It’s 100 days until Wales start their Wheelchair World Cup campaign, when we take on England at WIN Entertainment Centre in Wollongong on Friday 30th October, just 90 minutes south of Sydney.
The match, which kicks off at 3.30 pm local time (4.30 am GMT), is the second match in the tournament, immediately following the opener, Ireland v USA.
Following the wheelchair double-header, the action moves next door to WIN Stadium, where England take on Samoa in the Women’s World Cup, then Papua New Guinea in the men’s.
Wales head coach Alan Caron says that his side is very much in full preparation for the tournament but are waiting until August to name the World Cup squad.
And the players are in top form for their clubs. For example, in Super League, Matthew Turner, the youngest member of the side, has scored 15 tries in the last two weeks, 11 of them against Bradford Bulls on July 11th; Stuart Williams has scored 14 tries this month, including eight against Leeds Rhinos; whilst Jodie Boyd-Ward will captain Leeds in the Wheelchair Challenge Cup Final this Saturday.
In the Championship, tries from Matthew’s dad, Martin Turner, along with Jonny Gill and Harry Mitchell-Jones, have kept North Wales Crusaders top of the table; whilst Caron himself has been in regular try-scoring action this season for Midlands Hurricanes, alongside Lee Sargent, Libbie Sargent and young hopeful Tomos Parker.
This is just a selection of the top performances that Caron’s squad have been putting in recently, and he is pleased with the progress.
“We’re delighted with how our players are performing,” he said. “They’re getting better and better this season, and because we still have injured players to come in and others who could return, it will be a tough selection for the World Cup in Australia.
“As there’s now just 100 days to go until we face England, it’s all getting quite real. We have a few training camps to go, so there’s still time for us to see who could get into the final 12 that we need to select for the World Cup.
“We are still fundraising for our trip to Australia and to pay for training camps. We are on a very limited budget, and most of our players will need to take time off work, some unpaid, to represent Wales down under, so we’d be grateful if people could give generously to help us in our cause.
“We reached the semi-finals last time around, and that will be the minimum aim again, but it will be tough. Thanks to everyone who has supported us so far.”
To donate to Wales’s cause, go to https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/wrl-wheelchair-team-road-to-world-cup-2026#
