THE FIGHT for a place in this autumn’s World Cup squad got underway the weekend before last, when Stuart Barrow’s England women’s squad returned to training in Leeds.
The camp brought the newly-named 33-player National Performance squad together for the first time and gave five players their first taste of an international environment.
Wigan trio Mia-Jayne Atherton, Ellise Derbyshire and Megan Williams joined Ella Donnelly of Leeds and St Helens’ Erin McDonald in earning their first call-up to the squad, while established winger Leah Burke made her return after being out since the 2024 Grand Final with an ACL injury.
For Barrow, this return to action marks the first stage of a three-stage programme ahead of the World Cup, which also includes mid-season Test against France in late July.
The squad will now meet monthly until the Challenge Cup kicks off in March, then again in the lead-up to the France game before resuming training ahead of the World Cup.
“This is our first block with a squad that has been picked on potential that we see for the World Cup plus their form of last year,” Barrow explained to League Express.
“Then the season will start and we’ll move into the second block ahead of the France game, when we’ll look at the form of everyone involved in Super League.
“The third block will then take us through to the World Cup, where everything will be considered before making the final selection.
“Getting back in on Saturday – a cold dark morning – and talking about the World Cup and the expectations for the year, it suddenly became real. We’re nine months away for the World Cup and it is exciting.
“The intensity of the field sessions was exceptional. The girls know there is a lot of competition for places and that they’ve got to perform. They did that with a smile on their faces; they put in a lot of hard work and there was a lot of skill and quality on show alongside that.
“The last 12 months have made a big difference. Losing that game in Vegas allowed everyone to reflect and think about what we do next. The camp today has seen a really high intensity of speed, power and skill. For this early in the year we’re really pleased with where the girls are at and everyone’s really focused on a World Cup year.
“Training felt fresh; it felt like that last year’s defeat to Australia in Las Vegas has been put to bed. Learnings have been taken from it and we’re moving forward.
“Saturday very much felt like it was a first positive step in doing that.”