2014 Rugby League European Championship Explained

The 2014 Rugby League European Championship was an international rugby league football tournament. The tournament took place in England, Wales, France, Ireland and Scotland between 17 October and 2 November. It was announced beforehand that the winner of the tournament would qualify for the 2016 Four Nations,^[1] and also that if Ireland or Wales won tournament, they will automatically qualify for the 2017 Rugby League World Cup (due to the World Cup qualifying tournament taking place at the same time as the 2016 Four Nations).^[2] France and Scotland had already qualified for that tournament.

The England Knights were defending Champions but they did not compete in this year's tournament. Four teams competed in the 2014 event; Scotland, Ireland, France and Wales.^[3] Scotland were crowned champions on points differential, and subsequently won their first Rugby League European Championship title. Scotland therefore qualified for the 2016 Four Nations, which will be their first appearance in a Four Nations tournament.

Teams

Team	Coach	Captain	RLIF Rank
	Richard Agar	Jason Baitieri	4
	Mark Aston	Bob Beswick	10
	Steve McCormack	Danny Brough	11
	John Kear	Peter Lupton	6

Squads

France

Head Coach: Richard Agar

• On 3 October, Richard Agar named the following 23 players as part of his squad in preparation for the tournament.^[4]
• On 7 October, Aaron Wood and Tony Maurel of Toulouse Olympique were called into Richard Agar's squad to replace Morgan Escaré (medical reasons) and Vincent Duport (resting after Super League).^[5]

width=22%	Player	width=8%	Games	width=8%	Points	width=8%	Position	width=32%	2014 Club
Tony Maurel	1	4	FB	Toulouse Olympique
Mathias Pala	3	8	WG	AS Saint Estève
Frédéric Vaccari	3	0	WG	Palau Broncos
Clément Soubeyras	1	4	WG	AS Carcassonne
Damien Cardace	3	0	CE	Catalans Dragons
Jean-Philippe Baile	3	4	CE	AS Saint Estève
Aurélien Decarnin	2	4	CE	Villeneuve Leopards
Benjamin Jullien	0	0	CE	SO Avignon
Théo Fages	3	4	SO	Salford Red Devils
Anthony Carrere	0	0	SO	Lézignan Sangliers
William Barthau	1	0	SH	Catalans Dragons
Rémy Marginet	3	48	SH	Palau Broncos
Julian Bousquet	3	0	PR	Catalans Dragons
Mickaël Simon	3	0	PR	AS Saint Estève
Jamal Fakir	3	0	PR	Lézignan Sangliers
Aaron Wood	3	0	PR	Toulouse Olympique
Éloi Pélissier	3	4	HK	Catalans Dragons
John Boudebza	1	0	HK	Lézignan Sangliers
Kevin Larroyer	3	4	SR	Hull Kingston Rovers
Benjamin Garcia	3	0	SR	Catalans Dragons
Antoni Maria	2	0	SR	Catalans Dragons
Jason Baitieri (C)	3	4	LF	Catalans Dragons
Thibaut Margalet	0	0	LF	AS Saint Estève

Ireland

Head Coach: Mark Aston

• On 10 October, Mark Aston named the following 29 players as part of a train-on squad in preparation for the tournament.^[6]
• On 16 October, Mark Aston added Halifax halfback Ben Johnston to his squad for the tournament.^[7]
• Liam Finn was a late addition for the Irish team. He arrived just in time to play for Ireland in their final tournament match against Wales.

