England have recruited a secret weapon in their bid for Rugby League World Cup glory, with UFC fighter Tom Aspinall brought in to work on wrestling technique in the tackle.
The 6 foot 5 heavyweight from nearby Atherton joined up with the squad at their training base in Wigan this week, and coached boss Shaun Wane on improving his players’ efficiency in the tackle.
“We looked at the similarities between MMA and rugby league,” said the 29-year old, whose coach and dad Andy played junior rugby league with Wane.
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“Shaun seemed impressed and a lot of the principles are very similar. You are talking about general body mechanics, how to hold someone down and pin someone and stop them getting up. That sparked Shaun’s interest with some little controls that I use.
“I was just showing them basic body position and control. How to hold someone on the ground and limit their movement to stop them getting up. “
Aspinall passed on his mixed martial arts skills to Wane, fellow coach Paul Anderson plus players Herbie Farnworth and Luke Thompson, with a BBC camera crew watching on in their wrestling cage at the Robin Park training headquarters.
Wane’s players already practise wrestling after their weights sessions each day, with NRL centre Farnworth a huge UFC fan.
“Tom helped us out with a couple of techniques on the ground, just to pin them down and get that extra second or so,” said Farnworth.
“It was some different stuff we had not seen before so we’ll try and use that in the next game in the World Cup.
“We can’t change too much but it’s something extra to look at which could help us in the long run and some good nuggets we can use.
“Tom is trying to finish someone and we are just trying to hold them down. Different end goals but there are things we can use, there is a bit of wrestling in both sports and we both have the goal of winning titles, hopefully for Tom in the next couple of years and us with the World Cup.”
Aspinall joined the UFC ranks a couple of years ago after competing in local Cage Warriors events. He believes there is a huge crossover between MMA and rugby league.
“These guys know what it is to sacrifice and train hard.
“You are going to be in pain and you are going to be exhausted. For any top-level athlete you need to be able to push through pain, just with the end goal of winning.
“You need to be able to put your body, your mind, sometimes your sanity on the line, to go and win. That’s what it takes to be a top-level athlete in any sport.
“You have got to be tough to do either sport. Massive contact with big guys in both sports.
“I’ve told Shaun on multiple occasions that before I retire and get too old I want to have a rugby league game. I’m pretty fast so if I can get on the wing and run someone over then I’ll do that.”
So what chance of a job swap, with the towering Aspinall keen to pick up the oval ball, would Brisbane Broncos ace Farnworth contemplate a move into the Octagon?
“I would love to try UFC,” says the 22-year old from Burnley.
“But I’d have to train for a long time. It’s something I’ve always looked to do at some time in my life.
“I’m not sure at what level but I’d love to have a couple of years training and then step into the cage.
“Maybe not against Tom, I think he would kill me.”
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