Ranking Super League clubs by England call-ups with Hull KR only SIXTH

Brian McDermott’s first extended squad as England coach has certainly thrown up some surprises – with a string of debutants and a number of high-profile omissions.

The headline news is that Jake Connor makes his return to the international fold having been consistently overlooked by Shaun Wane during his time in charge – despite winning the Man of Steel award last season.

But there are also a number of new faces both domestically and overseas. From the NRL, the likes of Max King, Ben Talty, Jayden Brailey and Billy Smith have officially declared their allegiance for England for this autumn’s World Cup. They join the likes of Victor Radley and AJ Brimson as already declared.

However, which Super League clubs are best represented? In total, just 6 of the 14 clubs have at least one player called up – less than half of the competition in total.

Here are who rank best..

Hull KR: 3

Dean Hadley, Jez Litten, Mikey Lewis

Of the six clubs that have players in the England performance squad, it’s the defending champions who are least represented overall – with just three players included.

Two of those featured in last year’s Ashes and are hardly surprising call-ups, with Jez Litten and Mikey Lewis strong contenders to make McDermott’s final World Cup squad later this year. But Dean Hadley is one of ten new faces, having impressed over a prolonged period of time in Super League.

Wakefield Trinity: 4

Mike McMeeken, Caleb Hamlin-Uele, Jake Trueman, Tom Johnstone

Wakefield’s progression in recent years is underlined by the fact that only one club has more players in the England squad than they do. Mike McMeeken and Tom Johnstone have been mainstays for a couple of years now – but there is a first call for half-back Jake Trueman: as well as Caleb Hamlin-Uele, who has been one of the standout middles in Super League in 2026.

Leeds Rhinos: 4

Kallum Watkins, Mikolaj Oledzki, Ash Handley, Jake Connor

Connor is, of course, the headline from the Rhinos quartet that feature given how he has been overlooked for so long. The other three are less of a surprise, but it’s worth pointing out that Ash Handley has surely put himself in a strong position to start this autumn given his performances in 2026.

Warrington Wolves: 4

Ben Currie, Danny Walker, George Williams, Matty Ashton 

There could have easily been at least one more Wire name in this squad, with Josh Thewlis perhaps slightly unlucky to miss out. As it is, there’s three players with recent experience in the likes of Walker, Williams and Ashton – as well as a recall for Currie, who has excelled at 13 this year for the Wolves.

St Helens: 4

Jack Welsby, Alex Walmsley, Daryl Clark, Harry Robertson

The fourth club with a quartet of call-ups are St Helens. No surprises really to see Jack Welsby, Alex Walmsley and Daryl Clark’s names all in the mix given their historic performances for England. They do have the proverbial runs on the board whether supporters like it or not.

But it’s also fantastic to see youngster Harry Robertson get a first call-up.

Wigan Warriors: 8

Junior Nsemba, Ethan Havard, Luke Thompson, Sam Walters, Brad O’Neill, Jake Wardle, Harry Smith, Zach Eckersley

By some distance, the standout club in the latest England squad is the Challenge Cup winners – who have eight players not only in this group, but who will fancy making the final for the World Cup.

Some are obvious inclusions, like Junior Nsemba, Jake Wardle and Harry Smith. Others will think they have a real chance, such as Brad O’Neill and Luke Thompson.

While others know a good second half of the second could make all the difference..

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