St Helens forward Alex Walmsley has been named on the bench to play against Australia in the opening game of the Rugby League World Cup in Melbourne on Friday.
Uncapped Walmsley featured in England’s only pre-tournament fixture against Combined Affiliated States and will be joined by his St Helens teammate James Roby who returns to the squad after last appearing in the 2015 International Series win over New Zealand. This will be 31-year-old Roby’s third World Cup after representing his country in 2008 and 2013.
Super League Man of Steel, Luke Gale, and Dally M half-back of the Year, Gareth Widdop have both been included in the starting 13. Between them, they have scored over 400 league points for their clubs in 2017.
England will be captained by Sean O’Loughlin who will be joined in the forwards by Sam Burgess, James Graham, Josh Hodgson, Elliott Whitehead and Chris Hill, who will be making his 20th appearance for his country.
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England head coach, Wayne Bennett, has selected 13 players in the 21-man squad that featured during the mid-season Test victory against Samoa in May.
Bennett’s side have been in Perth pre-tournament for a week preparing for the opening game before heading to Melbourne on Monday.
He said: “Preparation for this game has been going very well and our time in Perth was used to work on the things we highlighted from the Four Nations last year. The players have been working hard on and off the field to put themselves in a good position come Friday night. We all know what’s in front of us and they’re well aware of what is expected of them.
“Alex and the rest of the squad all showed me how much they want to play for their country against Affiliated States. This is a very talented team who are keen to get this tournament started.
“We won’t be worrying about the result against Australia, the focus will be on how we play, how we manage the opposition and making sure we compete for the full game.”
