Huddersfield Giants Youth chief Andy Kelly expects his club’s junior status to keep on rising on the international front.
And he believes that will help to guarantee the Giants continue to be a major Super League force.
Huddersfield’s stock is already increasing at junior level, with rising Giants stars Liam Johnson and Matty English having both captained the England Youth Under 16s side over the past two seasons.
They followed in the footsteps of 19-year-old utility back Jake Connor, who has also been a key member of the England Youth set-up and is now making his mark at Super League level.
That recent record was one of the reasons former Wakefield Super League head coach Kelly was attracted to the Huddersfield Head of Youth Performance role, with the former Ireland World Cup boss confident the good news on the junior front will continue.
“What’s going on at Huddersfield at junior level is incredibly exciting,” said Kelly.
“We’re now attracting more and more of the top young players in the game, and that obviously bodes well for the future.
“We’ve just taken on our new group of Under 16s. We’ve got 16 at that level and I fully expect a healthy number of them to be picked for England in January.
“I also expect some of our 18 Under 18s to gain selection as well.
“Many players who are picked for England at youth level go on to play in Super League, and that figure is rising all the time.
“So the more top junior players you have on your books, the better.”
