The RFU are keen to recruit Saracens first-team coach Andy Farrell to Stuart Lancaster's support staff and have opened discussions with the club.
Farrell worked under Lancaster during the Six Nations
The Rugby Football Union have opened discussions with Saracens over support staff for new England coach Stuart Lancaster, the Aviva Premiership club have announced.
Sarries first-team coach Andy Farrell was loaned to England to work under interim coach Stuart Lancaster during the RBS Six Nations.
The combination of Lancaster, Farrell and Graham Rowntree was a huge success, England unexpectedly finishing second in the tournament with four wins out of five.
Lancaster, appointed as England coach on a full-time basis on Thursday, is known to want forwards specialist Rowntree and defence and backs coach Farrell as his permanent assistants.
"Saracens and the RFU today started cordial and constructive discussions on the subject of support staff for newly appointed England coach Stuart Lancaster," read a Saracens statement on March 30.
"The club will not provide a running commentary on this process and will make no further comment until the deliberations reach a conclusion."
The appointment of Rowntree, who is already on the RFU payroll, is not expected to pose any problems.
But prising Farrell from Saracens may be a trickier proposition, with their chief executive
Edward Griffiths insistent that they do not want to lose him.
The fact that talks are under way, though, suggests Farrell could be on his way to England sooner, rather than later, especially if a satisfactory financial compensation deal can be thrashed out.
England's next assignment is a three-Test tour of South Africa in June when they will face the Springboks in Durban, Johannesburg and Port Elizabeth on successive weekends.
