A coach, his brother and their dad
Tom Coyd calls it the hardest thing he has done at work. Coaching his younger brother.
The England Wheelchair head coach has been in charge for six years and already has a World Cup on his CV. Joe, the star winger, scored 12 tries on the way to that 2022 title. On Friday in Wollongong the pair go for a second one in a row, against France.
“There are times when you have to give him a bit of a telling off,” Tom told Sky Sports. He reckons the arrangement is rare for good reason, but says that in their own quirky way the brothers make it work, and that it lifts the whole group. Joe sees the same thing from the other side, calling it a privilege to share the occasion with his brother and his father.
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Oily hands in camp
That father is Martin Coyd OBE, the team’s general manager and an RFL board member. His sons describe a man who juggles those board duties with repairing wheelchair parts in camp, getting oily alongside the squad. Tom credits him with setting the standards and the culture after more than a decade at the head of the programme.
France, and fine margins
England arrive in form. They put a record 86 points past Australia in the semi-final, winning 86-18. France are a different proposition. England edged them 28-24 in the last World Cup final, yet Les Bleus have won two of the three meetings since, including a 32-28 win in November 2024 that kept the Fassolette-Kielty trophy in French hands.
Only France have ever won back-to-back titles in this format. Tom Coyd expects a game decided by small details and wants his players to see themselves as a side that has earned the favourite’s tag, not one carrying its weight. France, he admits, have earned that right too.
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