Academy Origin Squads announced

Several Aussie-beaters, a handful of players with senior Betfred Super League experience, and a couple of familiar Rugby League names are included in the Lancashire and Yorkshire squads that have been announced today for the three-match Origin series that begins at Castleford on Easter Saturday.

Umyla Hanley, the son of Ellery who plays his Academy rugby for Wigan Warriors, is named for the first time in the Lancashire squad - and is joined by Jarrod O’Connor, the son of the former Wigan and Great Britain prop Terry, who recently joined Leeds Rhinos from Widnes Vikings.

Man of the Match ?

Umyla Hanley was at the centre of things as @StPetersOrrell became national Year 10 Boys champions on Friday! ? pic.twitter.com/FpebLPl883

— Rugby Football League (@TheRFL) August 28, 2017

They are joined by Jack Welsby of St Helens, who starred in England Academy’s 2-0 series win against the Australian Schoolboys in the winter - and has followed a number of other players from that squad into the Super League in recent weeks.

England Academy’s @jackwelsby_ scored his first Betfred @SuperLeague try in @Saints1890’s win over Hull KR on Friday night ? pic.twitter.com/qvFA7F9kDv

— England Rugby League (@England_RL) April 2, 2019

Welsby is one of eight Saints youngsters in the Lancashire squad, while his 2018 England team-mate Tom Holroyd is one of seven players from Leeds Rhinos in the Yorkshire squad.

Holroyd is joined by Conner Wynne, who made his Super League debut for Hull FC at Salford last weekend, and Morgan Smithies, the Halifax-born forward who was another member of the successful England Academy squad last year, and has made an immediate impact with Wigan in recent weeks.

There is an additional emphasis on the Origin series in 2019, with no Academy internationals against southern hemisphere opposition this year - although many players in these squads will aiming to stake a claim for the tour of Australia in 2020.

? Another City of Hull Academy product made their club debut yesterday - Connor Wynne has explained his delight at pulling on the Black & White jersey for the first time in @SuperLeague!

POST-MATCH ?? https://t.co/ha4vn3QPNp pic.twitter.com/6KRCQwYUb8

— Hull FC (@hullfcofficial) April 8, 2019

The second match of the series will be played at Blackpool FC's Bloomfield Road stadium on Saturday May 18 as part of the Betfred Championship Summer Bash weekend, with the series concluding at Odsal on June 15.

Luke Robinson will coach the Yorkshire team, with Ian Talbot coaching Lancashire.

Coaching staff -

Lancashire:

• Head Coach - Ian Talbot (St Helens)
• Assistant Coach - Shane Eccles (Wigan Warriors)
• Coaching Support - Grant Gore (Widnes Vikings)

Yorkshire:

• Head Coach - Luke Robinson (Huddersfield Giants)
• Assistant Coach - Michael Heap (Newcastle Thunder)
• Coaching Support - Jonny Wainhouse (Leeds Rhinos)

Full squads -

Lancashire:

• Billy Glover (Widnes Vikings)
• Connor Wrench (Warrington Wolves)
• Ethan Havard (Wigan Warriors)
• Harry Rushton (Wigan Warriors)
• Jack Welsby (St Helens)
• Jake Bradley (Whitehaven)
• Jake Wingfield (St Helens)
• Jamie Pye (St Helens)
• Jarrod O'Connor (Leeds Rhinos)
• Joe Barnes (Warrington Wolves)
• Josh Simm (St Helens)
• Josh Thewlis (Warrington Wolves)
• Kye Siyani (St Helens)
• Lewis Baxter (St Helens)
• Lewis Dodd (St Helens)
• Matthew Foster (St Helens)
• Reece Hamlett (Wigan Warriors)
• Sam Halsall (Wigan Warriors)
• Sam Walters (Leeds Rhinos)
• Umyla Hanley (Wigan Warriors)

Yorkshire

• Brad Martin (Leeds Rhinos)
• Conner Wynne (City of Hull Academy)
• Connor Bailey (Wakefield Trinity)
• Corey Johnson (Leeds Rhinos)
• Dom Young (Huddersfield Giants)
• Ellis Longstaff (Warrington Wolves)
• Harry Shackleton (Bradford Bulls)
• Jack Broadbent (Leeds Rhinos)
• Jack Croft (Wakefield Trinity)
• Jacob Gannon (Warrington)
• Kai Tyson (City of Hull Academy)
• Lewis Peachey (Castleford Tigers)
• Liam Tindall (Leeds Rhinos)
• Liam Whitton (Leeds Rhinos)
• Mikey Lewis (City of Hull Academy)
• Morgan Smithies (Wigan Warriors)
• Rian Rowley (Leeds Rhinos)
• Riley Dean (Warrington Wolves)
• Tom Holroyd (Leeds Rhinos)
• Yusuf Aydin (Wakefield Trinity)

The RFL hope to confirm soon that live coverage of all three matches will be available on the Our League app.