Goode looks likely to replace Brown at no.15 for the vital Six Nations clash with Ireland on Sunday.
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Alex Goode is set to start for England in its Six Nations clash with Ireland after Mike Brown suffered a setback during his recovery from concussion.
Goode has not played for England since March 2013 but it set to feature after Brown was concussed following an accidental collision with Italy centre Andrea Masi at Twickenham 10 days ago.
Brown was expected to make a full recovery from the injury, however he suffered symptoms of concussion again on Friday and was forced to begin the recovery protocol all over again.
England coach Stuart Lancaster refused to rule Brown out of Sunday’s game, but indicated that it would be extremely unlikely that the Harlequins full-back would play.
“Mike was symptom-free, then he did the bike on Friday and there were some symptoms after that, so he had to step down again,” Lancaster is quoted as saying by the Daily Mail.
“He’s had a rest over the weekend and started the return-to-play process again today.
“I’ve got to be 100 per cent certain that he’s right with the type of knock it was and also to go into the size of game that this is.
“The reality is he won’t have trained from the (Italy) game to potentially this Friday, which is 13 days. You have to have the team ready to play.
“A lot will depend on how the next 24 hours go but a decision will have to be made within the next two days because the team need a chance to prepare with all the pieces in place. It will be a judgement call based on a medical call.”
The two unbeaten sides face off in a potential Six Nations decider on Sunday at 3pm (GMT).
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