England set to face Exiles side
ENGLAND head coach Shaun Wane is hoping to set up a ‘highquality’ match for his team before the end of the year and has not ruled out taking on a Super League Exiles side or one of the home nations.
This autumn’s Ashes series has been cancelled, partly to help domestic competitions in England and Australia to be finished having been halted by the spread of coronavirus.
It represents a sizeable bump in the road in terms of Wane’s plans for next year’s World Cup on home soil, if not a wholly unexpected one.
Wane is keen to schedule a midseason Test in 2021 ahead of the World Cup in October and November of next year, and is still hoping there may be a way to squeeze in a match this year too.
A match against the best overseas talent the Super League has to offer - which could include Huddersfield Giants captain Aidan Sezer – would represent a decent test.
The Claret and Gold’s Jermaine McGillvary was named in Wane’s first training squad which, in the end, didn’t meet up because of the virus.
“The other day I was in the garden and I picked an Exiles team of players I’d seen in Super League, and it was a very strong team,” said Wane.
“It was as good as any Test team. So it would be great for the fans over here to watch a game like that of that standard.
“But I know there’s a lot of things could happen, so it’s not certain of being on, but if there’s a chance I know (Rugby Football League chief executive) Ralph (Rimmer) has always been very supportive of me and helped me in every way he can, and I know he’ll do his best in the same way.”
Asked about the prospect of facing one or more of Scotland, Wales or Ireland, he added: “Definitely. Super League is strong and we’ve got players from all of the home nations. A game is a game, but for me, as national coach, I would want it to be as high quality as possible. That would be the key.”
An Ashes series against Australia may now have to wait until 2022.
One Englishman impressing Down Under is half-back George Williams, who drew praise for his performance in Canberra Raiders’ weekend victory over Melbourne as the NRL resumed.
Wane was measured in his praise for the 25-year-old, and says he still has much more improvement to make.
“I thought the Aussies went over the top, they were raving about him,” the former Wigan coach said. “I’ve seen him do those things hundreds of times. I thought he did some good things but he can have more involvement.
“He did well, no question. I’m a big George Williams fan, but he needs to improve.”