IT’S been one of the biggest question marks following the Rugby League World Cup, but should Shaun Wane remain as England head coach?
England’s tournament started off in the best possible manner with a hammering of Samoa getting the nation’s fans excited.
Big wins over France, Greece and Papua New Guinea followed before it was time to face Samoa once more in the semi-finals.
This time, however, it was the Pacific Island nation that was able to enact revenge on their English opponents with a Golden Point Stephen Crichton drop goal the difference between the two sides at the end of the game.
Since then, the RFL has launched a review into the tournament and whether Wane will be staying on as England boss, but remember, this is a head coach that has led England just nine times since taking over the role back in February 2020.
In fact, Wane didn’t lead the nation until June 2021 when England took on the Combined Nations All Stars midway through the Super League season.
That being said, the preparation for the World Cup was hardly conducive to bringing out the best of England, especially with a number of stars such as Elliott Whitehead, Herbie Farnworth and Victor Radley only linking up with the side ahead of the tournament.
With the 2025 Rugby League World Cup taking place in France, the decision over the next England head coach will be with an aim of leading the country in that tournament.
Why should Wane stay on? Well his success at the Wigan Warriors was superb to say the least, leading the Lancashire club to numerous Super League and Challenge Cup titles.
It’s obvious he hasn’t had that much time despite being in charge almost three years due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the lack of international fixtures with the likes of Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Island nations.
And it was clear to see in the World Cup that the players were very much playing for Wane, something was just missing in that semi-final.
A number of those players in that competition such as Sam Tomkins, Michael McIlorum and Chris Hill will not be playing in the next World Cup, so it would be interesting to see which direction the former Wigan boss would go in.
It’s now Wane’s job – if he is kept on as England boss – to identify what that was and put it right.