width=22%	Player	width=8%	Games	width=8%	Points	width=8%	Position	width=32%	2014 Club
Shannon McDonnell	3	8	FB	St. Helens
Michael Platt	1	0	FB	Leigh Centurions
Callum Mulkeen	2	0	WG	Oxford Rugby League
James Toole	2	4	WG	Tweed Heads Seagulls
Casey Dunne	3	6	WG	Athboy Longhorns
Elliot Cosgrove	1	0	WG	Keighley Cougars
Stuart Littler	2	0	CE	Leigh Centurions
Joshua Toole	3	0	CE	North Sydney Bears
Bradley Hargreaves	1	12	CE	Wigan St Patricks
Graham O'Keeffe	1	0	CE	Treaty City Titans
Apirana Pewhairangi	0	0	SO	Parramatta Eels
Pat Smith	0	0	SO	York City Knights
Ben Johnston	2	0	SH	Halifax
Gregg McNally	0	0	SH	Leigh Centurions
Brendan Guilfoyle	0	0	PR	Treaty City Titans
Matty Hadden	3	0	PR	Antrim Eels
Sean Hesketh	3	0	PR	Batley Bulldogs
Luke Ambler	3	4	PR	Halifax
Colton Roche	0	0	PR	York City Knights
Robbie Mulhern	3	0	PR	Leeds Rhinos
	0	0	HK	Barnhall Butchers
Sean Casey	0	0	HK	Rochdale Hornets
Wayne Kelly	2	0	HK	Belfast Met Scholars
Danny Bridge	0	0	SR	Warrington Wolves
Will Hope	3	4	SR	Sheffield Eagles
Jobe Murphy	3	4	SR	Dewsbury Rams
Haydn Peacock	3	12	SR	AS Carcassonne
Lemeki Vaipulu	0	0	SR	Treaty City Titans
Bob Beswick (C)	3	0	LF	Leigh Centurions
Callum Casey	3	0	LF	Halifax

Scotland

Head Coach: Steve McCormack

• On 10 October, Steve McCormack named the following 31 players as part of a train-on squad in preparation for the tournament.^{[8] [9]}

width=22%	Player	width=8%	Games	width=8%	Points	width=8%	Position	width=32%	2014 Club
Brett Carter	0	0	FB	Workington Town
Alex Hurst	3	4	FB	Tweed Heads Seagulls
Nathan Massey	3	0	FB	Canterbury Bulldogs
Alex Walker	0	0	FB	London Broncos
Gregor Ramsey	0	0	FB	Easterhouse Panthers
Harvey Burnett	1	0	WG	London Broncos
Richard Harris	0	0	WG	Warrington Wolves
Lee Paterson	0	0	WG	York City Knights
David Scott	3	8	WG	Doncaster
Jack Stewart	0	0	WG	Hull Kingston Rovers
Ben Hellewell	3	4	CE	London Broncos
Shane Toal	0	0	CE	Barrow Raiders
Joe Wardle	3	0	CE	Huddersfield Giants
Danny Brough (C)	3	29	SO	Huddersfield Giants
Oscar Thomas	3	8	SO	London Broncos
Louis Senter	3	0	SO	Halifax
Callum Phillips	3	8	SH	Workington Town
Finn Murphy	0	0	SH	Edinburgh Eagles
Sam Barlow	0	0	PR	Leigh Centurions
Ben Kavanagh	3	4	PR	Widnes Vikings
Iain Morrison	0	0	PR	York City Knights
Adam Walker	3	4	PR	Hull Kingston Rovers
Jonathan Walker	2	8	PR	Leigh Centurions
Josh Barlow	3	0	HK	Swinton Lions
Ryan Maneely	0	0	HK	Warrington Wolves
Lewis Clarke	0	0	HK	Edinburgh Eagles
Brett Phillips	2	4	SR	Workington Town
Sonny Esslemont	3	0	SR	Hull Kingston Rovers
Corbyn Kilday	3	4	SR	Wakefield Trinity Wildcats
Joe McClean	1	0	SR	Gloucestershire All Golds
Danny Addy	3	4	LF	Bradford Bulls

Wales

Head Coach: John Kear^[10]

• On 7 October, John Kear named the following 25 players as part of his squad in preparation for the tournament.^[11]
• On 9 October, John Kear brought in four new players to the team to add to his train-on squad after withdrawals from Garreth Carvell and Rob Massam. Carvell withdrew due to injury while Massam cited work commitments.^[12] The four new players Kear brought in are: Tom Hughes, Morgan Evans, Lewis Reece and Owain Griffiths.

