England centre Brad Barritt has insisted that Stuart Lancaster's side can cope without Manu Tuilago in their Six Nations opener against Scotland on Saturday.
Tuilagi has been ruled out of the clash with an ankle injury, with Bartitt now expected to line up alongside Billy Twelvetress in midfield.
"Manu is a fantastic player and he is an asset to any team, but no team is reliant on one person. We have known for a couple of weeks he wouldn't be involved," Barritt told reporters.
"That has allowed us to build the partnerships and I think people will be straight up to the mark straight away."
England have won their last three matches against Scotland.
