Bristol's Ibitoye has had no contact from England

Bristol Bears winger Gabriel Ibitoye said he has had no contact from England head coach Steve Borthwick ahead of November's autumn internationals.

Ibitoye scored a show-stopping hat-trick in just nine minutes during Bristol's comeback win against Exeter on Saturday to completely turn the game at Sandy Park around.

Borthwick names his 36-player squad for the four upcoming Autumn matches on Wednesday.

"No chat, hopefully one day soon," Ibitoye told the Rugby Union Weekly podcast, regarding any conversations with Borthwick.

The 26-year-old topped many of the Premiership's individual statistics last season, including most metres made, most offloads and most defenders beaten, by some distance.

His four tries so far this campaign put him joint second on the Premiership's running tally, and he sits second to only Exeter's Immanuel Feyi-Waboso for metres made (310) across the league's opening four games.

"Looking at England, Steve definitely wants something from his wingers. I think I am different as a total package, I don't know what the nuts and bolts are," Ibitoye said.

"The wingers he's got in there are obviously class but I know I might have to be less risky on the field and not take as risky decisions.

"The way I see it I'm just playing what I see in that moment, in that picture, so for me it's not that risky because in the week I practice it a lot.

"When I first joined Quins I was doing it and it wasn't come off but I stuck at it and now passes are starting to go to hand and my teammates know what I'm going to bring on the training field and matchday."

As a teenager, Ibitoye was part of the England side that won the Under-20 Six Nations in 2017 and a year later, while with Harlequins, he was called up to the England senior squad as an apprentice by then head coach Eddie Jones.

After being released by the club mid-season in 2019, the Londoner trod a road less travelled by young England players, first playing in France for Agen and Montpellier, before joining Israel's Tel Aviv Heat in 2021.

He returned to the Premiership in 2022 with the Bears where he said he has found a home and is showcasing some of his finest rugby, scoring 20 tries in 43 games.

Speaking on the podcast last week, Ugo Monye suggested international rugby might rein in what makes Ibitoye special.

Yet Ibitoye said he would try and adapt and change to fit within an international side if required.

"I would change it if I was in the setup and the coach said I want these two, three things from you, then I would try and deliver on that," he added.

"Ultimately the coach is trying to bring together a 15 or 23 in a short amount of time - international windows are short, you have to come in and train two, three times the week and then play on the weekend.

"It's not about me its about the weekend. If he asked me to come in and do these two three things then I would do it."