Ash Handley hopes it’s third time lucky finally getting his international career up and running.
The prolific Leeds winger, 27, makes his England debut against France on Saturday having endured some torrid luck on the biggest stage. He was called up by Great Britain as an injury replacement on their 2019 southern hemisphere tour. Handley flew to Papua New Guinea for the final Test - only to be left out by Lions boss Wayne Bennett.
He was picked for England coach Shaun Wane’s first game against the Combined Nations All Stars two years later. But Handley suffered a head injury moments after coming on and hasn’t had a look-in since. Many thought he’d be in Wane’s World Cup squad last year after making more metres in Super League than anyone else but he was snubbed again.
All of that frustration will be forgotten tomorrow afternoon, though, when he gets that first cap in Warrington. Handley, who’s twice been in Super League’s Dream Team, admitted: “It does feel good. I’ve been around a few years and everything happens for a reason. Looking back at PNG, what happened there probably spurred me on to try and make sure I did get a chance.
“I was under the impression I was going to play for Great Britain when they called me back out - I’d been in Australia with England Nines - so I was gutted. But it just made me push even harder and I do now have a subconscious feeling that I need to keep proving that I am good enough. It has stayed with me since then and will stay with me probably until I finish playing.
“When I came on for two minutes against Combined Nations, though, and got concussed, I did think maybe it wasn’t meant to be…! I’m just grateful now to get another chance and have a proper dig at it.”
He will be one of as many as 15 debutants on Saturday as Wane starts preparations for the 2025 World Cup. But England - playing their first game since last November's agonising World Cup semi-final exit against Samoa - have also finally seen a mouthwatering three Test home series against Tonga confirmed for this autumn. In the maiden series between the nations, games will be played at St Helens (Oct 22) and Huddersfield (Oct 28) before rounding off at Handley’s home ground of Headingley (Nov 4).
He admitted: “It’d be great to be involved in that. It’s good for the international game that we’ve managed to get Tonga over. They're a great side, proving that they are getting better and better. It will be a tough test and hopefully I can put my name in the hat for the end of the year by putting in a performance on Saturday that sticks in Waney’s mind.”
Competition for wing spots, though, is as tough as any other position even with England’s record tryscorer Ryan Hall, 35, seemingly having played his last game for his country. Uncapped Warrington wideman Matty Ashton is set to debut against France and club-mate Josh Thewlis is also in the 19-man party. But Catalans duo Tom Johnstone and Tom Davies along with Wigan’s Liam Marshall have all missed the cut from Wane’s original 40-man squad.
St Helens flier Tommy Makinson is injured and there’s also World Cup star Dom Young over in the NRL to come back in against Tonga. Handley, who’s scored four tries in seven games for Leeds this term, admitted:” It is very strong at wing. There’s seven, eight or maybe nine that have a chance and that’s a lot for one position. It’s a very high competition for places and it’s going to be tough to get a gig. But I’m in a great position now to make an impression on Saturday and hopefully be in Waney’s thoughts come the end of the year.”
Asked what the national coach had said to him had been the reason he had now been brought in at last, Handley explained: “Waney said he liked what I’d been doing. He liked how I was playing and we’ve had a few brief chats in camp and he said he likes how I’ve put on a bit of size from last year and am a bit bigger. Even just getting to know him away from rugby, it’s been good, having chats been good getting to know him on a personal level and had not had a chance to do that before this camp. It was nice.”
Leeds team-mate Tom Holroyd is also set to make his bow, the 22-year-old prop who has overcome his own bad luck story to rise to the top. Handley said: “Tommy had a bit of a difficult season last year with injuries and a ban and this just shows what can happen in 12 months. He’s stuck at it and is in really good nick. He’s probably one of the first names on our team sheet at Leeds now. There’s quite a few of us on debut. France are always tough. I played against them at Academy level and am looking forward to getting stuck in. It’s a massive game for all of us with a lot looking to stake a claim.”
