The Malta Rugby League (MRL) will complete a week-long training camp this Saturday when its Malta XIII faces one of the best English university rugby league teams as the University of Exeter (UoE) tour our shores, the match at Mosta kicking off at 3pm.
The training camp aims to commence preparations for Malta’s European Championship campaign and, in doing so, unearth new talent that can break into the Malta Knights national team.
The Malta XIII representative team this Saturday will feature a number of regular Malta Knights national team players, including national team brothers based in England Kaine and Reece Dimech, London-based captain Karl Cassar, and Malta’s own former NRL and Super League star, Jarrod Sammut.
Sammut first commenced playing professionally with Penrith Panthers in Australia’s NRL in 2007, and signed his last professional contract with Keighley Cougars earlier this year, playing three matches.
Seasoned Malta international Kaine Dimech is one of the regular Malta national team players in Malta for this week’s national team training camp.
The 29-year-old former Cornwall forward said: ‘‘The week has been building really positively. With a number of entirely new faces to the sport, it’s great to have these events that grow Rugby League on the island,” he said.
‘‘There’s been some stand-out performers so far, and we’re excited to see what they bring on the pitch in preparation for the European games, and we’re making sure we have a wide pool of talent from the domestic lads who have massively impressed this week.
‘‘It’s all systems go with the squad being announced internally after training tonight but that’s with the opportunity for newcomers to impress tonight and fight their way into the squad’’.
UoE are in Malta for six days and their first XIII captain Ben Mirchandani can’t wait for Saturday’s international test at Mosta.
“We’re very excited to test ourselves against a strong rugby league side with some great talent. It will be a great end to an excellent season, and a good chance for the boys to express themselves before the new season,” he said.
Malta Team Manager Anthony Micallef has already heralded the training camp as a success.
‘‘The camp has been over six months in the planning, and despite the usual hurdles, we’ve staged a structured experience for rugby players in Malta, covering a number of key on and off-field matters, as well as fitness and anti-doping,” he said.
‘‘The main aim was to welcome new players to the Malta setup, potentially unearth some new talent, and set expectations for the upcoming European Championship.”
With the reintroduction of the European Championship following a consultation with member nations, the ERL has placed nations in Groups B, C and D according to their international rankings, despite some nations having never met at test level.
Malta, ranked 13-in-the-world, will feature in Group B, and will host the Netherlands on October 18, before travelling to take on Serbia on November 1.
Outside of group B, the tournament features the likes of Italy, Ukraine, Greece, Norway, Germany and the Czech Republic, and promises to be an exciting showcase of rugby league talent, with a number of nations able to call on their elite players in Australia’s NRL and England’s Super League.
