Shaun Wane explains Victor Radley’s Ashes withdrawal as star pulls out of series

England will be without Victor Radley for this year’s Ashes after he informed Shaun Wane he would be unavailable to take part.

Radley is currently suspended by club side Sydney Roosters after a saga involving former team-mate Brandon Smith, who has recently appeared in court.

Radley was given a ten-week ban and fined $150,000, but the indications were that he would feature in this year’s series against Australia.

England head coach Shaun Wane insisted that he would pick Radley if the forward were available for selection – but he has now decided he will not be available.

The reasons for his withdrawal are unclear, but Wane said in a statement that he wanted players who were ‘fully focused’ on the task of defeating the reigning world champions.

Wane said: “Victor has been an outstanding player for England for the last three years, but we respect his decision. We need 24 players who are fully focused on the historic opportunity of facing Australia in an Ashes series.”

Without Radley, England will still lave a wealth of options to pick from in the pack. St Helens forward Morgan Knowles is now the likely contender to start at 13 without the Roosters star.

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