England international Anthony Watson wants limit on players' games

England international Anthony Watson believes players should be limited to 20 games per season to combat the growing casualties of injuries in the game.

The 24-year-old is currently on the sidelines after re-tearing an Achilles tendon during the pre-season with Bath Rugby and he faced a similar injury during England's Six Nations campaign early this year that forced him to miss the June internationals in South Africa.

The Rugby Football Union are set to introduce new tackle height law that will be trialled during the upcoming season of Championship Cup but Watson believes the solution to curb injuries will be to limit the numbers of games each players feature in a year to 20.

“You don’t want to see passive tackles,” he told the Mail on Sunday.

“I don’t think changing the nature of the game is the answer.

“What’s difficult is playing 25 plus games per year and you end up playing at 75 or 80 per cent. These things aren’t decided by the players but I’d have thought 20 games maximum is the right number.”

The increase in injuries has forced players into retirement at an early age as seen in the case of former Wales skipper Sam Warburton, who quit the game at just 29.

England stars will be seen in action in the Gallagher Premiership that kicks-off on Friday with Bristol Bears taking on Bath Rugby at Ashton Gate.