Former Mayfield players named in England squad

Former Mayfield players Matty Ashton and Matty Lees have been named in the 40-player extended England Men’s squad to prepare for international rugby league games in 2023.

Drawn from eight Betfred Super League clubs, the squad includes a total of 20 players who are previously uncapped for England, although 13 of those have featured for England Knights in the last four years as focus turns to youth with the next Rugby League World Cup – being hosted in France in 2025 – on the horizon.

Both Ashton and Lees were named in the England squad last year, and were both named in the 2022 England Knights squad.
 

Read more: Former Mayfield players Matty Ashton and Matty Lees named in England squadPublished: 14 June 2022

 

Read more: Rugby league: Former Rochdale Mayfield players named in England Knights squadPublished: 12 October 2021

St Helens prop Matty Lees – a Mayfield junior graduate – made his first team debut at Wakefield in 2017, joining St Helens the following year. His form saw him rewarded with an England Knights debut.

Lees, 25, was named Super League’s Young Player of the Year in 2019 and also took away the same award at the Saints Awards Dinner.

Unfortunately his season was cut short that year and he missed out on the Wembley Challenge Cup Final and Super League Grand Final after he perforated his bowel in a match against Leeds Rhinos.

Wayne Bennett had confirmed he would have been called up for Great Britain had he not picked up the injury.

Lees recovered from his injury in 2020 and was often utilised as a starting prop, playing 20 times in total as he picked up his second Grand Final ring.

Lees was a regular in 2021 and his performances helped Saints win three Super League Grand Finals in a row and a first Challenge Cup for 13 years.

 

 

Matty Ashton is one of the Betfred Super League’s top five try-scorers. The 24-year-old, who plays as a fullback for Warrington Wolves, played junior rugby at Mayfield under the tutelage of Dean Hartley and Marvin Connolly up to under 16 level.

A student at Hopwood Hall College, he studied in the rugby academy and was trained by Matt Calland at under 18s level before making his debut in the Mayfield open age side.

After two seasons with the Mayfield NCL side, Ashton decided to try his luck in Australia and had a successful season with the Mullumbimby Giants team in New South Wales before returning to the UK.

Ashton joined Super League team Warrington Wolves at the start of the 2020 season after a spell at Swinton Lions RLFC, during which he was named Betfred Championship Young Player of the Year.

England boss Shaun Wane said: “I’ve selected a very young extended squad this time around and that is very much with the 2025 World Cup in France in mind. There are still several experienced players within the squad who featured in last year’s World Cup, and others who could come back in. I am hoping the more experienced cohort help those younger players adapt and thrive in an international camp which will be very demanding. 

“As always, the squad will be fluid, and players will be added if they are performing well and vice versa should performances dip. I think the squad really shows the depth of talent across the Betfred Super League, which plenty of people saw in person and on TV across the Easter Weekend.

“The mid-season international against France is the first step on the road to the next Rugby League World Cup and we are hoping to begin the journey in front of a packed house at Warrington’s Halliwell Jones Stadium.”

England’s Men and Women return to international action on Saturday 29 April for the first time since last year’s Rugby League World Cup – a double-header with France at Warrington which is the launchpad for a game-wide fundraising effort in aid of the MND Association.