Monday 1 June 2020 18:33, UK
Shaun Wane believes there is still plenty of improvement for George Williams to make, despite his impressive start to life in Australia.
The England half-back has won rave reviews from Australian pundits for his displays in the NRL since making the switch to Canberra Raiders from Wigan Warriors over the winter, with now-retired Kangaroo icon Cooper Cronk among those heaping praise on him.
England head coach Wane was keeping watch from afar as Williams starred again in Canberra's victory over Melbourne Storm on Saturday and while he is pleased to see the 25-year-old performing well, he is in no doubt he can produce better.
"I thought the Aussies went over the top," Wane, who coached Williams during his time in charge at Wigan, said. "They were raving about him.
"I've seen him do those things hundreds of times, he does it in Super League, but it doesn't seem to be recognised. I thought he did some good things, but he can have more involvement.
"If George had delivered that for me at Wigan, I'd have been into him. I'm sure other Super League coaches may have been the same.
"He did well, no question. I'm a big George Williams fan, but he needs to improve."
I've seen him do those things hundreds of times, he does it in Super League, but it doesn't seem to be recognised.
Williams, who has 10 caps for England, will undoubtedly come into the reckoning as Wane builds towards next year's Rugby League World Cup in England.
Finding the right combination in the halves has proven something of a troublesome conundrum for England in recent years, with Wane's predecessor Wayne Bennett using eight different half-backs in eight different partnerships during his first three years.
Jackson Hastings and Gareth Widdop, both of whom were left out of Wane's initial 31-man squad for the now-cancelled Ashes series, were the preferred partnership in all four of Great Britain's Tests under Bennett last winter as well.
Wane has a clear idea of what he expects from his halves though and is confident he will be able to find a solution to the problem.
"I'm very confident and very comfortable with it," Wane said. "Not only with the half-backs but the middles, the edges, too, I've got some good players there.
"With the halves, I like how they all play. They all need to play straight and they have running games while there are certain things where I'll differ from the head coaches in Super League and the NRL.
"It's just about finding that happy medium where we can all agree exactly what those players are going to have to deliver to get in the England team."
