Brothers to lead England rugby teams against France

Two brothers are to captain their England rugby teams versus France in their Six Nations championship over the weekend.

Declan will skipper the U18s side at Chinnor on Saturday whilst older brother Connor will lead out the Under 20s in La Rochelle on Sunday.

They both started playing at New Milton Rugby Football Club in The New Forest, Hampshire.

Their father, Brendan Treacey, said he would be there to watch both play: "It's an absolute dream and to have two brothers playing for England, let alone captaining, is crazy," he said.

The father said their whole family was "very much rugby orientated".

"They've got a younger brother, Oscar, who is in the U15s, both at New Milton and Bath, and he's very keen to push on," he said.

"I think years of dragging them up the rugby club and sitting with them out cold watching a bit, and then helping coaching has probably got them going.

"The rest their coaches in Bath and England have done, I suppose."

The brothers have also received encouragement from their former school, Priestlands in Lymington, which said in a Facebook post that it was "really proud" of them.

Brendon said their success was "an absolute dream".

"To have two brothers playing for England, let alone captaining, is crazy and then at the same time is even more unique," he added.

He said the family was "very mindful of not pushing them".

"To play and do what they do at this level, there's lots of sacrifices," Brendon said.

"Some we have to point out but some are obvious to them.

"They don't have a normal teenage life, they miss out on a few parties here and there but hopefully, the rewards pay off. They've got to be the drivers, really."

The U18 fixture will be streamed live on the England Rugby YouTube channel.

The U20 Six Nations will be available on the BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and the BBC Sport app.

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