width=22%	Player	width=8%	Games	width=8%	Points	width=8%	Position	width=32%	2014 Club
Elliot Kear	0	0	FB	Bradford Bulls
Lewis Reece	3	10	FB	Toowoomba Clydesdales
Jordan Sheridan	0	0	FB	South Wales Scorpions
Tom Hughes	3	4	FB	Coventry Bears
Dalton Grant	2	4	WG	Barrow Raiders
Rhys Williams	3	12	WG	Central Queensland Capras
Ashley Bateman	2	0	WG	South Wales Scorpions
Christiaan Roets	3	8	CE	North Wales Crusaders
Yannic Parker	1	0	CE	Oxford Rugby League
Kyle Scrivens	2	0	CE	South Wales Scorpions
Paul Emanuelli	2	0	SO	South Wales Scorpions
Ollie Olds	3	0	SH	Ipswich Jets
Jacob Emmitt	0	0	PR	Leigh Centurions
Joe Burke	2	0	PR	Barrow Raiders
Dan Fleming	3	4	PR	Castleford Tigers
Izaak Duffy	2	0	PR	Gloucestershire All Golds
Phil Carleton	1	0	PR	South Wales Scorpions
Morgan Evans	3	0	PR	South Wales Scorpions
Connor Farrer	3	8	HK	South Wales Scorpions
Matty Fozard	2	4	HK	St. Helens
Owain Griffiths	1	0	HK	North Wales Crusaders
Byron Smith	1	0	SR	Batley Bulldogs
Matt Barron	3	0	SR	Gateshead Thunder
Ricky Hough	3	0	SR	Gateshead Thunder
Peter Lupton (C)	3	0	LF	Workington Town

Venues

The games will be played at the following venues in England, Ireland, France, Scotland and Wales.

Workington	Dublin	Albi	Galashiels	Wrexham
Derwent Park	Tallaght Stadium	Stadium Municipal d'Albi	Netherdale	Racecourse Ground
Capacity: 10,000	Capacity: 6,000	Capacity: 13,058	Capacity: 4,000	Capacity: 10,771

Standings

Team	Played	Won	Drew	Lost	For	Ag.	Diff	Points
	3	2	0	1	89	60	+29	4
	3	2	0	1	92	66	+26	4
	3	2	0	1	72	51	+21	4
	3	0	0	3	54	130	–76	0

Fixtures

Round 3

Matches details

All times are local: UTC+0/GMT in English venues. UTC+1/CET in French venues. UTC+0/WET in Irish venues. UTC+0/GMT in Welsh venues. UTC+0/GMT in Scottish venues.

Scotland vs Wales

FB 1 Oscar Thomas RW 2 David Scott RC 3 Ben Hellewell LC 4 Joe Wardle LW 5 Alex Hurst SO 6 Danny Brough (c) SH 7 Nathan Massey PR 8 Adam Walker HK 9 Danny Addy PR 10 Ben Kavanagh SR 11 Brett Phillips SR 12 Corbyn Kilday LF 13 Sonny Esslemont Substitutions: IC 14 Callum Phillips IC 15 Josh Barlow IC 16 Jonathan Walker IC 17 Louis Senter Coach: Steve McCormack

FB 1 Tom Hughes RW 3 Yannic Parker RC 8 Kyle Scrivens LC 11 Christiaan Roets LW 19 Rhys Williams SO 6 Ollie Olds SH 10 Peter Lupton (c) PR 13 Daniel Fleming HK 16 Ricky Hough PR 12 Matt Barron SR 9 Phil Carleton SR 7 Ashley Bateman LF 22 Joe Burke Substitutions: IC 14 Connor Farrer IC 15 Izaak Duffy IC 17 Lewis Reece IC 18 Morgan Evans Coach: John Kear

