Calling all the super hairos!
ENGLAND BLEACH FOR THE STARS...
RYAN HALL is desperate for World Cup glory as a blond bomber, to banish the blues of England’s last two tournaments.
The 34-year-old powerhouse winger has dyed his hair ahead of England’s opening World Cup clash with Samoa in Newcastle this Saturday.
And he’s determined to have more fun than when England suffered cruel heartbreak at the 2013 and 2017 tournaments.
He said: “I am really excited about this World Cup and proud of being back in the fold. We want to go one step further than last time.”
England lost the 2017 final to Australia 6-0 – with a last-ditch Aussie tackle denying England a late chance to equalise – and were knocked out in the 2013 semi-final by an agonising last-minute New Zealand winner.
Hall dyed his hair in 2013, and has decided to reach for the bleach again – to the amusement of his team-mates.
He said: “I’m back on home soil in a World Cup, so why not? I thought I’d look young again.
“But from the comments I’ve got, most people think I’m too old.”
The second oldest England player behind Chris Hill is in a three-way fight for the two wing spots with Dom Young and Tommy Makinson.
Hall, England’s record try-scorer with 35 tries in 38 appearances, would dearly love to get the nod. He wasn’t in coach Shaun Wane’s plans last year and knows some fans would prefer the younger duo of Makinson and Young.
Hall said: “I’m getting to that age in my career where a lot of people are questioning whether it’s the right stage for me.
“But the coach has put his faith in me because of the work I’ve done in Super League, so there is still a lot of life in me yet.
“I’m really proud of being here again. I dare say it’s my last hurrah in a World Cup. There is no backward step, I am going to give it everything.”
Hall scored in Friday’s 50-0 warm-up win over Fiji, but Young also got a try and set up two more in an impressive debut.
Hall added: “I’m just one of three and we’ve all got good claims.
“Dom played really well and he’s very fast.
“Whichever two Shaun goes with, I’m sure the third one will be backing up as best as he can.”
Samoa are packed with NRL stars and are slight favourites with many pundits to beat England at St James’ Park.
Defeat would put a real dampener on England’s hopes of capturing the nation’s imagination.
But Hall insists he’s happy with the tough opener, ahead of further group games against France and Greece.
He said: “Samoa is a great start. Why wouldn’t we want to play against the best? That’s what we want a World Cup to be.”