Leeds Rhinos star Kallum Watkins outlines Ashes victory belief inside England camp

Leeds Rhinos and England Veteran Kallum Watkins has revealed why he believes England can break Australia’s Ashes stranglehold this autumn.

England/Great Britain last won the trophy in 1970 and have been beaten in 13 successive series since then, the last of those being played 22 years ago.

The Kangaroos will be strong favourites again when rivalry resumes at Wembley on Saturday, October 25, but Watkins insists England, under coach Shaun Wane, have the tools to end their long losing run.

“We’ve got the players to beat them,” the Leeds Rhinos second-rower vowed. “We’ve got to bring a collective performance, come up with a good game plan and take it to them.

“They aren’t going to hold back, they haven’t played in an Ashes series before either, so it’s exciting for both teams.

“For us, it is about being confident and having that belief we can win. We have got the talent and the players who can do that. It’s just about bringing it all together.

“They have a lot of individuals who are class, but so have we. That’s the positive thing, we’ve got that talent and a good mix of experience and young players and hopefully we can cause the Aussies some trouble.

“We’ve not played against each other for so long, when we come up against them at Wembley it will be interesting to see how it goes.

“It should be exciting because it’s the ultimate. When you play for England, against the best team in the world, you’ve got to challenge yourself. You’re playing at the top level so you’ve got to be at your best.”

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Leeds Rhinos veteran speaks on ‘club feel’ cultivated by Shaun Wane

For Watkins, who rejoined Leeds from Salford Red Devils six months ago, being in camp with England is a bonus at the end of an impressive club campaign with the Rhinos.

He hasn’t featured for his country since the 2022 World Cup and admitted: “I didn’t think I’d be involved in the international scene still, but I am really grateful to be given the opportunity to join the squad.

“I thought the World Cup would be the end [of international rugby] for me, but I always kept it in the back of my mind.

“I didn’t want to retire from it, but I thought that was probably it after that. Thankfully, I have got another opportunity and what an opportunity it can be, going against the Aussies in an Ashes series.

“That’s something I never thought I’d do because it has never happened in my time playing. It has missed my generation so I am very grateful just to be part of the squad.”

The series continues a week after Wembley at Everton FC’s new Bramley Moore Dock Stadium  before concluding at Rhinos’ AMT Headingley on Saturday, November 8.

The second and third Tests are both sold out and Watkins stressed: “As it hasn’t happened for such a long time, I think it’s something that should be celebrated.

“As a kid, you want to play international rugby and be involved in Ashes series. That opportunity doesn’t come often so it’s good to get the opportunity to be part of it.”

England are in their first week of training and Watkins has seen encouraging signs. “It has been good getting everybody together,” he noted. “Obviously it has been a long, tough season for everybody, but it has been good to spend time together.

“There’s a bit of work to do when we are on the field, making sure we are prepped and ready for the Test series, but spending time together on top of that is very important.

“There’s a real club feeling about it. Shaun Wane has led that and it is always enjoyable coming into camp.”