Sky Sports reports that Jake Connor has been left out of England’s 23-player squad for the Rugby League World Cup. The claim is not yet confirmed by official sources, but the Jake Connor England squad omission has already caught Leeds Rhinos supporters off guard.
Connor, 31, finished top of Super League’s assist charts this season with 43, numbers that make the reported decision harder to square. He was also left out of Shaun Wane’s squad for last autumn’s home Ashes series against Australia, a series England lost 3-0.
Primary Source Attribution & Official Details
According to the Sky Sports report, Hull KR fullback Mikey Lewis is expected to be selected ahead of Connor. Neither England nor the tournament organisers have confirmed the news, and Brian McDermott’s full squad is due on Monday.
McDermott, the former Leeds head coach, was appointed to lead England through to the end of the World Cup after Wane stepped down earlier this year. He has previous form defending Connor publicly. Speaking in April, he said:
“I think the rhetoric and the narrative around Jake was tremendously unfair. I understand where Jake Connor comes from in that he’s liked by some and disliked by others. OK, that comes in the nature of the game.”
McDermott went further. “We could sit around a table and debate whether he’s a nice person or not. I just don’t think that’s a fair narrative to be made public and that was the rhetoric around him.” He was in no doubt about Connor’s ability either: “What nobody can argue is that he’s a tremendous player. He’s a fantastic player. He’s a game-breaker.”
Squad Impact & Tactical Context
The reported omission is a surprise given Connor’s season. Leading Super League’s assist charts with 43 is not a modest return, and it leaves him as one of the competition’s sharpest creative players heading into a World Cup year.
This would not be the first major England squad to overlook him. Wane left Connor out for last autumn’s home Ashes series, a defeat that fed into the pressure that eventually ended Wane’s tenure. If Sky Sports’ report is accurate, the Jake Connor England squad situation now repeats a pattern that followed him through 2025 as well.
Readers who have followed England’s selection story this year can find more background in our England news round-up and in the England squad changes piece, both published before McDermott’s squad plans firmed up.
McDermott inherits a tournament spread across Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea. England have been runners-up three times, in 1975, 1995 and 2017, and reached the semi-finals on home soil in 2021 before losing to Samoa. Whoever starts at fullback or in the halves will carry real expectation into that history.
What Happens Next / Upcoming Timeline
McDermott is due to confirm his full 23-player squad on Monday, which will settle whether the reported omission holds. Leeds Rhinos fans will want official clarity before drawing any conclusions about Connor’s World Cup.
England open their campaign on October 17 against Tonga in Perth, before facing France and Papua New Guinea in the group stage. Monday’s squad announcement will shape how McDermott’s short reign as interim head coach is judged from the very start.
