Former England captain Martin Corry has told the RFU to not activate the 'exceptional circumstances' rule in order to select Steffon Armitage for the Rugby World Cup.

Foreign-based players are not considered for international selection, but the money on offer in France has seen players such as Armitage move overseas.

The flanker has impressed for European champions Toulon in recent seasons and there has been a call for coach Stuart Lancaster to activate the clause and select him this autumn.

However, Corry told Sky Sports News: "I don't see any player playing overseas who is considerably better than what we have got at the moment. I look at Armitage, and it's the same with [Nick] Abendanon. You've got to look at these players and the teams they are playing in.

"Armitage is playing in a great team which makes it quite easy to stand out. You've got to really analyse his game and being honest, I think he's a good player but not someone who's worth breaking the rules for.

"If you think about the majority of Lancaster's time [with England], it's been about building this culture. He's talked about it and it means so much to him. If you're just going to bring in somebody from the outside, it's just going to disharmonise the whole culture which he has put such an emphasis on."

Lancaster will name his 45-man World Cup training squad later this month.