New England coach Brian McDermott answers key question on Leeds Rhinos ace Jake Connor

McDermott, who won four Betfred Super League titles during eight seasons in charge of Rhinos from 2011-2018, was today confirmed as new national boss, succeeding Shaun Wane who stepped down in January after six years in the post. The 56-year-old former Royal Marine is an assistant at NRL club Gold Coast Titans and will take the England job on a part-time basis until after this autumn’s World Cup.

Previous coach Wane caused controversy last year when he omitted Connor from his squad for the Ashes Test series against Australia, which England lost 3-0. Connor was a contentious figure at times during his spells with Hull FC and Huddersfield Giants before joining Leeds ahead of the 2025 season and Wane insisted it wasn’t a difficult decision to leave him out.

However, since moving to Rhinos Connor has become one of the most influential players in the European game and asked at a press conference this morning if the Leeds star is in his World Cup plans, McDermott vowed: “Yeah he is, for sure - absolutely.”

He insisted: “The rhetoric and the narrative around Jake was tremendously unfair. I understand where Jake Connor comes from in that he’s liked by some and disliked by others. That’s the nature of the game.

“We could sit around a table and debate whether he’s a nice person or not, but I don’t think that’s a fair narrative to be made public. That was the rhetoric around him, but what nobody can argue is he is a tremendous player; he is a fanatic player, he’s a game-breaker.”

McDermott, who beat candidates including Rhinos’ Brad Arthur to the role, confirmed he is interested in staying on after this year’s tournament and believes England can “bridge the gap” to Australia and win the world title. He said: “The job comes with its challenges and you have to have a plan which is accurate to the UK, to British-based players and to a team that largely comes from a competition that is different to the NRL.

“You have to have a plan that’s specific, not a general plan. We certainly can’t copy what the other nations are doing if we intend to go deep into the tournament.”

With no warm-up games planned between now and England’s arrival in Perth, where they will play their first two group matches in six months’ time, McDermott accepts he has a big task on his hands. “It does pose some challenges,” he said of the part-time role.

“But I think with the internet nowadays I can watch games and see the clips I need to see. I certainly do watch enough Super League games already, without being England coach. The irony is even if I was based in the UK any players I would meet I would probably do it on Zoom anyway.

“Preparation time leading into the first game is very short. It is not ideal preparation for a World Cup, but I don’t think any other team is getting an extended period of time together.”