Wheelchair rugby league: New chairs are 'game changers' as England plot World Cup success

England have been training in Sheffield this week to prepare for Saturday's game against Wales

England's wheelchair rugby league stars are hoping that cutting edge technology can give them a crucial advantage as they plot World Cup success.

England meet Wales in the first international for nearly 20 months as the sport emerges from the Covid-19 lockdown. It's a game that will be streamed live on the BBC iPlayer on Saturday 26 June, starting at 12:30 BST.

And it will also be the first time that the English players will get to test out new, specially designed chairs described as "absolutely incredible" by one of their senior stars.

"They are a game changer, " Leeds Rhinos' James Simpson told this week's 5 Live Rugby League podcast.

"They are top of the range, and totally tailored to our bodies - our weight, our size and where our centre of gravity is. And they weigh absolutely nothing.

"They are fast and manoeuvrable. If it's just the 1 or 2% extra that we get from these chairs, then that's going to be crucial at the end of the year when we are up against the other top teams."

England's World Cup campaign begins in the Copper Box Arena in London against Australia on 11 November.

And they have chosen tough opponents this weekend for their first match in over a year and a half.

Although Wales have never beaten England, they are ranked third in the world, just one place below the English, and were semi-finalists at the last World Cup.

"It's going to be absolutely huge," said Simpson, one of four Rhinos players in the England squad.

"We're coming up to of 20 months with no International fixtures - 2019 was absolutely incredible for us, with the tour to France and the tour to Australia and we were riding on a massive wave and really at the top of our game. To have a 20-month lay off has been a bit of a hit.

"But I think we've managed to maintain our focus. Everyone has worked really hard behind the scenes and I think this weekend is going to be a big stamp on whether the things we have been doing behind the scenes have been right."

England have picked three potential debutants in their squad - Adam Rigby of Leyland Warriors, Josh Butler of Leeds Rhinos and Rob Hawkins of Halifax Panthers.

The Welsh side will feature another Leeds star, Jodie Boyd-Ward, who will be winning her 30th international cap in the mixed-gender sport.