HARLEQUINS Academy youngsters Marimba Odundo-Mendez and Anthony Allen are among 24 players selected for the Rugby Football Union’s National Academy Camp in Parma, Italy from August 1-11.

Academy manager Brian Ashton has gathered some of England’s most promising Under 16 year olds together for an intensive training and talent identification camp in Italy. Some of these young players, he hopes, could become the backbone of a future England side to take on the rest of the world as Clive Woodward’s men will be doing in the World Cup in October.

Odundo-Mendez could become England’s secret weapon on the wing. At 16, he is ranked in the fastest top five in the country for his age over 200m (21.8 seconds) and in the fastest top 10 in the country over 100m (10.9 seconds).

Marimba needs look no further than his own school, Lord Wandsworth College near Hook, for inspiration. England’s top fly-half Jonny Wilkinson and Harlequins’ England Under 21 and Sevens wing Ugo Monye were both former pupils.

Monye has just signed a new three-year contract for Quins that will keep him at the Stoop until June 2006.