England captain Sam Tomkins is happy to see head coach Shaun Wane finally get his chance to lead his country in a competitive fixture as he previews their World Cup opener against Samoa on Saturday.
Wane has been in charge of England since February 2020, but due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the postponement of the Rugby League World Cup from 2021 to this year, he has only managed four matches in that time.
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England skipper Tomkins, who knows the 55-year-old coach well having worked with him during two stints with Betfred Super League side Wigan Warriors between 2011-13 and 2016-18, has admitted that there is an excitement around the camp but no one will be more excited for the tournament to start than Wane.
“There’s a real buzz around the team hotel and [we] just want to get going. Shaun, more so than any player, has been waiting a long time for this,” Tomkins told The Last Tackle.
“Since he got the job. It's been nothing but cancelled games. So, yeah,[we’re] excited to get going.”
It is clear how much being the boss of the national team means to Wane and Tomkins says he has been reminding the players just how lucky they are to represent their country.
He said: “He's clearly passionate about the job that he's got and he wants us all to be passionate and appreciate the opportunity we've got to pull on this special jersey. We can't take it for granted and Shaun's a massive fan of the international game and always has been. So this is his dream job and he certainly makes sure we know about it.”
Looking ahead to the tournament opener against Samoa, Tomkins is excited to get things up and running but he is also wary of England’s opponents.
"Samoa have got the strongest team they’ve ever had, which is clear,” he said.
“But forget that and concentrate on ourselves. Let's see what we can bring to this competition and hopefully people after Saturday will see what England are about.”
The 33-year-old then responded to talk of England capitalising on the home tournament and going all the way, believing that this group is more than capable of making history.
He added: “It’s a massive opportunity. We've got a really good group and we've got a home World Cup. What a chance to boom rugby league in this country. There's a certain pressure on us for that because I feel like there's [people wondering], could we go on and win a World Cup? And I think you know that would inspire generations of rugby league players.”
