“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail,” Benjamin Franklin as soon as mentioned. The sentiment could also be squarely in the minds of the Jillaroos after they take to the sector at York Community Stadium on Wednesday (Thursday morning AEDT) to kick off their Women’s Rugby League World Cup marketing campaign.
Australia go into this match considerably surprisingly with no warm-up video games underneath their belt, and with out having performed a Test match in three years as a result of of Covid-19. This is a inexperienced and gold squad full of inexperience, with 12 debutants and simply 5 gamers remaining from their victorious 2017 World Cup-winning facet.
Tournament opponents Papua New Guinea, Canada, Brazil, France and the Cook Islands have all ready with follow matches on UK soil in the previous week, with the Moana defeating England Knights 26-14 in Leeds, whereas the Jillaroos have been bunkered down in a brutal health camp in the Gold Coast.
Described as “as one of the hardest sessions any of us have done” by ahead Kennedy Cherrington, the Australians have centered inward as the remainder of the world weapons for them. Winners of the final two World Cups, with New Zealand taking out the three earlier than that, the sixth staging of the match is being billed because the tightest but.
Expanded from six international locations to eight, the Jillaroos and the Kiwi Ferns are nonetheless anticipated to once more battle it out on the high. Australia might be assured of their probabilities, on the again of the expansion and enlargement of the NRLW competitors and their enviable depth of expertise.
While Test matches may need been sparse since 2019, rising requirements in the NRLW and the rise of the ladies’s State of Origin sequence has positioned Australia in good stead. Powerful second-rower Kezie Apps, stylish fullback Sammy Bremmer and veteran playmaker Ali Brigginshaw stay from the crew that knocked New Zealand off in the World Cup ultimate in Brisbane 5 years in the past.
That trio have been named co-captains for the 2022 match and are joined by centre Isabelle Kelly and Simaima Taufa from the 2017 facet. It is a 24-player squad dominated by the Brisbane Broncos, St George Illawarra Dragons and Sydney Roosters, with the Broncos and Dragons contributing six gamers every and the Chooks 5. The Newcastle Knights, who gained this yr’s NRLW grand ultimate, have simply two gamers in the squad in forwards Yasmin Clydsdale and Caitlan Johnston, the identical as their grand ultimate opponents’ Parramatta, after prop Millie Boyle and fullback Tamika Upton each pulled out.
The likes of Ruan Sims, Renae Kunst and Nakia Davis-Welsh could also be lengthy gone from the worldwide scene however the Jillaroos nonetheless have a lot of star energy to depend on. There is velocity out huge in Julia Robinson and Jessica Sergis, and measurement up entrance in Shannon Mato and Shaylee Bent.
Considering the elevated professionalism and monetary rewards Australia can draw on, in comparison with the opposite international locations, complacency is probably their greatest situation heading into the World Cup. No different nation is blessed with the identical benefits or funding sources, with the Jillaroos to obtain a cost of $30,000 for this match in comparison with the $3,000 they had been paid in 2017.
It is one thing coach Brad Donald, who was appointed in 2016 and has but to lose a sport since he took over, is nicely conscious of.
“Complacency is going to be a great threat to the team and we’ve spoken a lot about that over the last week and a half,” he mentioned. “This World Cup, compared to the last World Cup, will be miles ahead in terms of competition. There’s a number of emerging young players across all of the nations which is exciting.”
Donald has tried to counter that by means of his intense warm-up camp and with a rotation coverage for the group levels. With Australia enjoying 5 video games in simply 17 days in the event that they qualify for the ultimate, and with World Cup matches to be 80 minutes lengthy as a substitute of the 70 minutes in the NRL, it will likely be a tough slog.
“We need all 24 players to play for the team to be successful with such a short turnaround,” Donald mentioned. “We’ll see all of our players play in the first two games so I’ve tried to pick two reasonably similar squads. We have a saying that pressure equals diamonds, and all of our players are competing for a spot in the third game against New Zealand, which I’d suggest is the hardest game in our pool rounds and will hopefully set us up for a semi-final.”
The Jillaroos begin with Cook Islands, then meet France on 6 November and arch rivals New Zealand on 10 November. Depending on in the event that they high Group B or not, they’re more likely to face both hosts England or Papua New Guinea in the semi-finals.
A date in the ultimate on 19 November at Old Trafford might await them. But for Donald’s costs, the time has come to embrace being high-profile targets in their pursuit of extra silverware.
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