Manu Tuilagi is the standout inclusion in England’s squad for a three-day training camp this weekend as Eddie Jones casts his eye over the injury-plagued centre before the new season.

Tuilagi has made one appearance under Jones – in the 2016 Six Nations Championship – and last started an international in June 2014, but after recovering from knee ligament damage sustained in January, the Leicester player will hope to impress as part of the 37-man get-together in Teddington, which begins on Saturday.

Seven of England’s 15 British & Irish Lions – Dan Cole, Owen Farrell, Jamie George, Maro Itoje, Jack Nowell, Kyle Sinckler and Anthony Watson – will join the camp for one day only while the other eight “have opted to remain on their summer break”. The get-together will involve medical checkups, training – though the seven Lions will not take part – and individual reviews as Jones begins preparations for England’s autumn series against Argentina, Australia and Samoa. The coach will shed further light on the missing Lions when he addresses the media on Friday but in the past he has hinted at resting some players for the autumn internationals. He has also rewarded nine players who made their debuts on the victorious two-Test tour of Argentina with selection, including Denny Solomona, Tom Curry, Nick Isiekwe and Sam Underhill.

Billy Vunipola and Ben Youngs, named in the initial Lions squad before withdrawing owing to injury and family reasons respectively, are included, as is Harlequins’ 18-year-old fly-half Marcus Smith, who spent some time with England at their Brighton training camp at the end of last season. The Bath hooker, Tom Dunn, as well as Harry Mallinder and Nathan Earle, both of whom toured Argentina without winning their first caps, are also selected, so too the veteran Saracens scrum-half Richard Wigglesworth.

“We are at an incredibly important stage with two years to go to the Rugby World Cup in Japan and there is still a big step to make if we want to be the No1 team in the world,” Jones said. “We are going to have to be meticulous in preparation in everything we do as we build towards Tokyo and that is why this camp is vital ahead of this season.”

If the presence of some but not all of England’s Lions makes Jones’s plans for the coming season less clear, the fact 24 of the squad either toured Argentina, or were due to before injury struck, is telling. As Jones prepares for the next phase of his tenure, he has again opted against selecting a number of fringe players he has turned to in the past, such as Dan Robson, Alex Goode and Teimana Harrison.

Tom Wood – dropped even before a suspension ruled him out of the Argentina tour – is another notable absentee, while the Harlequins tighthead prop Will Collier and the Exeter flanker Don Armand can consider themselves unfortunate to miss out after making their debuts against the Pumas. Piers Francis, Alex Lozowski, Jack Maunder, Harry Williams and Mark Wilson are the other debutants from the Argentina tour selected.

World Rugby has released a statement expressing its surprise after an independent panel ruled Sonny Bill Williams is eligible to play in New Zealand’s Bledisloe Cup match against Australia on 19 August. Williams was banned for four weeks after his red card in the second Lions Test but has successfully appealed against what constitutes a match.

On 11 August New Zealand face Counties Manukau and Taranaki, playing 40 minutes against each team, and the independent panel ruled that game should be counted as part of the suspension, thereby freeing Williams to play against the Wallabies.

The World Rugby statement read: “While World Rugby respects the decision of the independent appeal committee to uphold the appeal by New Zealand’s Sonny Bill Williams against the matches that counted towards his four-week suspension, it is surprised by the committee’s interpretation of the definition of ‘match’.”

England training squad:

Forwards Dan Cole (Leicester), Luke Cowan‑Dickie (Exeter), Tom Curry (Sale), Tom Dunn (Bath), Charlie Ewels (Bath), Ellis Genge (Leicester), Jamie George (Saracens), Dylan Hartley (Northampton), Nathan Hughes (Wasps), Nick Isiekwe (Saracens), Maro Itoje (Saracens), Joe Launchbury (Wasps), Chris Robshaw (Harlequins), Kyle Sinckler (Harlequins), Sam Underhill (Bath), Harry Williams (Exeter), Mark Wilson (Newcastle), Billy Vunipola (Saracens).

Backs Mike Brown (Harlequins), Danny Care (Harlequins), Nathan Earle (Saracens), Owen Farrell (Saracens), George Ford (Leicester), Piers Francis (Northampton), Alex Lozowski (Saracens), Harry Mallinder (Northampton), Joe Marchant (Harlequins), Jack Maunder (Exeter), Jonny May (Gloucester), Jack Nowell (Exeter), Richard Wigglesworth (Saracens), Henry Slade (Exeter), Marcus Smith (Harlequins), Denny Solomona (Sale), Manu Tuilagi (Leicester), Anthony Watson (Bath), Ben Youngs (Leicester).