Prime Minister Andy Burnham has bid good luck to the three England teams travelling to the Rugby League World Cup, with the Leigh Leopards fan hosting representatives of the men’s, women’s and wheelchair sides at his Chequers estate.

All three England sides will be competing for World Cup glory at the competition down under with the wheelchair side, who were represented at Chequers by Lewis King, the reigning champions after success in the 2022 Rugby League World Cup.

Both the men’s and women’s sides crashed out in the semi-finals at that tournament and they’ll be aiming to go further this year at the tournaments that will run simultaneously.

The men and women kick off their tournaments on Saturday morning in a double header with the women facing Wales before the men take on Tonga in Perth, whilst King and his teammates’ defence of their crown begins on October 30th when they face Wales in Wollongong.

All three attended morning tea with Prime Minister Andy Burnham before flying out to Australia with O’Neill capping off a pretty special year in doing so, having recently been crowned Super League Man of Steel and Rugby League Writers and Broadcaster’s Player of the Year.

“It was a real privilege to be invited to Chequers and to represent England Rugby League alongside Jodie and Lewis,” the Wigan Warriors hooker said.

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O’Neill targetting Rugby League World Cup win to top off incredible year

O’Neill spoke more on the discussions held with Burnham, explaining how valuable his support is to a sport that isn’t always in the limelight.

He said: “The Prime Minister is obviously a big rugby league fan – I’m from Leigh, the club he supports – and we spoke about that and plenty of other things.

“It was great for us all to get the chance to chat about the sport we love and what’s to come in the weeks ahead.

“The World Cup is a massive opportunity for all of us. We know the standards we must hit, but there is a lot of belief in the group, and now we want to give England supporters moments that will live long in the memory.”

With Tonga in the sights of the men’s side, O’Neill spoke about his desire to taste Rugby League World Cup success to cap off a strong season,

“It’s been a dream of mine to compete in a World Cup and I can’t wait to get out there on Saturday and play in my first tournament,” he said.

“I’ve enjoyed some tremendous times with Wigan this season, winning the Challenge Cup, League Leaders’ Shield and the Steve Prescott Man of Steel.

“But now I want to go out and enjoy success with my country as well – and we all hope to do England proud.”

#EnglandRL’s Men’s, Women’s and Wheelchair squads received a warm send-off from Andy Burnham at Chequers 🤝

Brad O’Neill, Jodie Cunningham and Lewis King were all invited to the official country residence of the Prime Minister last week 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 https://t.co/4baOr9WGWp

— England Rugby League (@England_RL) October 14, 2026

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