Brian Ashton made no pretence about the significance of this month’s World Cup training camp, which enters its Portuguese phase today. England’s head coach has already caught his preliminary squad on the hop by giving them three days with the Royal Marines this week and will have noted the application and determination of his players before they undertake rugby-specific work in the Algarve over the next eight days.

With so many places in the final squad of 30 there for the taking, even the youngest player – Danny Cipriani, the 19-year-old London Wasps full back – may feel he has a chance, despite his lack of experience. Then there are those who cannot train yet, such as Mike Tindall, but who have not been written out of the picture.

Tindall, the Gloucester centre and veteran of the 2003 World Cup-winning side, who broke a leg playing against Newcastle Falcons in April, admitted yesterday: “It’s going to be close. I hope to start running in a month or so and then get into one of the warm-up games [in August]. We’ll know in six weeks’ time if I’m going to make it.”

England’s strong resources at lock suggest that Danny Grewcock will not make the final squad. Grewcock’s appeal against a six-week suspension, imposed by European Rugby Cup Ltd for a punch during the European Challenge Cup final between Bath and Clermont Auvergne, was thrown out on Tuesday night and means that he will be unavailable until England have played their first two pool matches in the World Cup, against the United States and South Africa.

The past three days have brought echoes of England preparations in 1999 and 2000, when they trained with the Marines at Lympstone before the fourth World Cup and the tour the next year to South Africa. Their efforts then earned them no more than a quarter-final defeat in Paris – by the Springboks – although their 1-1 share of the series with South Africa eight months later was the beginning of a surge towards world domination.

As if England players will not have seen enough of their South African counterparts by the time this year has ended, Wasps can look forward to close encounters with John Smit, the Springbok captain, in a club context next season. Wasps, the Heineken Cup holders, occupy the same European pool as Clermont Auvergne, who have agreed a two-year deal with Smit, but the hooker emphasised that this does not mean the end of his international career.

“The time has come to make a change and move on in my professional career,” Smit, who has spent the past ten years with Sharks and has won 67 caps, said. Now 29, he could resume for South Africa after his French leave ends in June 2009.

The first domestic competition after the World Cup ends on October 20 will be the opening round of the EDF Energy Cup, in which Wasps find themselves alongside Gloucester, Newcastle Falcons and Newport Gwent Dragons. The regional concept has been removed from the pool stage of this Anglo-Welsh tournament and Leicester, the holders, have been grouped with Bath, Sale Sharks and Cardiff Blues.

Bath have home advantage when Leicester open their defence over the weekend of October 26 to 28. “The first two rounds are before we expect most of the World Cup players to return to club action,” Steve Meehan, the Bath coach, said. “Facing Leicester and Sale twice in the opening few months of the season will make it a big opening eight weeks for the Bath squad.”

Ion Paulica, one of Bath’s incoming players, has been named in Romania’s World Cup squad, while in round three of the Tri-Nations tournament, in Melbourne on Saturday, Chris Jack returns to the New Zealand second row against Australia after paternity leave. Mils Muliaina and Luke McAlister form a new midfield combination in a side showing five changes from that which defeated South Africa last week. Adam Ashley-Cooper replaces Drew Mitchell on Australia’s wing.

EDF Energy Cup

Pool A: Newport Gwent Dragons, London Wasps, Gloucester, Newcastle Falcons. Pool B: Cardiff Blues, Bath, Sale Sharks, Leicester. Pool C: Ospreys, Harlequins, Worcester Warriors, London Irish. Pool D: Llanelli Scarlets, Leeds Carnegie, Saracens, Bristol.

Pool fixtures

October 26-28: Newport Gwent Dragons v London Wasps, Gloucester v Newcastle Falcons, Bath v Leicester, Cardiff Blues v Sale Sharks, London Irish v Harlequins, Worcester Warriors v Ospreys, Bristol v Llanelli Scarlets, Leeds Carnegie v Saracens.

November 2-4: London Wasps v Gloucester, Newcastle Falcons v Newport Gwent Dragons, Leicester v Cardiff Blues, Sale Sharks v Bath, Harlequins v Worcester Warriors, Ospreys v London Irish, Llanelli Scarlets v Leeds Carnegie, Saracens v Bristol.

November 30-December 2: Newport Gwent Dragons v Gloucester, London Wasps v Newcastle Falcons, Bath v Cardiff Blues, Leicester v Sale Sharks, London Irish v Worcester Warriors, Harlequins v Ospreys, Bristol v Leeds Carnegie, Llanelli Scarlets v Saracens.