Mason Billington of London Roosters will make his starting England debut in Thursday’s first Ashes Test against Australia on the Gold Coast, while Finlay O’Neill of Halifax Panthers will win his first cap from the interchange bench.
And both were presented with their jerseys by Brian McDermott, the former Great Britain prop and Leeds Rhinos coach, at England’s eve-of-series team dinner.
McDermott recently relocated to Queensland from Newcastle having been appointed to Josh Hannay’s NRL coaching staff with the Gold Coast Titans for 2026 – and is a long-term supporter of Wheelchair Rugby League, having been introduced to the sport by Martin Coyd OBE, the RFL Board member with whom he shares a military background.
Tom Coyd MBE, England’s Head Coach, said:
“We were delighted to welcome Brian into our camp ahead of the first Test, and equally pleased to recognise the remarkable progress made by both Mason and Finlay in the last couple of years.
“Both are still incredibly new to the sport to have reached the position of earning a place in England’s starting 5, in Mason’s case, and in our matchday squad in the case of Finlay.
“It’s exciting for the sport that we have examples of players being able to make such an impact so quickly. We do have a core of players who have been with us for some time, largely because they joined at such a young age – but there’s been a real evolution of the squad since the World Cup win in 2022, and Mason and Finlay are great examples of that.”
England have been busy since Monday’s tough win against Queensland on the Sunshine Coast, relocating to the Gold Coast via a reception to launch the series at the Queensland Parliament in Brisbane – hosted by Tim Mander, the former referee who is now the Minister for Sport and Racing, and the Minister for the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Queensland.
Both Tests in the first Wheelchair Ashes series since 2019 will be played at the Gold Coast Sports and Leisure Centre which was built for the Brisbane Commonwealth Games in 2018.
“We trained at the venue today, and it’s absolutely showstopping,” added Coyd. “It’s bit different to the Copper Box where we played in the World Cup, because it’s not one big arena. It’s a complex of sports halls with retractable tiered blocks of seating, and amazing training facilities which are used as the base of the Gold Coast Suns AFL team.
“There’s a real feeling of celebration with the whole of Australia’s Wheelchair Rugby League community gathering. We know it’s going to be a tough challenge for us, but the lads are exactly where I’d want them to be.”
Lewis King will captain England for the first time in a Test following his appointment to succeed the injured Tom Halliwell OBE, while the inclusion of Billington on the left wing and Joe Coyd at loose forward means there will be three London Roosters players in England’s starting five.
They are joined by Nathan Collins of Leeds Rhinos and Rob Hawkins of Halifax Panthers, with two more Panthers - O’Neill and Jack Brown – joining Seb Bechara of Catalans Dragons on the interchange bench.
Australia have named nine players for the opening match which sees Dylan Gawthorne potentially in line to make his debut. Brad Grove will captain the side and will celebrated his 20th international for Australia with the appearance. The exciting Bayley McKenna also returns for the Wheelaroos having lit up the last World Cup scoring 3 tries, 18 goals and a drop goal for the Australian side.
The match is scheduled to kick off at 5am UK time this Thursday (30 October), with live coverage on the NRL website and NRL Pathways YouTube channel.
England Wheelchair team for First Ashes Test v Australia
Starting 5
1 – Nathan Collins (Leeds Rhinos)
2 – Rob Hawkins (Halifax Panthers)
3 – Joe Coyd (London Roosters)
4 – Lewis King (London Roosters, captain)
5 – Mason Billington (London Roosters)
Interchange
8 – Jack Brown (Halifax Panthers)
9 – Seb Bechara (Catalans Dragons)
10 – Finlay O’Neill (Halifax Panthers – debut)
Ninth Player
6 – Luis Domingos (Castleford Tigers)
Australia team
Daniel Anstey, Peter Arbuckle (Gold Coast Titans), Cory Cannane (St George Illawarra Dragons), Dylan Gawthorne (SEQ Stingrays), Brad Grove, Diab Karim (Parramatta Eels), Bayley McKenna, Zac Schumacher (Brothers Townsville), Adam Tannock (Townsville Marlins).
