The Wheelchair Rugby League season is rolling towards its climax and Halifax Panthers have Leeds Rhinos in their sights in the play-offs, writes IAN GOLDEN.
Halifax Panthers’ Rob Hawkins believes that his side are capable of beating Leeds Rhinos in the Betfred Wheelchair Super League play-offs, despite two losses to the league leaders in the regular season.
The team who finished in second place in Super League have however beaten London Roosters home and away and got revenge on Wigan Warriors for their Challenge Cup defeat with a 68-30 victory in July.
Now, with the play-offs looming – Halifax play London in Hull in the semi-finals on Saturday, September 28 – Hawkins says that there’s nothing they want more than a record-extending third Super League title at the end of the season.
“We’ve had a few ups and downs this year,” he said. “We’re in second place which is quite good. We need to continue it the best we can as we want to reach another Grand Final.
“It’s possible to topple Leeds. We played them in the first game of the season and only lost to them by 12 points. Then over in Leeds, we only lost by two points, and I think they played stronger that day than in the first game. Yes, they can be beaten but it all depends on how we play on the day and whether we’re on form. We just have to be at our best.”
Following Halifax’s victory in the first ever Wheelchair Super League Grand Final in 2019, Hawkins made his England debut against Wales in a weekend Tri-Nations in Wrexham, where he scored the opening try of the game in their 48-24 win. He’s since gone on to win 13 caps for his country which included playing a big part in their World Cup victory in 2022.
Hawkins adds: “I just missed out on the Australia tour and that gave me motivation to do more. So I was determined to get into that England World Cup side in 2022.
“The World Cup was a great experience. From playing in front of a few hundred to a few thousand is something I’d not experienced before. The crowds kept growing throughout the tournament and the amount of capture we got from it from the matches being live on the BBC and plenty of social media has helped the sport to grow over the last couple of years.”
Now he’s set for another England campaign, a two-test series against France, with the home game in Wigan on Saturday, 26th October and Hawkins will hope to be there.
“We will have to see,” he said. “There’s a way to go with the Super League and Halifax and also the England National Performance Squad is improving and has more players than before.
“I’m working hard on my game to earn a place for England. I think France will be strong, fast and skilful, as they always are, so we will prepare for any situation that may come about during the games. There is also a test match against Spain in November which is exciting for the game.
“It’s always a back and forth match whenever England and France face each other but that’s what makes our matches exciting, it’s so unpredictable with what’s going to happen next.
“There isn’t anyone in particular that viewers should be focusing on because everyone has their own talents with their game. You’re going to have to watch everyone to see the full talents of each team.”
For the match on 26th October, the Rugby Football League have publicised that “on the undercard will be two representative games when the Juniors (Under 16) and women’s players will play in Origin style representative games as part of the occasion.”
The 2013 World Cup had players as young as 15-years old. However, with a minimum age for wheelchair internationals, that’s no longer possible.
But it’s having specific women’s events that has caused some chat in certain quarters, as Wheelchair Rugby League has prided itself on being completely inclusive to all ages and genders in the same side. Last month, in Rugby League World, Leeds Rhinos’ Jodie Boyd-Ward made comments about not wanting to “split the game” but Jenny Pearson of Sheffield Eagles, who attended the first “women’s festival” has given reasons as to why these festivals should be happening as it’s a way to introduce new people into the sport.
Pearson said: “I really like playing rugby with both men and women on a mixed team, but I do see the appeal of women’s wheelchair rugby league as well. I think that anything that helps get more people encouraged to participate in the sport is a positive thing. At Sheffield Eagles, we have quite a number of female players and there is some great experience they have brought with them from playing women’s rugby in the past.
“At the women’s festival it was a great environment and I felt as though the more experienced players really tried to create opportunities for the newer players to get involved. I think having a women’s focused event was great in demonstrating a real commitment to trying to create playing opportunities for women.”
There are so many stories of why people play wheelchair rugby league and for Hawkins, being involved in Halifax and England has changed his life.
He says: “I was diagnosed with a condition called chronic fatigue syndrome and M.E which causes me to become very fatigued after doing a lot of activities and exercise.
“I was very active before I got my condition by doing cross country, football and I had just started playing rugby league before I got diagnosed. I then found wheelchair rugby league and came for a training session and haven’t stopped since.
“At first, I could only train for around 15 to 20 minutes before I got too fatigued but over time, I have been able to manage my condition so I can now play and train for longer periods.
“This sport has made a massive impact on my life, being able to learn the sport and improve my skills through the guidance of Jack Brown, Wayne Boardman and more recently the England coaches and players has helped me to become a better player and play at a higher level.”
First published in Rugby League World magazine, Issue 501 (October 2024)
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