Ash Handley and Toby King included in Shaun Wane’s latest England squad
Leeds winger Ash Handley and Warrington centre Toby King have been included in Shaun Wane’s latest England squad.
Despite the absence of any fixtures in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic, Wane has remained in regular contact with his players who were selected for an initial meeting at Old Trafford in March, only for it to be cancelled because of the original national lockdown.
Wane has stood down seven players who were included in his initial England group – Josh Charnley, Chris Hill, Jack Hughes, Josh Jones, Reece Lyne, Scott Taylor and Liam Watts.
Wane said: “I’ve always said I would pick players on form, and I think it’s important to show that.
“We’ve seen some fantastic rugby since the season restarted in August, and I thought last Friday’s game between St Helens and Wigan was the best yet.
“Toby King and Ash Handley have been two of the lads who have really impressed me with their performances and consistency, so it’s right that they are recognised for that, and they know they are in the group I’ll be contacting regularly until we can get together properly.
“Some other players have fallen below the standard of performance I need from my England players, so again it’s right that they have been told that as things stand I don’t regard them as part of the group. But they know the door isn’t closed – it’s up to them how they respond.”
Shaun Wane’s latest England group: Daryl Clark, Mike Cooper, Ben Currie, Joe Philbin, Stefan Ratchford, Toby King, Niall Evalds, Dan Sarginson, Kallum Watkins, Liam Farrell, Oliver Gildart, Zak Hardaker, Dom Manfredi, John Bateman, Luke Gale, Harry Newman, Ash Handley, Josh Griffin, Tom Johnstone, Jonny Lomax, Tommy Makinson, Mark Percival, James Roby, Alex Walmsley, Morgan Knowles, Paul McShane, Jermaine McGillvary, Sam Tomkins, Luke Thompson, Herbie Farnworth, George Williams, Elliott Whitehead, Josh Hodgson, Ryan Sutton, Tom Burgess.
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