Ireland vs France

FB 1 Shannon McDonnell RW 2 Callum Mulkeen RC 3 Haydn Peacock LC 4 Michael Platt LW 5 Casey Dunne SO 6 Callum Casey SH 7 Ben Johnston PR 8 Robbie Mulhern HK 9 Bob Beswick (c) PR 10 Luke Ambler SR 11 Elliot Cosgrove SR 12 Josh Toole LF 13 Will Hope Substitutes IC 14 Jobe Murphy IC 15 Sean Hesketh IC 16 Wayne Kelly IC 17 Matty Hadden Coach: Mark Aston

FB 1 Tony Maurel RW 2 Mathias Pala RC 3 Jean-Philippe Baile LC 4 Damien Cardace LW 5 Frédéric Vaccari SO 6 Théo Fages SH 7 William Barthau PR 8 Jamal Fakir HK 9 Éloi Pélissier PR 10 Michael Simon SR 11 Kevin Larroyer SR 12 Benjamin Garcia LF 13 Jason Baitieri (c) Substitutes IC 14 Rémy Marginet IC 15 Aaron Wood IC 16 Julian Bousquet IC 17 Antoni Maria Coach: Richard Agar

Ireland vs Scotland

FB 1 Shannon McDonnell RW 2 Callum Mulkeen RC 3 Haydn Peacock LC 4 Stuart Littler LW 5 Casey Dunne SO 6 Callum Casey SH 7 James Toole PR 8 Robbie Mulhern HK 9 Bob Beswick (c) PR 10 Luke Ambler SR 11 Jobe Murphy SR 12 Josh Toole LF 13 Will Hope Substitutes IC 14 Wayne Kelly IC 15 Sean Hesketh IC 16 Graham O'Keeffe IC 17 Matty Hadden Coach: Mark Aston

FB 1 Oscar Thomas RW 2 David Scott RC 3 Ben Hellewell LC 4 Joe Wardle LW 5 Alex Hurst SO 6 Danny Brough (c) SH 7 Nathan Massey PR 8 Adam Walker HK 9 Danny Addy PR 10 Ben Kavanagh SR 11 Brett Phillips SR 12 Corbyn Kilday LF 13 Sonny Esslemont Substitutions: IC 14 Callum Phillips IC 15 Josh Barlow IC 16 Joe McClean IC 17 Louis Senter Coach:

France vs Wales

FB 1 Mathias Pala RW 2 Clément Soubeyras RC 3 Aurélien Decarnin LC 4 Damien Cardace LW 5 Frédéric Vaccari SO 6 Théo Fages SH 7 Rémy Marginet PR 8 Jamal Fakir HK 9 John Boudebza PR 10 Michael Simon SR 11 Kevin Larroyer SR 12 Benjamin Garcia LF 13 Jason Baitieri (c) Substitutes IC 14 Éloi Pélissier IC 15 Jean-Philippe Baile IC 16 Julian Bousquet IC 17 Aaron Wood Coach: Richard Agar

FB 1 Tom Hughes RW 3 Dalton Grant RC 8 Kyle Scrivens LC 11 Christiaan Roets LW 19 Rhys Williams SO 6 Ollie Olds SH 10 Peter Lupton (c) PR 13 Daniel Fleming HK 5 PR 12 Matt Barron SR 21 Lewis Reece SR 16 Ricky Hough LF 7 Matty Fozard Substitutes IC 14 Owain Griffiths IC 15 Izaak Duffy IC 17 Paul Emanuelli IC 24 Morgan Evans Coach: John Kear

Scotland vs France

FB 1 Oscar Thomas RW 2 David Scott RC 3 Ben Hellewell LC 4 Joe Wardle LW 5 Alex Hurst SO 6 Danny Brough (c) SH 7 Nathan Massey PR 8 Adam Walker HK 9 Danny Addy PR 10 Jonathan Walker SR 11 Sonny Esslemont SR 12 Corbyn Kilday LK 13 Ben Kavanagh Substitutions: IC 14 Callum Phillips IC 15 Josh Barlow IC 16 Harvey Burnett IC 17 Louis Senter Coach: Steve McCormack

