. This cut-throat environment is precisely what Johnson is seeking as his squad prepare for the tournament's final push, the 17‑9 victory over France having not delighted the management in all respects. "At times against France it wasn't good enough," Johnson said. "If anyone in the squad thinks that was a good enough Test performance, they're mistaken. We need to get better every time we play." The desire of Scotland to overturn the odds at a ground where they have not won for 28 years also continues to nag away at Johnson, content to ignore the future while he concentrates on the present. "We're going to pick our best XV. If that's not the XV who played the week before we'll still pick it. Yes, we know there's a World Cup coming up, but there's also a big Test match coming up on Sunday which we want to win." It is a far cry from a year ago when England drew 15-15 with Scotland in a drab match at Murrayfield. Only six members of that English XV are likely to start again this weekend, Johnson having finally unleashed a new generation of players with the talent and, even more importantly, character he believes every Test player must have. "They're not here for the fame or the fortune, they're here because they want to be successful rugby players and play well for England. It sounds a simple thing but you need those kind of personalities in the squad." He did not mention the words "Danny" or "Cipriani" but the subliminal message was clear enough. Simon Shaw is still being monitored following a slight groin niggle, with Lawes having emerged unscathed from his comeback game for Northampton at Exeter on Sunday. He and Croft, who reckoned he was operating at only 80% of his best last weekend, clearly showed enough in training to convince Johnson there is no risk attached to picking them. "They're in the mix ... we'll see how they go over the next day or two and make the choice from there," Johnson said. "When all the guys come back the competition is going to be very fierce. The more difficult selection decisions we have, the happier we'll be." All Scotland can do in the circumstances is hope England become fatally overconfident. "Will they treat us with the respect we deserve? I'd have to question that," said the Scottish defence coach, Graham Steadman. "I'm sure they will have one eye on the grand slam and the bigger picture for them, I daresay, will be the fixture against Ireland in Dublin. They will see that as a bigger challenge than the challenge they're going to be facing this weekend."