England Women have named 23 players for the 2026 Rugby League World Cup. Head coach Stuart Barrow’s selection includes nine from Wigan Warriors and four who could make their England debuts.
Sydney Roosters player Jasmin Strange is one of the four potential debutants. The 23-year-old qualifies through her English-born mother and is due to join England in Perth after the Roosters face Brisbane Broncos in the NRLW Grand Final on 4 October.
Connie Boyd of Leeds Rhinos, Canterbury Bulldogs player Hope Millard and Wigan Warriors’ Lucie Sams are the other potential debutants. Barrow said the final selection had been reduced from a wider group of 40 players after a season of camps, a trip to France and his attendance at Super Four matches.
The selection combines Women’s Super League and NRLW players. Barrow said Australian-based heritage players had been included for the first time, creating a squad drawn from both competitions.
Barrow said players had been given a selection timeline at the beginning of the year, with standards, milestones and opportunities set out as part of the process. He said the quality across the wider group had made the final decisions difficult, but that England believed the selected players had the right balance of youth and experience to compete on the world stage. The coach said preparation was now the squad’s focus before travelling to Australia.
Wigan contingent and award nominees included
Wigan Warriors provide nine players: Mary Coleman, Anna Davies, Jenna Foubister, Eva Hunter, Molly Jones, Isabel Rowe, Lucie Sams, Megan Williams and Georgia Wilson. Foubister, Hunter and Williams are all nominees for the Woman of Steel award and are due to learn the result on 29 September before travelling to Australia the following Thursday.
Leeds Rhinos have five representatives in Keara Bennett, Boyd, Ruby Bruce, Evie Cousins and Lucy Murray. Boyd and Bruce were both nominated for Young Player of the Year this season, according to the Rugby Football League.
York Valkyrie’s Liv Wood is included after her club won the Betfred Women’s Super League title. Huddersfield Giants player Amelia Brown, identified by the Rugby Football League as the competition’s leading try-scorer, also makes the squad.
St Helens have two players in the group: loose forward Jodie Cunningham and Vicky Whitfield. The 34-year-old Whitfield is preparing for her fourth World Cup, according to the Rugby Football League.
NRLW-based players return or join England group
Strange is listed with Sydney Roosters, while Georgia Roche of Newcastle Knights, Canberra Raiders player Hollie-Mae Dodd and Fran Goldthorp of North Queensland are also named.
Goldthorp returns to the England set-up for the first time since the 2022 World Cup. At that tournament she made four appearances and scored three tries, the Rugby Football League said.
Barrow assessed 40 players before naming the final 23. He cited the England camps, the trip to France and Super Four matches as parts of that process, and said the squad’s immediate focus had moved to World Cup preparation.
England Women’s 2026 Rugby League World Cup squad
- Keara Bennett (Leeds Rhinos); Connie Boyd (Leeds Rhinos, potential debutant); Amelia Brown (Huddersfield Giants); Ruby Bruce (Leeds Rhinos); Mary Coleman (Wigan Warriors); Evie Cousins (Leeds Rhinos).
- Jodie Cunningham (St Helens); Anna Davies (Wigan Warriors); Hollie-Mae Dodd (Canberra Raiders); Jenna Foubister (Wigan Warriors); Fran Goldthorp (North Queensland); Eva Hunter (Wigan Warriors).
- Molly Jones (Wigan Warriors); Hope Millard (Canterbury Bulldogs, potential debutant); Lucy Murray (Leeds Rhinos); Georgia Roche (Newcastle Knights); Isabel Rowe (Wigan Warriors); Lucie Sams (Wigan Warriors, potential debutant).
- Jasmin Strange (Sydney Roosters, potential debutant); Vicky Whitfield (St Helens); Megan Williams (Wigan Warriors); Georgia Wilson (Wigan Warriors); Liv Wood (York Valkyrie).