RUGBY LEAGUE: England’s rugby league stars say they will be breaking new ground when they head to Coventry this weekend.
The national side will take on old rivals Scotland at the Ricoh Arena on Saturday, 5 November (5.30pm kick-off) as part of a double-header which will be followed by Australia versus New Zealand (8pm kick-off).
England’s next two games with Scotland and Australia are seen as must-win games in their bid to reach the final, having narrowly lost 17-16 to New Zealand in their first game.
England winger Ryan Hall is set to earn his 30th international cap at the Ricoh Arena and build upon his 29 tries for the national team.
The Leeds Rhinos star said: “I like to play wherever I get chance to and this is somewhere new for me. I’ve always liked the concept of the Magic Weekends and travelling round to different stadiums.
“Just to play rugby league in front of a full crowd is what a player really wants – to get the crowd going to create a good atmosphere, and hopefully Coventry can provide that.
“I’m really proud to get to 30 caps. I love every time I play for England, it’s a great honour and it’s one of the best things you can do as a rugby league player.
“If you’d have asked me when I first started out would I get one cap, never mind 30, I think I’d be hard pushed to say yes.”
One of Hall’s Leeds Rhinos colleagues, the highly-rated centre Kallum Watkins, is also supportive of bringing the international game to the Midlands for the first time in 104 years.
He said: “Bringing our game to a new area is massive and I’m really looking forward to it. The stadium has looked fantastic when I’ve seen it on TV, it’s a fantastic stadium to be a part of.
“We have fans that follow us far and wide but hopefully we can attract some new fans from this area to show their support, it should be a great double-header of rugby league.
“We can’t overlook Scotland and know that we’ve got to be at our best to beat them this weekend. They’re a great side and a team that are building, so we know it’s going to be a tough game.”
For more information and to book tickets for the day of international action go to www.rugby-league.com/tickets – tickets can also be bought on the day.
