Princess Catherine put forward a message of goodwill toward both England Rugby squads competing at the Rugby League World Cup. In a written message, she extended good wishes to the England Men's, Women's, and Wheelchair Rugby League squads ahead of their departure to Australia for the tournament.
The competition runs through to the November 15 final, with Australia, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea all serving as joint hosts. Play got under way on Thursday when Australia edged New Zealand 24-22.
On Saturday morning, a message of encouragement for all competing teams was posted to the social media account Catherine shares with Prince William, timed ahead of their next fixtures. The players, coaching staff, and support personnel set to carry England's flag at the tournament have the backing of the nation as they prepare to compete, the message stated. Footage shared through the Rugby League's own channels ran alongside those remarks.
England arrive at the fixture as current world champions in wheelchair competition, while Australia enter with back-to-back title defences to protect across both the men's and women's tournaments. Three pool-stage opponents await the England men's side: Tonga, France, and Papua New Guinea. Three opponents await the England women's side — Wales, Australia, and Samoa. The Wheelchair squad's group-stage opponents will be Ireland, Wales, and the USA.
The patronage of Rugby League passed from Prince Harry to Princess Catherine in 2022. Queen Elizabeth II placed her in the post following Harry's withdrawal from royal duties in 2020. A patron role within Rugby Union was among the positions extended to her.
Vocal backing for the sport has characterised Catherine's tenure in both roles, with appearances at matches and a hands-on training day at Twickenham Stadium drawing comment from former England captain Mike Tindall, who is also her cousin-in-law. On his podcast, Tindall described Catherine as having appeared in strong form during her time on the pitch.
Co-host Alex Payne remarked to Tindall and James Haskell that, despite their combined 152 international caps between them, Catherine came across as a more natural rugby player than either of them. Tindall then described messaging Ellis Genge to ask whether she had made any mistakes during the session, hoping to raise it in the family WhatsApp group, only for Genge to report back that she had performed well and shown particular ability with her kicking — a response that Tindall said left him deflated. A drive to win has consistently defined her approach, Tindall added.
