GEORGE WILLIAMS says England are ready to face the might of Australia in the Ashes and he believes the fear factor of the Kangaroos has now gone.
Although no dates and venues have been announced yet, the three Ashes Tests are expected to take place in the UK over three weeks in late October and early November.
It will be the first time the Ashes has been held since 2003. Wembley, Everton FC’s new stadium and Headingley are tipped to be the venues for the matches.
England skipper Williams feels his team has been improving and growing since the World Cup in 2022, when they were knocked out by Samoa in the semi-finals at Arsenal’s Emirates stadium.
“It’s been really good,” he told League Express.
“In 2022 we lost in golden point to Samoa and we’ve been building ever since. That hit us hard but since then we beat Tonga 3-0 and Samoa 2-0, so we’re building nicely.
“We want to play against the best team in the world, which is Australia. You don’t know how good you’re going until you play the top dogs – they are at the moment and have been for a long time.
“I’m praying that it goes ahead; we need these games for Rugby League in this country and for us to see where we’re at.”
Williams played in the NRL with Canberra previously and a number of current England stars are succeeding in the competition, such as Dolphins centre Herbie Farnworth and Roosters winger Dom Young.
With that cohort, along with the likes of St Helens and Wigan dethroning Penrith Panthers in the World Club Challenge in successive years, Williams believes that any remaining fear of the Kangaroos has disappeared.
“Australia deserve respect, they’ve been the best for a long time, but they’re humans just like us,” the halfback said.
“Sometimes we put them on a pedestal. You do that sometimes when people win. But we’ve not played them since 2017.
“I didn’t play them then; I didn’t get on the field. I played against them in the 2016 Four Nations. I’ve only played against them once, which is mad. That’s ten years of internationals, which is crazy.
“We just want to play against the best teams and we’re ready to do that now. We can’t wait. We know what they bring and that’s the challenge we hope we’re ready for.”
Australia have won a hat-trick of World Cups in 2013, 2017 and 2022 after New Zealand beat them in the final of the 2008 tournament.
The Kangaroos defeated the Kiwis in the final of the Pacific Championship last year, while they have not lost an Ashes series since 1970.
