Jack Nowell: England winger to miss start of Exeter Chiefs season

Nowell has been forced to sit out much of Exeter's pre-season training

England wing Jack Nowell is set to miss the start of the Premiership season.

Nowell, who started every game of England's Six Nations campaign, returned to training with Exeter this week after having knee surgery in May.

The 21-year-old was forced to miss England's summer tour to New Zealand.

Asked if he would be fit for the Chiefs' first game on 7 September, Nowell told BBC Radio Devon: "That was the goal I set at the start but I'm concentrating on coming back 100%."

He added: "I'm not going to have this chance again to have all this time off, so I'm going to make sure I'm 100% before I'm back on the pitch.

"It's gone really well and I'm feeling really fit, I trained this week for the first time and it was nice to get back out there with the boys.

"My knee has always been in the back of my mind when I've been playing.

"But now that I've had this operation there's a new confidence that I've been given. When I'm in the gym squatting, I couldn't do it before, whereas now I'm lifting the most weight I've ever done."

Nowell said he was now focused on forcing his way into Stuart Lancaster's England squad for next year's World Cup.

"Stuart Lancaster says he's going to pick the people who are on form for their clubs," he said.

"So I need to get my Exeter shirt back and perform as well as I was last year, that's the first thing I need to do."