Paul Rowley has had his say on the four St Helens players named in the initial England performance squad ahead of the Rugby League World Cup.
Rowley, who was one of five candidates to take over from Shaun Wane, has four of his players in Brian McDermott’s 38-man squad, and had they not had injuries, would have had at least one more in Matty Lees.
Jack Welsby, Harry Robertson, Daryl Clark and Alex Walmsley have all been selected, with Robertson being handed his first call-up to representative rugby since his debut back in 2024.
The Saints boss was asked how proud he was to have players in the national squad, and revealed it showed how well it reflected on the club to have those individuals in the reckoning.
“First of all, congratulations to all four of them, that’s really good,” he said to the press. “There’s obviously three at one end of the spectrum in terms of experience, and one who’s just fresh in there in Harry.
“It’s the initial squad, I don’t know what the initial squad’s going to undertake, and so what that actually means, so I’m not sure what the value of that squad is. It’s maybe just a recognition, so in that respect, that’s great for the lads, and I think there’ll be other lads fighting for that spot.
“Obviously, Leesy [Matty Lees] is not there, who you would expect to be up there as well, so yeah, we won’t overthink that, just congratulate the lads that are in for the moment and see how it progresses.”
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St Helens boss waxes lyrical over Harry Robertson after England inclusion
Commenting on Robertson in particular, Rowley couldn’t be prouder of how he has developed into an international standard player less than two years since his debut against Wigan at Magic Weekend in 2024.
“He’s a consistent guy, Harry,” the boss said. “I think he’s been learning all the time. He’s one of a number of young lads in our team who’s come through the system, and he just gets better and better.
“He’s obviously got some raw talent in his athleticism, so as the detail and the technicalities improve around him and as he physically grows and matures, then we’re just going to see a better and better player year on year.
“We’re very lucky to have Harry here, and he’ll do his thing week in, week out, regardless of how many people he’s playing in front of or what shirt he’s got on. He’s just a consistent guy, he’s pretty chilled, but like I said before, we’re lucky and pleased to have him, but he’s also lucky to be around some good players here who really bring him through.
“I think our game’s full of young lads like Harry at the minute, I think Harry’s special, and so I agree with all the points that you made. We’ve seen Ewan Irwin at the weekend, who’s also special, and he’d fit into exactly that category that you just said for me.
“There’s some value in them having that experience, whether they play or not, but that experience and that environment is certainly going to be good for them if they were lucky enough to get on the plane.”
