HOW STRONG IS ENGLAND'S SQUAD FOR THE FOUR NATIONS?

There has been a Super League shaped hole in my life since Wigan lifted the Grand Final trophy on Saturday night. But the Four Nations is just three weeks away, and the announcement of Wayne Bennett’s 24-man squad has managed to fill that hole – sparking controversy over his team selection.   

Bennett has picked four players from teams who finished their season playing off for Super League status, yet there hasn’t been a call-up for this year’s Man of Steel Danny Houghton, or his teammate Jamie Shaul, who have arguably both had ground breaking seasons. 

He’s selected four uncapped players in Jonny Lomax, Mark Percival, Luke Gale and Scott Taylor – three of which I would say I agree with; Lomax, the jury is still out for me.

In the end, it’s all a matter of opinion. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not blasting the whole squad but there has been more than a few players this season that have been outstanding and haven’t been included. 

But hey, what do I know? I’m only a fan observing from the sidelines.

For me, it’s absolutely crazy that Bennett can look past Houghton– correct me if I’m wrong, but I think this is the first time in history that the Man of Steel, eligible to play for England, has been overlooked by his national squad. 

There was obviously a reason he was picked for the prestigious accolade – he’s this season’s top tackler with 1289 tackles made, has been Hull FC’s talisman all season long and, you could argue, won them the Challenge Cup with that tackle. I admit it's hard to look past Josh Hodgson after an incredible season with Canberra and I do think Daryl Clark was a great inclusion, showcasing himself in an outstanding Warrington outfit; but Houghton is alongside him as one of the best hookers in English rugby league - it had to be a tough decision for Bennett. 

And Houghton’s teammate Jamie Shaul was a surprise absentee after probably having the season of his life – instead; Bennett has included Jonny Lomax who missed the first 11 games of the season. I’m not insulting Lomax, I think he’s a fantastic player and has been great since his comeback. But to have been absent for a huge part of the season and still be picked, it shows to me that the man in charge has perhaps picked on status rather than the season’s performance – what more could Shaul have done this year to get a chance? 

Now I don’t want to come across as completely shaming Bennett’s selection because, despite having my reservations, I do think there are some strong players in there - George Williams certainly deserves his call-up after a breakthrough season with Wigan, alongside his team mate Liam Farrell who received the Harry Sunderland trophy after the Grand Final victory. Stefan Ratchford has proved himself amongst the top players with Warrington this year and Luke Gale has been impressive for the Castleford Tigers. 

And the forward pack does look extremely majestic.

The inclusion of the three Burgess brothers is inspired. George has narrowly missed selection over recent years and Sam makes his return after his recent, and somewhat lacklustre, spell in the “other code”, a.k.a rugby union. 

Sam was thrown a lot of criticism after his performance in last year’s rugby union world cup – he was used as a scapegoat because it was easy to blame him as the newcomer. Yet, there were so many others to blame in a whole squad that let the nation down – anyway, that’s by the by, I won’t waste any more time talking about rugby union. 

The experienced forward has come back to his home sport with passion and intent, and ready to prove himself on the world stage: not that he needs to, despite coming under fire in the union set up, he will always be an icon in rugby league. And there’s talk of him being named captain, which I think would be the best decision Bennett could make.

With a forward pack boasting the likes of James Graham, Chris Hill, John Bateman, and the Burgess’, there is a chance, if we play to our strengths that we’ll do well in the upcoming tournament.

Bennett has come out and said: “There's been a lot of competition for places this year and the players that have been picked are the ones we believe will stand up to the test of the competing nations.”

Let’s hope that when October 29 comes around, the squad will prove the critics wrong (including myself) and get a result against current Four Nations champions New Zealand.