England v Samoa: Improved calendar offers hope to international game

England men’s football captain Harry Kane has 101 caps. His cricket counterpart Ben Stokes has played 107 Tests. Rugby union skipper Jamie George has worn the red rose 93 times.

It is little wonder England rugby league captain George Williams feels slightly short-changed – last Sunday, against Samoa, he made only his 19th international appearance, nine years after his debut.

While other sports have a schedule geared towards year-round competition on an international scale, with breaks set in the calendar in some cases, rugby league does not have that luxury.

“Personally I’d love to play a lot more – I love playing for England,” Williams told BBC Sport.

“If you look at rugby union, I’m not sure how many exactly they play in a year but it’s a lot more than us.”

This year’s Test series with Samoa has highlighted the quality within the England ranks. With a decent turn out for the impressive 34-18 win at Wigan in game one and a bumper gate expected for the second meeting in Leeds this Saturday, there is genuine cause for optimism.

Yet there is the perennial frustration in the northern hemisphere – for England in particular – that competitive matches, those appetite-whetting encounters featuring the world’s best players, are so few and far between.

“There’s no disrespect to France, but if we want to compete in the World Cups, we need to be playing against the best nations more regularly,” Williams added.

“Union is a bit more worldwide in that they’ve got Argentina and other nations that they can go to, but if we can try to get us to five to eight games a year, it would be brilliant.

“I’m not sure how that looks for Super League but I’m just talking as a player. I’d love to play for England a bit more.

“You see lads who have played for England rugby league for 10 years and they’ve still only got 20 caps – it’s crazy really. You see the football and the rugby union lads and they’ve got hundreds.”