FB 1 Mathias Pala RW 2 Tony Gigot RC 3 Aurélien Decarnin LC 4 Damien Cardace LW 5 Frédéric Vaccari SO 6 Théo Fages SH 7 Rémy Marginet PR 8 Jamal Fakir HK 9 Antoni Maria PR 10 Michael Simon SR 11 Kevin Larroyer SR 12 Benjamin Garcia LF 13 Jason Baitieri (c) Substitutes IC 14 Éloi Pélissier IC 15 Jean-Philippe Baile IC 16 Julian Bousquet IC 17 Aaron Wood Coach: Richard Agar

Wales vs Ireland

FB 1 Tom Hughes RW 3 Dalton Grant RC 21 Lewis Reece LC 11 Christiaan Roets LW 19 Rhys Williams SO 6 Ollie Olds SH 10 Peter Lupton (c) PR 34 Byron Smith HK 18 Matty Fozard PR 12 Matt Barron SR 31 Ricky Hough SR 7 Ashley Bateman LF 13 Daniel Fleming Substitutes IC 22 Joe Burke IC 5 Connor Farrer IC 24 Morgan Evans IC 17 Paul Emanuelli Coach:

FB 1 Shannon McDonnell RW 2 Brad Hargreaves RC 3 Haydn Peacock LC 4 Stuart Littler LW 5 Casey Dunne SO 6 Ben Johnston SH 7 Liam Finn PR 8 Robbie Mulhern HK 9 Bob Beswick (c) PR 10 Luke Ambler SR 11 Will Hope SR 12 Josh Toole LF 13 Callum Casey Substitutions: IC 14 Jobe Murphy IC 15 Sean Hesketh IC 16 James Toole IC 17 Matty Hadden Coach:

Notes and References

1. Web site: Eurosport.com - Sports News | Sports Scores | Sports Results | Sports Videos. Eurosport.
2. Web site: RLIF - 404 Error. Rugby League International Federation.
3. Web site: RLEF . www.rlef.eu.com . 14 January 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150620001101/http://www.rlef.eu.com/news/article/873/rugby-league-european-championship-fixtures . 20 June 2015 . dead.
4. Web site: Le groupe France pour le Championnat Européen Fédération Française de Rugby à XIII . 3 October 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141006133029/http://ffr13.fr/le-groupe-france-pour-le-championnat-europeen/ . 6 October 2014 . dead . dmy-all .
5. Web site: XIII DE FRANCE – Deux toulousains pour remplacer DUPORT et ESCARE ! Fédération Française de Rugby à XIII . 16 October 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141013200421/http://ffr13.fr/xiii-de-france-deux-toulousains-pour-remplacer-duport-et-escare/ . 13 October 2014 . dead . dmy-all .
6. Web site: Ireland announce train-on squad for Euro Championships. Aaron. Bower. 10 October 2014.
7. Web site: RLEF . www.rlef.eu.com . 14 January 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160303224841/http://www.rlef.eu.com/european_cup/news/article/920/european-championship-game-2-%E2%80%93/ . 3 March 2016 . dead.
8. Web site: SCOTLAND MIX OLD AND NEW IN EURO SQUAD . 3 October 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141006071727/http://www.scotlandrl.com/article/12430/scotland-mix-old-and-new . 6 October 2014 . dead . dmy-all .
9. Web site: FOUR LOCAL YOUNGSTERS STEP UP FOR BRAVEHEARTS . 12 October 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141013023052/http://www.scotlandrl.com/article/12462/four-local-youngsters-step-up . 13 October 2014 . dead . dmy-all .
10. News: Kear takes over as Wales RL coach. BBC Sport.
11. Web site: Wales Rugby League (WRL) – Official Website.
12. Web site: Garreth Carvell withdraws from Wales squad for European Cup. Sky Sports.