Wales Wheelchair Rugby League head coach Alan Caron has named his squad, combining youth and experience, for the opening match of the 2026 Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup against England in Wollongong, Australia, on Friday (kick-off 3.30pm local, 4.30am Welsh time).
North Wales Crusaders’ Fionn McCabe and York RLFC’s John Berriman are in line to make their international debuts in the tournament opener, with McCabe’s selection particularly notable given that he has only just turned 16.
McCabe celebrated his 16th birthday on 18 October, less than a fortnight before Wales begin their World Cup campaign, so he will become Wales Wheelchair’s third-youngest debutant of all time.
The pair will be supported by a group of established internationals, providing a balance of youth and experience.
Former skipper Mark Williams has 42 Wales caps, with current vice-captain Stuart Williams on 36, but this year’s captain Jodie Boyd-Ward is set to make her 48th international appearance when she leads Wales out against England. The Leeds Rhinos player has represented Wales on 18 occasions, alongside seven appearances for Ireland and 22 for England.
Caron said: “I’m confident that my assistant coaches and I are happy with the side we’ve selected.
“England are world champions, so we know they’ll be tough, but we have five games and three weeks, and we know that we’re trying to plan not just for this game, but the second, third, fourth and fifth.
“The England team has changed since the last World Cup, as has ours. But the youngsters that are coming through have been selected because they’ve got really good qualities, not just for now, but for the future of the game in Wales.”
Under tournament rules, a ten-player squad must be named, with eight playing on the day. One of the two reserves will be named as ninth player, and they can be in action if there are head injuries.
Wales will play all their tournament matches at the WIN Entertainment Centre in Wollongong. Following the England fixture, they face Ireland on Tuesday 3 November and USA on Friday 6 November. All eight participating nations are guaranteed five matches, with the remaining fixtures determined by the semi-final and ranking-match format.
WALES SQUAD TO FACE ENGLAND
1 Sid Ramsey (Sheffield Eagles, 2 Wales caps)
2 Fionn McCabe (North Wales Crusaders, 0 Wales caps)
5 Jodie Boyd-Ward (c) (Leeds Rhinos, 18 Wales caps)
6 Jonathan Gill (North Wales Crusaders, 1 Wales cap)
7 Stuart Williams (vc) (Edinburgh Giants / North Wales Crusaders, 36 Wales caps)
9 Matthew Turner (Wigan Warriors / North Wales Crusaders, 2 Wales caps)
10 Mark Williams (Wigan Warriors / South Wales Jets, 42 Wales caps)
11 John Berriman (York RLFC, 0 Wales caps)
Reserves
3 Lee Sargent (Birmingham Hurricanes / Cardiff Blue Dragons, 8 Wales caps)
4 Andrew Higgins (Birmingham Hurricanes, 37 Wales caps)
