Treble-winning winger Joe Burgess wants Shaun Wane to stay on as England coach, whatever happens in the final Ashes Test.
Australia lead the three-match series 2-0, following wins at Wembley and Everton FC’s Hill Dickinson Stadium and with the series lost, speculation will mount over the team boss’ future following Saturday’s Headingley finale.
Wane has been in the role since 2020 and is contracted until after next year’s World Cup. Hull KR ace Burgess, who played for him at Wigan Warriors, insisted the players remain solidly behind the gaffer and are keen for him to remain in charge in 2026.
“At club level he has been there and done it all, playing and coaching,” Burgess said. “He has built a good squad over the past few years – and not just the squad, but the staff as well.
“He has picked the right people for the job and 100 per cent he should stay in the job, no matter what happens.
“He has gathered a good group of blokes and it has got that club feel, which is always good. It has been good mingling with lads from other clubs and it’s only going to get better next year.”
Burgess, 31, has had to wait a decade and two Tests to gain his fourth England cap.
Having been left out of the squad for the opening two encounters of the current series, he replaces Dom Young who suffered a broken foot last week.
“I am over the moon,” he said of his call-up. “It has been 10 years since my last international cap so I’m very grateful.
“I probably took it for granted back then, but now I am willing to put my foot down and really cement a spot.
“The Ashes is over, but there’s a big competition next year and if I can impress in this game, hopefully I can be in the back of Waney’s mind to pick me again.”
Burgess insisted he never gave up hope of being back on the biggest stage. “I always had the goal to get back in at England,” he said.
“In 2016-17 I was in and around the training squad, but never actually played. There has been a few times when I thought I could have got a chance in the past four or five years, but I’ve changed a few things about my life in the past two years and it has paid off.
“It is very rewarding. I wrote it down at the start of this year, that it was one of my goals to get picked.
“I wrote a few things and they’ve ended up coming off; it’s a bit weird – I’ll be writing all sorts of things at the start of next year.”
Explaining what he has done differently since joining the Robins from Salford Red Devils ahead of the 2024 season, Burgess revealed: “Diet was the big one.
“When I first moved to Hull I was living with Tyrone May and he was doing all the cooking – cooking me steak, eggs, cheese and avocado for about two months!
“I thought he was mad, but I could feel myself feeling better, with a lot more energy and better sleep.”
Saturday’s England game will give Burgess a close up look at Aussie full-back sensation Reece Walsh, who’ll play for Brisbane Broncos against Hull KR in February’s World Club Challenge.
Burgess is focussing on “one job at a time”, but stressed: “He has had a bit of a bumpy year, but the last five or six weeks of the season he was untouchable.
“I am excited for the challenge and to see how quick he actually is. You can’t really tell from the sideline.”
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