England's Danielle Waterman has been ruled out of the Rugby World Cup Sevens squad and has been replaced by Fran Matthews.
Waterman was due to make her long-awaited return from injury in Moscow after missing most of this season, a last minute training injury has seen her ruled out.
Matthews, 24, was part of the England teams who competed this season in China and Amsterdam and brings plenty of experience into the side.
IRB Women's Sevens Player of the Year, Michaela Staniford, has been named as captain of a squad that includes seven players who featured in the 2009 RWC Sevens in Dubai, where England won the Plate.
Richmond’s Alice Richardson is one of those survivors and she has been named as vice-captain, while the players set to make their RWC Sevens debuts are Joanne Watmore, Marlie Packer, Natasha Hunt, Katy McLean and Emily Scarratt.
"Selecting this squad for the RWC was a hugely difficult process. The players came into this programme six months ago and all of them have worked extremely hard across many tournaments," said coach Barry Maddocks.
"There are some world-class players who have not made the squad and that just underlines how competitive this process was."
England: Katy McLean, Emily Scarratt, Katherine Merchant, Claire Allan, Danielle Waterman, Jo Watmore, Alice Richardson, Heather Fisher, Marlie Packer, Micheala Staniford (c), Rachael Burford, Nathasha Hunt
Host nation on form
Russia have named a squad who have tasted recent success for the upcoming Rugby World Cup Sevens which they of course host in Moscow.
Having been crowned European Champions in recent weeks following success over two rounds in Brive and Marbella, the Russians have quickly become a force to be reckoned with in the women’s game.
Rusiet Edidzhi, Ekaterina Kazakova and Baizat Khamidova are all world –class Sevens players and those three will spearhead a powerful looking Russian side.
The host nation will be hugely confident following their recent form, with success at the Europeans coming hot on the heels of a fine performance in the final round of the World Series in Amsterdam.
Russia: Nadezhda Kudinova, Rusiet Edidzhi, Anastasia Mukharyamova, Marina Petrova, Baizat Khamidova, Svetlana Usatikh, Ekaterina Kabeeva, Ekaterina Kazakova, Anna Malygina, Anna Prib, Ekaterina Bankerova, Maria Titova
France out to continue recent progress
A greater focus on the Sevens game in recent months seems to have done France the power of good and with coach David Courteix has been given first choice of players this season, the French have shown that they can be a force to be reckoned with.
In the last round of the World Series in Amsterdam France showed strong form, following disappointing outings earlier in the season, and at the recent European Championships they were also very impressive.
While going all the way in this competition might be too ambitious for a relatively new side, a place in the top eight is a more than achievable target.
France: Pauline Biscarat, Laura Delas, Koumiba Djossouvi, Camille Grassineau, Fanny Horta, Shannon Izar , Caroline Ladagnous, Anaïs Lagougine, Christelle Le Duff, Jade Le Pesq, Marjorie Mayans, Chloé Pelle
