By Jack Miller, Sportsbeat

BRAD Barritt insists that while he may be going head-to-head with Gloucester’s Billy Twelvetrees for England’s No.12 jersey, the camaraderie amongst the centres will spur them on to new heights at this autumn’s Rugby World Cup.

Stuart Lancaster’s 50-man training squad for the autumn showpiece is in its third week of rigorous summer training, with everyone keen to impress and ensure they are on the final list of just 31 players.

Having missed the 2015 Six Nations through injury, Barritt may be concerned about his place in that line-up – although he returned with style to lift the Premiership trophy with Saracens.

Twelvetrees himself made four appearances as a replacement in the Six Nations, before leading Gloucester to European Challenge Cup glory at the end of last season.

And Barritt believes everyone is now in the same boat and must prove they are worthy to run out at Twickenham when the World Cup gets underway in September.

“I’ve been in England squads with Bill for a long time, and he’s a great guy,” said Barritt, who was speaking as part of the England Team at the official launch of the Canterbury England Rugby World Cup kit.

“There is a great camaraderie amongst the centres, and it will certainly stay that way all the way up to the World Cup.

“Whether it be a club teammate or someone you have never played with before, the way the squad is gelling together is great and will be crucial going forward.

“At this point it is just about thinking about yourself. You need to prove yourself day in, day out and really that is all you can be concerned with – not anyone else in your position.

“I think across the board there is competition for places, not just in the centres, and that is great as it pushes everyone on further to work harder.”

England’s training schedule so far has been firmly focused on conditioning, with Lancaster aiming to make the side ‘the fittest in the world’ with a gruelling summer programme – including two weeks of altitude training in Denver starting next week.

And while Barritt admits that the training has been tough so far, he is confident all the extra time the squad is spending together will pay off during a gruelling World Cup campaign.

He added: “The summer is always hard and everyone is putting their best foot forward and just trying to improve every day.

“This is the first time in a long time we’ve been together as a group for so long, so that experience of being together every day is very valuable.

“Usually you only get a one or two week period before a test, but now we have 11 or 12 and it’s fantastic to be able to prepare in such a way and get ourselves into the best possible condition.

“It is a great opportunity for this team to become tighter and closer, and strengthen the relationships and bonds we have within this team. Everyone has to fight for each other on the pitch.”

Brad Barritt was appearing alongside his England team mates at the launch of the innovative England Rugby World Cup shirt #CommittedtoEngland. Visit Canterbury.com