Wigan Warriors and England star Harry Smith relishing first World Cup - ‘The biggest honour’

Wigan Warriors star Harry Smith says representing England remains ‘the biggest honour’ as he prepares to start in Saturday’s Rugby League World Cup opener against Tonga.

The 26-year-old has been named in the halves alongside captain George Williams for England’s first game of the tournament in Perth, having earned nine international caps since making his debut in 2023.

Smith played a key role in Wigan’s success this year, helping Matt Peet’s side win the Challenge Cup and League Leaders’ Shield after making 27 appearances in all competitions.

And the Warriors halfback is hoping to make the most of his opportunity in his first World Cup this autumn.

“It’s the biggest honour for me - it’s the biggest accolade you can get, especially playing in a World Cup, the biggest tournament in the sport,” said Smith.

“It’s absolutely massive, and you want to get your shirt and then keep it - it’s your responsibility to keep it - so that’ll be my aim.

“Hopefully I will get a chance to play in Round One against Tonga, hopefully do my job and hopefully keep my jersey throughout – that’s my aim.”

Smith has also been impressed by new England head coach Brian McDermott, who was appointed earlier this year and will take charge of the national side for the first time on Saturday.

The Widnes-born playmaker explained that regular meetings and conversations with McDermott have helped make his expectations clear ahead of the tournament.

“It’s been similar to what we’ve done over the last few years - just not face to face,” Smith said.

“We’ve had meetings every three weeks with the head of performance, checking in on where we’re at and what they expect from us, and I’ve had a few chats with Brian as an individual and then we did one as a spine as well.

“He was quite clear in how he wants to see us play and what he thinks we can bring to playing a little bit differently against the likes of Australia, New Zealand, Tonga and teams like that, so it’s exciting.

“He spoke really well, so I’m just excited to go out there on the pitch and do it in person.”

Smith also has a familiar face in camp in Wigan assistant coach Sean O’Loughlin, who has joined McDermott’s England staff alongside Paul Wellens.

“Another bit of familiarity, especially on the defensive front,” Smith said of O’Loughlin’s involvement.

“People have a lot of different systems in defence and people have different critiques on what they expect, so it should hopefully be a bit easier for us Wigan lads to know what he wants from us and how he wants us to defend, and he is a great bloke as well, so I’m sure he will be great company for all of the lads.”