Poland set to play first official home international

History will be made this Saturday when Poland play their first official home international, taking on the Czech Republic at the KS Budowlani stadium in Lodz. 

This is the first of three home internationals with the Poles taking on Sweden on October 12 and Norway on October 19. The Polish team have been in a training camp since September 23 under the auspices of head coach Lee Addison who has flown in from Australia.

In fact five players from Australia will feature in the match day squad. In addition to their playing duties they will be delivering a series of coaching workshops across a number of schools and hospitals to increase awareness of rugby league in the country. 

The majority are descendants of Polish migrants who moved to Australia after WWII. They have self-funded their trips to experience the culture and re-visit their heritage. 

The Poles made their official international debut in 2018 with an away match against Norway. Later in the year, they took part in the Emerging Nations World Championship – finishing in fifth place and claiming the title of Trophy Champions. The team was undefeated in the competition with convincing wins over Hong Kong (62-6), Japan (58-6) and Vanuatu (44-4) before a final hard-fought 14-10 victory against the Philippines. 

Poland are currently on the hunt for any UK-based players with Polish heritage who would like to represent Poland against Sweden and Norway in October.

Interested players are asked to contact Polish Rugby League UK representative James Szymik at jamesszymik@hotmail.com for more information.