England lock Maro Itoje selects incredible Nigeria XV

He's now spent a bit of time putting together a fearsome selection of British players with Nigerian routes.

The England lock wrote on Twitter: "It’s been a tough and rigorous process but I have come down to my final Nigerian British XV of current players.

"A good blend of experience and youth. Congratulations to all those selected."

Here's who made his selection:

15. Anthony Watson: Plying his trade at both full-back and wing, Anthony Watson is a well-respected member of Bath squad. The England International has made 105 appearances since signing from London Irish in 2013 and has portrayed his secure defence and elusive attacking style for his country, as well as representing the British and Irish Lions in 2017.

14. Nathan Earle: He was electric in his first season at Harlequins, scoring 11 tries in 23 appearances. On the international stage, Earle is part of Eddie Jones' Elite Player Squad (EPS) and toured with the international side to South Africa in the summer of 2018. 

11. Gabriel Ibitoye: One of the most exciting young wingers in the country, the speedster has been with Harlequins since the age of 12. The winger has been a regular in the England age group sides and was named in Eddie Jones' wider training squad for the 2018 Six Nations. 

13. Rotimi Segun: The young wideman arrived at Allianz Park from Northampton Saints and has since graduated into the senior squad. The flyer, who ran the 100m in 11.03 seconds in his school days, was key to Saracens’ success in the Premiership Rugby Cup and Premiership Shield in 2018/19 and was rewarded with a maiden league start against Exeter Chiefs towards the end of the campaign.

12. Max Ojomah: He joined the Bath academy at 14, and is son of Bath legend Steve Ojomoh who won 11 caps for England. Max credits Wales international Jamie Roberts for giving him a good understanding of the game on and off the pitch. 

10. Marcus Watson: The Wasps winger is doing a job for the team at fly-half. Since joining the black and golds, Watson has claimed a number of memorable tries, including a first-quarter double at Bath Rugby in December 2017, and another sublime brace v Leicester Tigers in March 2019.

9. Callum Watson: The third and final Watson who made Itoje's selection. The playmaker, who like his brothers began his career at London Irish, now plays for Chinnor RFC following a stint with Loughborough Students.

1. Beno Obano: The powerhouse cousin of Itoje possesses the skills and physical ability to demonstrate game breaking moments that can both create points for Bath Rugby and to deny tries for the opposition. His power and agility with ball in hand add to the repertoire of threats within the forward pack. If not for a few serious injuries, he'd definitely have won England caps.

2. Gabriel Oghre: The hooker made his Premiership debut in 2018/19 off the bench for Wasps against Saracens and soon made the step up to the first-team squad for the 2019/20 season. A very exciting prospect.

3. Biyi Alo: After initially joining Wasps as injury cover during the 2018/19 campaign, the giant tighthead-prop impressed during his short time to earn a permanent deal with the Club from the summer of 2019.

4. Nick Isiekwe: The lock made his Saracens debut aged 18 and a mere year later was earning his first international cap for England. Prior to that, he plied his trade at Old Albanian before joining the Sarries Academy and represented his country from Under-16 to Under-20 level.

5. Emeka Ilione: The second-row began his rugby journey at Nottingham High School aged 11, before joining the Leicester Tigers academy at 13.Previous clubs also include Nottingham Corsairs and he credits Tim Loveridge there for giving him a good understanding of the game.

6. Maro Itoje (C): The man himself. The four-time Premiership winner and three-time European champion’s international CV also makes for impressive reading. ‘The Pearl’ guided England U20 to their second-ever World Rugby Championship title before gaining a full cap in the 2016 Six Nations where Eddie Jones’ side were crowned Grand Slam champions. He followed up with three Test starts on England’s victorious summer tour of Australia and another Six Nations gong before becoming a British & Irish Lion in 2017.

7. Andy Christie: The Scotland age-grade youngster had spent the summer of 2018 in Wellington, New Zealand learning from the likes of All Black legend Rodney So’oialo before returning to north London. He was then selected by England Under-20s against the Junior Springboks in April 2019 before coming off the bench for his Saracens debut at Worcester Warriors a month later.

8. Simon Uzokwe: The back-rower has spent the last four years at Newcastle Falcons, and was part of their Greene King IPA Championship winning squad this year. He's signed up to join ambitious Championship Ealing Trailfinders for next season.

16. Danny Hobbs, 17. Josh Ibuanokpe, 18. Eliot Obats, 19. Paulo Odogwu, 20. Jordan Olowafela