Brian McDermott, the newly appointed England head coach, has declared that Super League's reigning Man of Steel, Jake Connor, is a key part of his plans for this year's World Cup. McDermott also appeared to criticize the treatment of the Leeds Rhinos half-back by his predecessor, Shaun Wane.
McDermott Unveiled as England Coach
McDermott was officially introduced on Thursday as England's coach on a short-term contract for the tournament in Australia this autumn. The former Leeds and London coach, currently working as an assistant for the Gold Coast Titans in the NRL, beat out Sam Burgess to succeed Wane.
Connor's Omission Under Wane
The buildup to last year's Ashes series, which turned out to be Wane's final stint in charge, was dominated by his decision to leave out Connor despite the player being named Super League's best in 2025. Wane called the selection "not difficult" and claimed he ignored awards like the Man of Steel, leaving Connor overlooked to the confusion of many.
McDermott has now indicated he will include Connor in his World Cup squad, while also calling out the treatment the 31-year-old received. "Yeah, he is [in my plans] for sure," McDermott said. "Absolutely. The rhetoric around Jake was tremendously unfair."
"I understand where he comes from in that he's liked by some and disliked by others. That's the nature of the game. We can sit around the table and debate whether he's a nice person but that's not a fair rhetoric to be made public. You can't argue he's a fantastic player, he's a brilliant player – he's a game-breaker."
World Cup Expectations
After a 3-0 Ashes defeat and with only three training sessions planned before their World Cup opener against Tonga in October, expectations for England are low. However, McDermott, Super League's most successful coach, holds a different view.
"The gap is bridgeable but you've got to have a plan specific to UK-based players, the level of preparation they're going to have and our competition," he said. "We can win it; absolutely we can win it – but we have to do some things differently."
"In the Ashes, we pushed them all the way and they were rattled in parts of games. We just didn't do it for long enough. We're going to have to be really well connected and have a bond together. It can't just be grabbing hold of the badge and shouting aggressively so the optics look good. We're talking about true connection and a true bond."
