By Martin Morgan

Published at 11:24, Thursday, 13 December 2012

THREE of West Cumbria’s brightest young prospects have been given the nod by England coach Dave Elliott.

Title
Author
Copyright

Description

Kells kid Jordan Burns and former Cockermouth powerhouse Tom Walker, both now with Warrington Wolves, have been named in the England Academy squad for 2013, while Wath Brow’s Jake Moore is one of six Wigan youngsters in the Youth squad.

Both squads will tackle their French counterparts next year, while the Youth side will also face Wales.

Elliott, from Whitehaven, who is overall charge of both squads, said: “We learnt a lot about our players during the 2012 season, with both age groups playing tough games against France and the Academy getting the experience of touring in Australia, and I’m looking forward to continuing that progression and helping these young players further develop in 2013.

“There are some very talented players in the Academy squad and also some experienced heads at that level with a lot of the squads having been involved during 2012, but there are also a lot of talented youngsters on the fringes of the squad and that highlights the strength of the players coming through the system at the moment.

“The big thing for us is to see how these players cope in an England environment having performed well for their clubs during the season.

“There is a direct pathway to the England senior side and these lads can see clearly the steps they need to take to progress towards Steve McNamara’s squad.

“We’re working hard to try and give the players the tools to better themselves and best prepare them to make that step up through the ranks.”

Back-rower Moore has enjoyed a rapid rise since joining Wigan in September last year to play for their Under-15 scholarship side.

“The Youth squad includes a lot of young players who are coming into the international environment for the first time and that makes it a very exciting group of players for us to work with as we are constantly challenged to ensure we make it as interesting for the players as we can,” said Elliott.

“It’s very rewarding for myself and the other coaches to have the opportunity to work with these young professionals and it makes me very proud to watch these players progress through the ranks and hopefully we can continue to help these youngsters develop and achieve their aims of playing at Super League level.”

Published by http://www.whitehavennews.co.uk