One of the leading voices in rugby league has given a damning assessment of Shaun Wane’s tenure in charge of England on the back of a 3-0 series whitewash against Australia in the Ashes.
Claiming that the biggest games of Shaun Wane’s tenure, the World Cup semi-final loss to Samoa and this Ashes series, have been “nothing short of catastrophic”, Sky Sports’ Brian Carney has laid out the dilemma that the RFL face.
Stopping short of calling for Wane’s head, Carney has put forth the facts that make for a convincing argument why Wane’s time is up, including by quoting the England head coach.
Opening his most recent opinion piece by sharing a Wane quote from February 2020, Carney has argued that the England boss has “fashioned the trapdoor” when stating: “If I don’t get to a World Cup final and win, it’s a disaster. We haven’t beaten Australia for a long time and I’m embarrassed by that. And if we don’t beat them, it’s on me.”
Of course, England did not make that World Cup Final, never mind win it, and now they’ve finally faced Australia, they’ve been beaten easily without ever landing a punch.
England “paralysed” by fear as rugby league voice criticises Ashes performances
“By his own measure, the two most important campaigns of his six years in charge have been nothing short of catastrophic”, wrote Carney as he explained that Wane must be “incandescent” at the 3-0 whitewash, given his words from February 2020.
Carney, who is the face of rugby league on Sky Sports, also questioned England’s decision to remain away from the cameras with Australia instead taking every opportunity to meet fans.
In the week of the Headingley Test, England weren’t to be seen in Leeds until matchday with no press events, no captains run and no training at the ground, whereas Australia trained in front of fans, including plenty of young amateur players.
As well as his perception that England were kept out of the media spotlight, Carney also questioned Wane’s dismissive nature about the top individual award in rugby league – the Man of Steel trophy.
When explaining Jake Connor’s omission from his squad, Wane bluntly stated: “I don’t know who picks it and it never comes into my consideration”, something Carney has claimed makes the award hard for the RFL to market in future years.
But perhaps the Irishman’s most damning assessment comes in regards the playstyle of Shaun Wane’s side, labelling England as “rigid, predictable and joyless”, even “paralysed” by fear.
Framing that argument, Carney then stopped short of calling for Wane’s head, insisting that the RFL must make their decision on Wane’s future. The England boss is currently contracted to lead the nation into next year’s Rugby League World Cup, but whether he does is another question.
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