Pride foursome in Italian job
The Northern Pride are likely to be well represented in this year’s Rugby League World Cup with four players in the frame to play for Italy later this month in Cairns. The Azzurri have whittled their squad down to 33 players with the Pride’s Colin Wilkie, Joel Riethmuller, Justin Castellaro and Ryan Ghietti all named by Italian coach Cameron Ciraldo. The Pride’s Sheldon Powe-Hobbs is in the running to be selected for Scotland.
THE Northern Pride are likely to be well represented in this year’s Rugby League World Cup with four players in the frame to play for Italy later this month in Cairns.
The Azzurri have whittled their squad down to 33 players with the Pride’s Colin Wilkie, Joel Riethmuller, Justin Castellaro and Ryan Ghietti all named by Italian coach Cameron Ciraldo.
Riethmuller, who represented Italy at the 2013 World Cup, held in England and Wales, said the tournament would be a swansong for him after deciding to retire from rugby league earlier this year.
“After this (World Cup) the boots will be in the bin,” Riethmuller said. “It’s just hard. Your priorities change and my body seems to get hurt a lot more these days.
“They’re working their way down. It’s a similar sort of group to the last World Cup.”
The former North Queensland Cowboy lock’s grandparents hail from northern Italy in Lozzo di Cadore.
“Both sides of my family are from Italy,” Riethmuller said. “The first time I played (for Italy) was pretty special.”
Fellow Far North hopeful Colin Wilkie said he hoped to represent Italy in honour of his late mother, who passed away four years ago.
Wilkie, a financial planner whose grandparents migrated to Tully from northeastern Sicily, didn’t play in the QRL for almost 10 years before making a comeback with the Pride in 2016.
Last October he played in qualifying matches against Serbia in Serbia, Wales and Russia in northern England.
“You could imagine how cold us Far North Queensland boys were,” Wilkie said laughing. “Against Russia the rain was coming down sideways. I don’t think I’ve ever been so cold.”
If selected, the Pride stars will likely join a strong squad full of NRL talent (see right).
Former rugby union international Mirco Bergamasco has also been named. Italy are expected to finalise their 24man squad next Tuesday.
The Pride’s Sheldon PoweHobbs is in the running to be selected for Scotland.