Leeds Rhinos winger Ash Handley finally gets the nod for England

Handley, 24, is Super League’s top scorer with 14 having taken his tally for the season in all competitions to 20 with a brace against Wakefield Trinity on Sunday when he also captained his hometown club for the first time.

It was a big surprise when the uncapped wideman was not named in Wane's original selection earlier this year but - having helped Leeds win the Challenge Cup and continued his development - he has now been rewarded with Warrington Wolves' Josh Charnley dropping out.

The other new member in Wane’s selection as he looks ahead to the 2021 World Cup is Warrington's Huddersfield-born centre Toby King who essentially replaces Wakefield’s Reece Lyne in the list.

Seven players in total are omitted, including the uncapped Watts who had fought so hard to earn recognition but has been left out along with Scott Taylor, the Hull FC prop who has only recently returned to action after a back injury.

Hull second-row Josh Jones is another - he has suffered from the after-effects of Covid and has not played since August 2 - along with the Warrington trio of long-time regular Hill, Charnley and Great Britain back-row Jack Hughes.

Despite the absence of any fixtures in 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic – England should have played Australia in the first Ashes Test last weekend – Wane has remained in regular contact with a group of players who were selected for an initial get-together at Old Trafford in March, only for it to be cancelled because of the original national lockdown.

King, 24, played for England Knights in Papua New Guinea in 2018 and against Jamaica last year, and was included in the Knights Performance Squad selected by Paul Anderson in March.

Handley also toured PNG with the Knights in 2018, represented England in the World Nines in Sydney last autumn and was then called into the Great Britain squad without playing a game.

Two other members of Wane’s original selection in March who were then based in Australia – Kallum Watkins and John Bateman – have since signed to return to the Betfred Super League, with Salford Red Devils and Wigan Warriors respectively, while Luke Thompson has joined the group of players based in the NRL after his move from St Helens to Canterbury.

“I’ve always said I would pick players on form, and I think it’s important to show that,” said Wane.

“We’ve seen some fantastic rugby since the season restarted in August, and I thought last Friday’s game between St Helens and Wigan was the best yet.

“Toby King and Ash Handley have been two of the lads who have really impressed me with their performances and consistency, so it’s right that they are recognised for that, and they know they are in the group I’ll be contacting regularly until we can get together properly.

“Some other players have fallen below the standard of performance I need from my England players, so again it’s right that they have been told that as things stand I don’t regard them as part of the group.

“But they know the door isn’t closed – it’s up to them how they respond.”

The updated list of players who will be invited to a first physical gathering as soon as possible after the end of the Betfred Super League season is:

Daryl Clark, Mike Cooper, Ben Currie, Joe Philbin, Stefan Ratchford, Toby King (all Warrington Wolves), Niall Evalds, Dan Sarginson, Kallum Watkins (both Salford), Liam Farrell, Oliver Gildart, Zak Hardaker, Dom Manfredi, John Bateman (all Wigan Warriors), Luke Gale, Harry Newman, Ash Handley (all Leeds Rhinos), Josh Griffin (Hull FC), Tom Johnstone (Wakefield Trinity), Jonny Lomax, Tommy Makinson, Mark Percival, James Roby, Alex Walmsley, Morgan Knowles (all St Helens), Paul McShane (Castleford Tigers), Jermaine McGillvary (Huddersfield Giants), Sam Tomkins (Catalans Dragons).

NRL players: Luke Thompson (Canterbury), Herbie Farnworth (Brisbane), George Williams, Elliott Whitehead, Josh Hodgson, Ryan Sutton (Canberra), Tom Burgess (South Sydney)