Kevin Sinfield is among the interview panel to advise on the next England head coach to replace Shaun Wane, who stepped down in January.
Wane stepped aside after a six-year period in charge after England suffered a whitewash defeat to Australia in the Ashes on home soil last autumn.
The panel to find his replacement will consist of Sinfield, who won the 2012 Golden Boot as the world’s best player, new Rugby Football League (RFL) non-executive director Sara Symington, interim RFL chief executive Abi Ekoku and RFL chair Nigel Wood, with RFL executive director of performance and participation Marc Lovering offering support.
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England and Australia faced off in rugby league’s Ashes for the first time in 22 years in 2025
“On the back of his incredible career with Leeds Rhinos, Kevin Sinfield represented his country on more than 40 occasions, captaining England in the 2013 World Cup, and serving as rugby director four years later when the national side reached the World Cup final in Brisbane,” Wood said.
“His knowledge, expertise and input will be invaluable as we undertake this important appointment.
“As a double Olympian in cycling, Sara Symington knows all about competing on the world stage.
“She has since worked as a performance advisor for UK Sport and reached medal targets when leading high-performance programmes with Archery GB, England Netball and UK Athletics before heading British Cycling’s Olympics and Paralympics programme for three years through the Paris 2024 cycle.
“Abi Ekoku has experience as Great Britain’s team manager when travelling down under, including for the famous 2006 Tri-Nations win over world champions Australia in Sydney, and we are all enthused by the calibre of the candidates we’ll now assess.”
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Speaking before his death in 2016, the late Roger Millward remembers the 1970 Ashes Series where England beat Australia in Sydney – the last time any series was won against the Australians
The head coach role will initially be part-time to cover the World Cup, which will see England open against Tonga on October 20, with games against France and Papua New Guinea to follow.
“It is an exciting period for the sport, especially given how our athletes have already made such excellent starts to the new Super League season,” Wood added.
“The autumn’s Ashes series whetted the appetite for international rugby league and everyone here is looking forward to the prospect of heading to Australia at the end of this campaign for the 17th edition of the World Cup.
“We have had applications and enquiries from a wide range of world-class coaches, from both here and in the NRL.
“With the aid of our newly-assembled panel, we will now conduct interviews to narrow down our shortlist in readiness to find the ideal candidate.”
2026 Super League – key dates and what to look out for
- Rivals Round: April 3-April 5
- Super League in Paris: Sat Jun 6: Catalans Dragons v Wigan Warriors (Paris), 6:30 UK (Sky Sports)
- Magic Weekend: July 4-July 5
- Rivals Round reversed: July 23-July 26
- Elimination Play-offs: September 19-September 20
- Play-off semi-finals: September 26-September 27
- Grand Final: October 3, Old Trafford.
Sky Sports will again show every game of the Super League live this season – including two matches in each round exclusively live, with the remaining five matches each week shown on Sky Sports+
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