Catalans' McMeeken admits England duty has helped him not dwell on Grand Final
Mike McMeeken says pulling on the England jersey is helping him ease his Grand Final heartache.
The towering Catalans prop goes up against Tonga’s mighty pack again bidding to go 2-0 up in the series. He produced a brilliant display off the bench in Sunday’s 22-18 win at St Helens. Tonga couldn’t cope with his thunderous charges and he wants to repeat that at Huddersfield.
But international duty is also proving cathartic for McMeeken after Catalans lost to Wigan in the Super League title decider a fortnight ago. It was his third straight Grand Final defeat after falling with the French outfit two years earlier and also with Castleford in 2017. McMeeken, 29, admitted: “It was good just to get back into another game.
“It’s always disappointing to lose - a Grand Final especially. It was nice to get back on the field within eight days. I’ve not dwelled on it. I can think about that after this series. Getting the series win is the most important thing. I’m enjoying this group of lads and it’s always an honour to pull on an England shirt.”
Ex-London Bronco McMeeken expects another ferocious encounter today - and for the intensity levels to go up another level. He said: “Tonga are a big, big set of lads but also their forwards have plenty of skill. Some have late footwork which you have to look out for; they’re not just coming straight at you. There’s plenty to look out for when we’re against them.
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"We have to be on from minute one. We had glimpses of a solid performance on Sunday but the good thing is there’s still more in us. There’s players like myself and Tom (Johnstone) from Catalans and a few of the Wigan lads who had that match fitness. But some hadn’t played for a few weeks. It was good for those to blow the cobwebs off and it’ll be good to go again on Saturday. Obviously, Tonga will be similar with their NRL players. They’ll come again on Saturday. But it’s teed up nicely for the series.”
England's Mike McMeeken gives Tonga something to think about in the hosts' 22-18 win at St Helens (Steve Flynn/News Images)Basingstoke-born McMeeken has now become a mainstay of Shaun Wane’s side after an impressive showing in last year’s World Cup. But he’s not resting on his laurels and added: “I feel anyone who pulls on this shirt, you have to take that opportunity. When I made my debut (in 2017) I was about 23 and it wasn’t until last year I made another England appearance.
“So every time I pull on that shirt now I think it could be my last one so you have always got to go out and give your all no matter how many minutes you get. We were pretty disappointed with how we finished last year in the World Cup in that semi-final against Samoa. Now we’re looking ahead and looking to build with every game.”
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