England and France have named their squads for their Wheelchair Rugby League international class which takes place on Sunday 19th June, 3.30pm Kick Off at the Manchester Basketball Centre.
The game will be shown live on Sky Sports, with both sides using the match for to continue their preparation for this Autumn’s Rugby League World Cup.
Josh Butler of Leeds Rhinos and Martin Norris of Wigan Warriors are notable inclusions for England. Butler, a 20-year-old from Kippax whose hopes of following in the footsteps of his Rugby League hero Kevin Sinfield were initially frustrated by a rapid deterioration in his eyesight, has earned a first senior England call with his early-season form for the Rhinos after missing out on the home series against France last autumn.
Norris, who was a member of the first Great Britain Wheelchair Rugby League team in 2006 and captained the side from 2008-14, has impressed following his recall to the squad after a seven-year absence for the games against France last autumn.
Meanwhile, France co-coaches Sylvain Crismanovich and Laurent Dupuy will hand debuts to SO Avignon’s Florian Guttadoro and Handi Dragons’ Damien Dore but will be without experienced campaigners Jeremy Bourson, Gilles Clausells, Nicolas Clausells and Deny Denuwelaere who do not travel.
“The recent French Elite Championship Final between Pandas Montalbanais and Dragons Catalans has shown that many of our players are in good shape” explained Dupuy. “There is good competition for places and it is important that our young group seize the opportunity.”
“This was a tough selection, after our final training camp at the end of May” added England Head Coach Tom Coyd. “Everyone in the Performance Squad of 19 has been working so hard all year following the postponement of the World Cup by 12 months, and my message to the players omitted is that places are still up for grabs.
“To face France in a Mid-Season International is perfect preparation for the World Cup. It’s exciting that we’ve picked a young squad – and we have more strength in depth than ever thanks to the increased intensity of our domestic competitions.”
England:
Josh Butler, Nathan Collins, Tom Halliwell, (Leeds Rhinos), Seb Bechara (Catalans Dragons), Joe Coyd, Lewis King (London Roosters), Rob Hawkins (Halifax Panthers), Martin Norris, Adam Rigby, Declan Roberts (Wigan Warriors).
France:
Mostefa Abassi (Saint-Jory), Lionel Alazard (Mountauban), Thomas Duhalde (Euskadi), Florian Guttadoro, Guillaume Mautz, Yann Verdi (SO Avignon), Damien Dore, Arno Vargas (Handi Dragons), Adrian Zittel (Arbent)