But with a toe injury ruling scrum-half Danny Care out and Ben Youngs having his own fitness issues following knee surgery, Johnson has decided to take three No.9s instead of two.

This has opened the door for Richard Wigglesworth and the uncapped Simpson, while centre Flutey has been restricted to a watching brief.

Shontayne Hape, Mike Tindall and Manu Tuilagi, the youngest player in the England squad, will now battle it out for the centre spots, with Matt Banahan providing another option.

Lewis Moody will captain the side in New Zealand which will see Jonny Wilkinson make his fourth World Cup appearance if needed as cover for Toby Flood.

Veteran lock Simon Shaw has made the cut with a 17-13 split in favour of the forwards, although Hendre Fourie is another to miss out.

Northampton’s Chris Ashton and Mark Cueto are the only recognised wingers in the squad while Delon Armitage will provide support for Ben Foden at full-back.

England’s front-row will be made up of Matt Stevens, David Wilson, Dan Cole, Alex Corbisiero and Andrew Sheridan while Steve Thompson offers back-up to Dylan Hartley at hooker.

Meanwhile, Louis Deacon, Courtney Lawes, Tom Croft, Tom Palmer, Easter, James Haskell and Tom Wood make up the rest of the party, with just one more warm-up game against Ireland this weekend before kicking things off against Argentina on September 10.

Backs: Delon Armitage (London Irish), Ben Foden (Northampton Saints). Chris Ashton (Northampton Saints), Mark Cueto (Sale Sharks), Matt Banahan (Bath). Shontayne Hape (London Irish), Mike Tindall (Gloucester), Manusamoa Tuilagi (Leicester Tigers). Toby Flood (Leicester Tigers), Jonny Wilkinson (Toulon). Joe Simpson (London Wasps), Richard Wigglesworth (Saracens), Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers)

Forwards: Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers), Alex Corbisiero (London Irish), Andrew Sheridan (Sale Sharks), Matt Stevens (Saracens), David Wilson (Bath). Dylan Hartley (Northampton Saints), Lee Mears (Bath), Steve Thompson (London Wasps), Louis Deacon (Leicester Tigers), Courtney Lawes (Northampton Saints), Tom Palmer (Stade Français), Simon Shaw (London Wasps). Tom Croft (Leicester Tigers), Nick Easter (Harlequins), James Haskell (Ricoh Black Rams), Lewis Moody (Bath), Tom Wood (Northampton Saints)