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England International Touch returns with Anglo-Welsh fixtures
England Touch returns to international action this weekend when both the men’s 40s and men’s 45s squads take on their Welsh counterparts in the rugby heartland of Pontypridd on Saturday 24th July.
Both the 40s and 45s will play two capped test matches, before the 40s also take on a Barbarians team in an uncapped final match. The test matches form part of the International Series between England, Scotland and Wales, with fixtures across Open’s and Seniors categories to follow in the Autumn.
Commenting on the return to international action, England High Performance Director – Ben Powell said:
“It’s been an extremely long time since we competed at an international level and it’s great to be able to finally get back. We’ve been planning the International Series for some time, but the continued uncertainty has meant it’s been extremely difficult to confirm things. I am delighted that we can finally get things underway this weekend.
Ben added: “I would like to personally thank the Wales Touch Association for hosting us this weekend - it is fantastic to have such quality opposition so close to us. I would also like to thank Gary Reynolds and the Federation of International Touch for making the long-awaited return to international touch possible.”
The last international touch fixture played by an England team was in October 2019, when men’s and women’s representative teams participated in the European Challenge Trophy in Alicante. The last fully capped matches were the Junior Touch Championships in Paris in August 2019 and the World Cup in Malaysia in May that year.
The World Cup marked the last meeting between the two nations at 45s level, with Wales beating England 5-3. Prior to that, England beat Wales twice at the Euros in Nottingham in 2018.
At 40s level, the teams haven’t met since that Euros, with England coming out on top twice, including a narrow 8-7 victory in the semi-finals.
We wish both the England Men’s 40s and England Men’s 45s the best of luck this weekend with a number of first international caps for some athletes. We are also celebrating Niall Buggy and Gene MacDonald making their international debuts as Head Coaches.
The England squads for the clashes this weekend at Llantwit Fardre Rugby Football Club, in Pontypridd are as follows (*denotes first cap):
England Men's 40s - Test Match v Wales |
|||
1 |
Campbell |
Allen* |
Oxford |
2 |
Joseph |
Hartley |
Oxford |
3 |
Mark |
Knight |
BBR |
4 |
James |
Mallick |
Oxford |
5 |
Aaron |
Chan |
CSSC London Eagles |
7 |
Erik |
Williams |
Galaxy London |
8 |
Matthew |
Hall |
Nottingham |
9 |
Semisi |
Cocker |
|
10 |
Christian |
Prinsloo |
Surrey Bisons |
11 |
Gregg |
Cropper |
Manchester Chargers |
12 |
Jonathon |
Irwin |
CSSC London Eagles |
13 |
Dale |
Bright |
Green+Gold |
14 |
Travis |
Kenny |
Cambridge |
16 |
Ben |
Blackburn* |
Banbury Saxons |
17 |
Daniel |
Dyer* |
Canterbury |
20 |
Stuart |
Block |
Green+Gold |
0 |
Liam |
Lawton |
Chester Cheetahs |
18 |
Matthew |
Jaynes |
Cheltenham |
6 |
Zhayne |
Nel |
Galaxy London |
19 |
Russell |
Kelleway |
CSSC London Eagles |
COACH |
Gene |
MacDonald |
|
England Men's 45s - Test Match v Wales |
|||
2 |
Simon |
Cooper |
Norwich Rebels |
3 |
Joshua |
Bingley |
Norwich Rebels |
6 |
Shane |
Wilson |
Bournemouth |
9 |
Soul |
Phoenix |
Nomads |
10 |
Philip |
Walton |
Surrey Bisons |
11 |
Lee |
Thompson |
Thames Valley Vikings |
13 |
Michael |
Roa |
Galaxy London |
14 |
Chris |
Holt |
Chester Cheetahs |
16 |
Ken |
Pollard |
Nottingham |
17 |
Brett |
Milligan |
Green+Gold |
19 |
David |
Williamson |
Green+Gold |
20 |
Kingsley |
Maunder |
|
21 |
Richard |
Saunders |
|
22 |
Jeff |
Sue |
|
23 |
Bill |
Lees |
|
27 |
Richard |
Balmer |
Thames Valley Vikings |
28 |
Adrian |
Williams |
Catterick |
30 |
Mark |
Jensen |
Ross on Wye |
31 |
Lloyd |
Hook |
|
33 |
Paul |
Bunce |
|
COACH |
Niall |
Buggy |
|
The referees for the matches are:
Kevin Hobbs (Wales) |
|
Matthew Hobbs (Wales) |
|
Roger Neighbours (England) |
|
Rachael Kennard (Wales) |
|
Stephen Dubreuil (England) |
|
Brandon Harrington (England) |