McGillvary against Aussie imports for England

Huddersfield and England winger Jermaine McGillvary believes that Wayne Bennett should be careful when it comes to introducing Australian-born ‘heritage players’ in to the national squad.

There have been persistent rumours regarding a number of English-qualified Australian NRL players who might be considered by new England coach Bennett for selection.

But McGillvary, who was a stand-out player against New Zealand last year, feels that there is little need for any imports to be brought in.

“I think the players we’ve got now are good enough,” he told Love Rugby League.

“They just need the right guidance and stuff like that.

“Everyone in the England set-up who players over here and in Australia works hard to get into the team, and if an Australian who’d never lived here or wasn’t born here, it would be hard to take if he took someone’s spot.”

McGillvary does believe that Bennett will be a good appointment as England coach, however, and he has been impressed with the new man’s approach to the role so far.

“I sat down in a meeting with him recently,” he said.

“He’s a very inspirational man. He told his outlook on what he wants.

“He wants to win the Four Nations, and build from that to win the World Cup. He expects that from us.

“He said he’ll be able to get it out of us, but we need to work with him and get out of our comfort zone, so to speak.

“Most people [in the squad] drive nice cars and have got nice houses, and a cushy lifestyle, but he said if we want that extra 10 percent then we need to get out of that lifestyle, and bust your arse.

“He wants a lot of effort from the boys, which is what you expect when you play for your country.”

McGillvary, currently injured, knows that he will have to work hard when he does return to impress Bennett.

Huddersfield finished bottom of Super League, and now face a fight in the Qualifiers to stay in the top tier.

“It’s very hard to impress him when you’ve been at the bottom of the table all year,” he said.

“I’ve got to put all that in the background now. It’s about saving my club, and making sure that we get back into Super League.”