REGGAE WARRIORS NAME SQUAD TO FACE FRANCE IN MEN'S WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS

JAMAICA AND FRANCE NAME SQUADS FOR WORLD CUP QUALIFIER

Reggae Warriors training run in France.

The ninth nation to qualify for the IRL Men’s 2026 Rugby League World Cup will be decided on Saturday 25 October, when France face Jamaica at the Stade Mazicou, Albi (kick off 3.30pm local time).

Both nations have named their 19-player squads, with the hosts having had a ten-day lead in which has included opposed training sessions with the touring Australian Kangaroos in London.

Jamaica have quietly prepared for the game with a training camp in Leeds, (England) before landing in France on Thursday. Rhys Lovegrove and Jy-Mel Coleman are co-coaches. Coleman doesn’t believe the team's quiet preparations has harmed their prospects. “We’re happy to be out the spotlight, that was never a big issue for us,” he commented.

“Everyone internally knows exactly what we are looking to achieve and how, and that’s been transmitted to the players, it doesn’t make much of a difference to us. We respect the French and their squad but we feel we’ve come up with a game plan that will hopefully see us do well.”

Coleman confirmed: “Some of their players you see week-in, week-out in Super League but it’s a one-off and we’ve been here before as underdogs and come up with a result and if we can carry that plan out for 80 minutes and thoroughly believe, we think we can cause an upset.”

The Reggae Warriors are looking to compete in their second, consecutive World Cup after becoming everyone’s second favourite nation in 2022 in England with their refreshing approach, not least out in communities. “If I’m honest, I think it’s a bit of a let down going to ten nations and newer ones like ours not having the same opportunities but that isn’t to be, we just need to do what we can and see where we get to.

“The game’s growing on the island, the domestic players are still in season and, with limited resources, it’s not possible to get them over for this game,” Coleman noted. “There is a lot of interest back home and messages coming in where people can watch the game.

“We’ll be looking to our bigger name players, but I’m particularly looking forward to seeing Harlan Smith who is new to the group, come in from Wigan with a good pedigree and I’m excited to see how he goes after how he’s looked in training, and Delaine Gittens-Bedward who’s been great when he’s pulled on the Jamaica shirt.

“We’ve not had long together but that only motivates us further. One thing we will do is give it everything and look after each other as a team, our identity that we live by won’t change.”

Rugby League Jamaica Director of Rugby Romeo Monteith added, "We are continuing to rebuild and position our national programs to challenge for global tournaments. It's never easy as a small island with limited resources, but we are always ready to represent the nation. Outside of Harlen, we are also looking forward to seeing other potential debutants in Jack Rampton and Jamin Williams. Rampton is also part of Jamaica rugby union 7s team, whilst Jamin looks to become the first Jamaica heritage player from Australia to represent the island."

Unsurprisingly, France has had a significant build up to the game. Head coach, Laurent Frayssinous - who has named Louis Grossemy and Catalans’ Leo Darrelatour as potential debutants - has acknowledged that the game is one of the biggest for the sport in France for a number of years, on and off the field. “It’s massive for us for a few reasons,” he said. “We want to be at the World Cup and tested against the best.

“With only ten nations playing in it, it’s the best of the best and we want to be part of that. Off the field, it’s very important for French rugby league to be recognised as a leading nation of the sport and the progress made by the French Federation over the last few years.

Frayssinous also believes that playing the game in the town will bring a big crowd and fantastic atmosphere. “I’ve been to a couple of games there recently and they are always supportive of the national side, there is a lot of talk about the game. We have been made extremely welcome.”

“Jamaica’s squad has a lot of experience within it, the likes of Ashton Golding, Ben Jones-Bishop and James Woodburn-Hall, so we need to be ready. That’s why we’ve put in ten days big game preparation.”

JAMAICA SQUAD

Delaine Gittens-Bedward (Barrow Raiders), Joshua Hudson-Lett (Bedford Tigers), Dec Tomlinson, Keenen Tomlinson (Dewsbury Rams), Isaac Coleman (East Leeds ARLFC), Leo Skerrett-Evans (Keighley Cougars), James Woodburn-Hall (Halifax Panthers), Ashton Golding, Kieran Rush (Huddersfield Giants), Jimmy Morgan (Hunslet ARLFC) Chris Ball (London Broncos), Keenan Ramsden (Mullumbimby Giants) Jordan Andrade (Rochdale Hornets), Jamin Williams (St Mary’s), AJ Wallace (Toulouse Olympique), Ben Jones-Bishop (York Knights) Harlen Smith (Wigan Warriors), Jack Rampton (Unattached)

FRANCE SQUAD

Louis Grossemy (Canterbury Bulldogs), Guillermo Aispuro Bichet, Julian Bousquet, Alrix Da Costa, Leo Darrelatour, Jordan Dezaria, Theo Fages, Benjamin Garcia, Romain Navarrete, Cesar Rouge, Arthur Romano, Paul Seguier, Ugo Tison, Fouad Yaha (Catalans Dragons), Arthur Mourgue (Hull KR), Justin Sangare (Salford Red Devils), Enzo Griffier (Sydney Roosters), Anthony Marion (Toulouse Olympique), Mathieu Cozza (Wakefield Trinity)