Eight Wigan Academy stars named in Lancashire squad; Seven Leeds Academy players selected for Yorkshire

Drew Darbyshire

Eight Wigan players have been named in Lancashire’s squad for an Academy Origin clash, while Leeds have seven players included in Yorkshire’s outfit.

The first Academy Origin clash will take place on Saturday, July 28, at the Provident Stadium, Bradford (2:30pm).

All 27 players from the England Academy National Performance Squad are included in the sides, with eight new players called in to represent Lancashire and five for Yorkshire.

Wigan Warriors lead the way for Lancashire with eight players selected. St Helens have seven players included, while Widnes Vikings have four and Warrington Wolves have one.

For the Yorkshire team, seven Leeds Rhinos players have been included, while the City of Hull Academy have five and Huddersfield Giants have three.

Bradford Bulls and Castleford Tigers have two players in the Yorkshire squad, while Wigan Warriors star Morgan Smithies will also represent the White Rose.

The coaching team for the Lancashire side are Paul Wellens, Paul Sculthorpe and Ian Talbot.

The Yorkshire team will be coached by Paul Anderson and Luke Robinson.

The second Origin game will take place on Sunday, September 2, at Victoria Park, Warrington.

Yorkshire will take on Australia Schoolboys at the Mend-A-Hose Jungle on Wednesday, November 28 and Lancashire also come head-to-head with the visitors at the Manchester Regional Arena on Saturday, December 1.

Academy Origin fixtures in full:

Yorkshire v Lancashire – July 28 (KO 2.30pm), Provident Stadium, Bradford
Lancashire v Yorkshire – September 2 (KO 2.30pm), Victoria Park, Warrington
Yorkshire v Australian Schoolboys – November 28 (KO 7:30pm), Mend-A-Hose Jungle, Castleford
Lancashire v Australian Schoolboys – December 1, Manchester Regional Arena