Tiers but no fears with boss Wane’s England mix

LOOKING AT Shaun Wane’s latest England squad, you can see there are three tiers of players in there.

With 40 players named, it’s certainly big. But you can break it down into levels who are all then blended together.

From the World Cup last year, he has kept some experience, which is important. So, you have the likes of Chris Hill, Alex Walmsley (above) and Liam Farrell. They are the sort of players you need when you’re transitioning as England now are – a lot of players who played in the 2021 World Cup won’t be available for France in 2025.

Sam Tomkins, Ryan Hall and Mike Cooper are examples but you still need some experience in there to show others what standards are like, what training means, what it means to wear that England shirt and how to conduct yourself in camp.

But then there’s a middle tier of players. Here we have the likes of Kai-Pearce Paul and Mikolaj Oledzki who, if England are to do well at the 2025 World Cup, need to make that transition from good Super League players and England squad members to mainstays for their country.

Finally, there’s a third tier – youngsters who have had an outstanding impact in Super League. There are plenty of these – potentially 20 debutants in Wane’s squad – and I’m talking about people like Hull KR’s Mikey Lewis, Wigan’s Morgan Smithies, Huddersfield’s Will Pryce and Leeds’ Harry Newman.

They need to be shown what it’s like to be in and around an England camp to allow them to get a taste and a feel for it.

For England to do well in France, they need three or four of those not only coming through in time for that tournament but becoming stars of that World Cup.