Rugby League / Ralph Ellis / 15 May 2009 / 1 Comments

By selecting a squad designed to look ahead to the next World Cup, Ralph Ellis fears that England's rugby league coach might be about to make the same mistakes as Steve McLaren...

How many times have you heard it: "Take each game as it comes." It's the worst cliché in sport, but that's for a very good reason. It's absolutely the best way to approach whatever competition you are involved in.

So it always worries me when you see squads picked with an eye on future competitions rather than just to win the games they are playing next. Steve McClaren most memorably mucked it up by dropping David Beckham, and then had to crawl back to him when it was too late. And now there are worrying signs that England's Rugby League coach Tony Smith is falling into the same trap of looking too far ahead.

Smith has named his initial 17-man elite training squad in preparation for a mid season game with France and then the Four Nations and he's given the whole thing a shake-up. After flopping in Australia with a side made up almost entirely from players from the two big clubs of St Helens and Leeds Rhinos, this time he's drawn a squad from nine different clubs. And most surprisingly he's dropped Saints pair Leon Pryce and Paul Wellens.

Smith says: "The players selected so far reflects that not only are we planning for this autumn's Four Nations, but also the 2013 World Cup which we hope to stage in this country."

Now Pryce may have had his off the field problems this year, and if England came out openly and said that's why they don't want him any more then fair enough. But his court appearances didn't stop him performing well for Saints, and on form he still belongs in the squad. And as for 2013, he'll be 31 then and who's to say that he won't still be fit and strong enough to compete at world level? Modern conditioning and sports science means you can tear up all the old rules about retirement ages, even in a sport as physically bruising as rugby league. Just look at how Pryce's team mate Keiron Cunningham is still performing with his 33rd birthday approaching fast.

Smith, an Aussie who became a British citizen, is of course now part-time England coach and full-time boss of Warrington Wolves - who are hardly setting the world alight at the moment stuck fourth from bottom in the Super League. Hull at between [2.12] and [2.52] to win there tomorrow looks useful value.

Meanwhile, Smith's selections have also upset Hull Kingston Rovers who could go top by beating Wigan Warriors tonight. Despite the bests start in their history they've got not a single player in the England squad. "I was disappointed when I saw the names," admits coach Justin Morgan this morning. "It would have been great for some of our boys to be recognised, but I suppose it's up to them to get their heads down and keep working."

Warriors are as short as [1.52] to win tonight and I'd be tempted to lay that. They might have won four in a row but are still only just recovering from a bad start to the season, and Rovers have players coming back from injury including Liam Colbon who scored ten tries in 30 games for Wigan last year and will be more than keen to remind them what they are missing.

Five things you might not know about Leon Pryce

1. Born in Bradford in 1981, he captained the England schools side at age 16.

2. His father and uncle both played Rugby League - uncle Steve is now coach of the West Indies national rugby league team. Younger brother Karl plays for Wigan Warriors

3. The photo might not be as famous as that one of Vinny Jones grabbing Gazza, but Pryce got in trouble for a similar "tackle" on Sam Burgess in 2007 - and escaped censure for doing the same thing to Andy Lynch a year later

4. So far he's turned down offers to play in Australia and says: "I'd rather be on Blackpool beach than Bondi beach"

5. He pays for his own personal trainers to add extra fitness and strength - and to improve his sprinting speeds