Martin Johnson gambles on Lewis Moody

Lewis Moody is ready to return as England captain for the RBS Six Nations clash against France at Twickenham on Saturday.

Moody has been ruled out for the last five weeks with a knee ligament injury which meant he missed the wins over Wales and Italy with Mike Tindall taking the armband.

Now, after playing just 23 minutes of rugby for Bath at the weekend, team manager Martin Johnson is set to gamble on Moody's fitness by throwing him straight into the titanic battle as long as he does not suffer any further problems in training.

Moody became England captain a year ago against France when Steve Borthwick was injured and has made the position his own, leading from the front with typically reckless abandon. This leads to inevitable injuries and Moody can be expected to put himself in harm's way against France.

Tindall's reign was always going to be short lived but even he will be surprised that Moody is back so quickly after the knee injury. Johnson believes England need Moody's experience against a French team that will field a powerful back row now featuring the bearded colossus Sebastien Chabal.

This is one of Johnson's biggest calls as team manager as the England back row of Tom Wood, Nick Easter and James Haskell - who is likely to make way for Moody - was impressive in the win over Italy at Twickenham.

If Haskell drops down to the bench, he can be relied upon to come on and make an impact against the French players he faces on a weekly basis now that he is playing his rugby in Paris for Stade Francais.