Wil Nick Abendanon get a call-up from England boss Martin Johnson? © Getty Images

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Is Nick Abendanon available for selection for the Autumn Internationals or is he locked irrevocably into the Saxons squad until January barring further injuries to first choice selections? That is the question nobody seems quite sure about at the moment.

Danny Cipriani's promotion to the Senior Elite Players Squad (EPS) to take the place of the injured Jonny Wilkinson presents no problems within the protocol agreed between Premiership Rugby Ltd and the RFU but the first real test of how cordiale the entente is between the two parties will come to a head over the next couple of weeks.

The official line from the RFU is that there is a window in January when up to five Senior EPS (effectively the England Squad) members can be replaced but nothing can be done until then unless injuries demand so.

However, I have been assured there is a side letter to the agreement which has been drafted in the past few weeks which might make it possible. In that letter there are a number of 'exceptional circumstances' and one of those is if a player is selected by his club for more than three consecutive matches in another position from the one for which he has been chosen in the EPS.

If Josh Lewsey is picked for Wasps on the wing this weekend it will be his third match there in a row and one more might trigger the opportunity to demote him and promote Abendanon. The uncertainty is because nobody seems sure as to whether Lewsey has been nominated purely as a full-back or as a wing or full-back.

Some players have been nominated for two positions and if that is the case with Lewsey there is no room for manoeuvre. It is a crazy situation. If there is no flexibility England could be forced to go into hugely important and prestigious matches against the top three countries in the world without being able to field their first choice XV.

It is one of the first glaring weaknesses to appear in the brave new blueprint for English rugby that was supposed to end the feuding between the two sides. Martin Johnson, the new England Supremo, named his two squads three weeks after taking the job at the beginning of July. As he is already discovering two months is a long time in rugby especially when it embraces the start of a new season.

Lewsey might have come out on top when he squared up to Cipriani on the training ground but he is clearly struggling badly for form. It may even be the end of the road - he is nearly 32 and has been at the top for 10 years - sometimes the motivation suddenly disappears and cannot be recaptured. Abendanon could well be the next Lewsey. He is 22, has already won 2 caps and this season appears to have made the all important breakthrough.

Nobody has ever doubted his attacking ability - he has blistering pace and wonderful balance which makes him a real handful for even the best organised defence - but he was always likely to make a catastrophic error of judgement that cancelled out all the good work or, worse still, miss important tackles that had some coaches labelling him a liability in defence.

Suddenly, he seems to have matured. The scything runs are still cutting opposing defences apart but he has learned not to take the 10% chance and launch a suicidal counter-attack when he has absolutely no support. His defence has also been a revelation - suddenly he seems to enjoy his tackling and the bigger they are the harder they fall as Lesley Vainikolo has already found out.

He is currently in the form of his life and, for me, unquestionably the best full-back in England.

Everybody understands the need for planning so that clubs know who is going to be available week in week out and when they are likely to need cover. Fixed compensation levels for the periods when players are away on England duty also allows them to recruit accordingly.

From an England point of view there are also advantages in having a settled squad that the coaches can work with and monitor throughout the season especially when that entails fitness and medical supervision but there must be flexibility

The Abendanon case is unlikely to be unique. Wilkinson looks as if he is almost back to his best and Cipriani's unexpectedly speedy recovery has seen him reinstated as number one challenger but behind him there is a very exciting group of youngsters who could upset the pecking order at any time.

Shane Geraghty, Olly Barkley and Toby Flood are all utility backs who can play at No.10 and are in the top squad but at one stage last season Ryan Lamb was eclipsing all of them - he too might see the light and do so again.

You just cannot define everything in sport - it's the nature of the beast - and 'exceptional circumstances' are not that exceptional so there must always be room for negotiation. Johnson must always be able to pick his best team.