IRELAND and USA, who will contest the opening match of the Wheelchair World Cup in Wollongong on Friday, October 30, have announced their squads.
The Ireland pool has a familiar look, with just one potential debutant in Bledar Suxha, who played for Ireland A against Scotland A last year.
The three-time Celtic Cup champions will be captained by Halifax Panthers’ Joe Calcott, one of seven Wheelchair Super League players named.
USA have named a squad with 50 percent new players. Just six remain from those who faced Wales twice in February 2024 in South Carolina in the USA’s last outing. Those were their only games since the last World Cup in 2022.
They will be captained by Jesse Lind, one of four ever-presents in USA’s five matches so far, coming off the bench in each match, so the encounter against Ireland is likely to be his first start.
Wales have named a 15-player squad to be reduced to twelve by next month, containing just six from this year’s Celtic Cup campaign.
Uncapped players named are York Knights’ John Berriman and North Wales Crusaders’ Fionn McCabe, both of whom have excelled in the RFL Wheelchair Championship this season, plus Sheffield Eagles’ Gareth Ramsey, whose son Sid has already won full Wales honours.
Wales face England in match two of the Wheelchair World Cup, also on October 30 and part of the ‘Magic Day’ in which England take on Samoa in the women’s competition, then Papua New Guinea in the men’s, all at Wollongong’s WIN Entertainment Centre/Stadium.
IRELAND: 1 Orán Spain (Leinster/Wigan Warriors), 2 Cian Horgan (Munster/Halifax Panthers), 3 Bledar Suxha (Leinster)*, 4 Toby Burton-Carter (Leinster/Wigan Warriors), 5 Mel Griffith (Leinster/Wigan Warriors, vice-capt), 6 Tom Martin (Ulster/Halifax Panthers), 7 Phil Roberts (Connacht/Wigan Warriors), 8 Peter Johnston (Ulster/Midlands Hurricanes), 9 Joe Calcott (Connacht/Halifax Panthers, capt), 10 James McCarthy (Munster/Midlands Hurricanes), 11 Maurice Noonan (Munster), 12 Jack Mangan (Leinster).
USA: Lavern Anderson*, Morrell Fox*, Antoine Gray*, Brent Hawkins*, Mackenzie Johnson (vice-capt), Bill Johnstone, Andy Kingsley, Jabrier Lee, Jesse Lind (capt), James Ross*, Freddie Smith, Cole Wooten*.
WALES: John Berriman (York Knights)*, Jess Booth (Cardiff Blue Dragons/Salford Red Devils), Jodie Boyd-Ward (Leeds Rhinos, capt), Jonathan Gill (North Wales Crusaders), Andrew Higgins (Midlands Hurricanes), Fionn McCabe (North Wales Crusaders)*, Gary Preece (Midlands Hurricanes), Gareth Ramsey (Sheffield Eagles)*, Sid Ramsey (Sheffield Eagles), Lee Sargent (Cardiff Blue Dragons/Midlands Hurricanes), Martin Turner (North Wales Crusaders), Matthew Turner (North Wales Crusaders/Wigan Warriors), Jakub Wasieczko (North Wales Crusaders), Mark Williams (South Wales Jets/Wigan Warriors), Stuart Williams (North Wales Crusaders/Edinburgh Giants, vice-capt).
* Uncapped.