International Rugby tour for Will

Rising star Will Hooley has been selected for the England U18 Rugby squad which will tour Australia in August.

Will, pictured presenting an England shirt to Mr Mark Slater, Headmaster of The Leys, is excited by the prospect.

“I was lucky enough to go on tour with School to the Southern Hemisphere last summer, when we played in Singapore, Malaysia and Australia, so I have experienced the conditions,” he said. “It was a fantastic experience, so I’m really looking forward to going. The England U18s haven’t gone and won there since Jonny Wilkinson was in the squad, which must be 13 or 14 years ago, so it’s a big opportunity.”

Will, a fly half, made his debut with the England U18 squad in Dublin in December, when they beat Ireland decisively, 29-12. He has just finished his AS levels and is recovering from a hip injury which is expected to be healed in time for the Australia tour (August 13-31).

“All the Southern Hemisphere teams are good – they play fast and they are physically big guys. But there’s a lot of talent in our team. If we can go out there and be positive, we can win,” he said.

The England U18s will play New South Wales U19s, Australia Schools A and Australia Schools. Their training base before the tour will be at Twickenham.