England Rugby League: Shaun Wane's excitement unaffected by 'tough' build-up
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Shaun Wane has had to wait more than a year to take charge of his first England match
England coach Shaun Wane is full of excitement ahead of his first match in charge of the national team.
But he admits the build-up to the game against the Combined All Stars has been "tough".
Super League clubs have chosen to play a round of fixtures on the same weekend as England's World Cup warm-up game, leading to a selection headache for Wane and his All Stars coaching counterpart Tim Sheens.
That complication, and with a continued backdrop of Covid protocols to follow, makes it a far from ideal set-up for Wane ahead of the first of only two games he gets with his players before the World Cup kicks off in late October.
"To be honest it hasn't been ideal. It has been difficult." Wane told this week's 5 Live Rugby League podcast.
"The only thing I'm in control of is training, the team run and then the game on Friday and making sure the players are ready.
"I'm a very optimistic person and it's just the way it is and we have to deal with it."
Diplomacy at play
Former Wigan boss Wane has taken a diplomatic approach to the number of complaints made by clubs about England and the All Stars' selection policy.
Clubs are worried their own Super League matches may be unduly affected if they have too many players called up for the international.
And he remains phlegmatic about the decision by Super League to stage a round of fixtures on the same weekend as a vital England warm-up game.
"I understand, I've been in club land, I understand what they're going through. This fixture would have been best as a stand-alone fixture, but it's not," he said.
"Disruptions happen. The Super League season is really important to the clubs and I totally understand that. But the only thing important to me is England and making sure we go into a World Cup absolutely ready.
"I've been on both sides. I've been there with owners and chief execs. We've had the toughest time over the last 18 months, with unprecedented pressures on clubs. So I totally understand there is a commercial side to this.
"I get what clubs are doing. But they've called it. I asked for a stand-alone fixture and it didn't happen. So I have to deal with it and so do the clubs.
"I've had many chats with CEOs and head coaches and players and people are trying their best. They're trying to look after the clubs and do the right thing for England as well."
Staying safe in challenging times
Covid protocols have caused logistical and practical challenges for rugby league throughout the pandemic
The added complication in the preparation for the game has been trying to keep players safe from the risk of Covid.
Bringing players together from club across the Super League has led to fears of higher risks of outbreaks.
Wane insists every measure is being taken to keep the risk to a minimum.
"We've got Professor Chris Brookes, who's the best around, and he's put standards in place and procedures in place that we need to adhere to," he says.
"The rules and the guidelines have been put forward for Rugby League, and that's what we'll do.
"But this is a camp to play rugby. We'll stick to the rules that we have to do, but we have to train. My team needs to train and needs to understand what I'm about.
"We'll have time on the field, but when we're off the field, when we're in camp, we stick to all the rules we need to.
"Without a doubt it's tough but, when you consider what we've been through over the last year as a country, my problem is not that big when you think about it in the bigger scheme of things."