Toxteth's rugby league teen talent

A teenager from Toxteth was part of the England U18's Community Lions rugby league team who were narrowly beaten by France last week.
 
Daniel Burgan, 18, was one of the star performers for the England team, who were edged out 22-14 in the south of France in a tightly contested affair on Wednesday night. Daniel secured his place in the 19-man national squad following impressive performances at last month’s selection festival.

Arriving in Perpignan on Tuesday afternoon, the team started their trip by taking part in some light training and team building exercises. Daniel believes the team spirit and passion in a rugby league dressing room is unrivalled by any other sport. He said: “All of the lads get on really well; we were so fired up for the game. It’s amazing to be able to represent your country at 18-years-old, I felt so proud when they handed me my shirt.”

From a football dominated city, in which rugby league is seldom talked about, Daniel has been forced to play most of his rugby in Widnes because of the limited number of teams in Liverpool. The six foot second rower began playing rugby league at the age of eight and honed his skills with the Widnes Vikings academy.

However, he believes the city's passion for football often hinders the development of other sports and Liverpool's youngsters have limited opportunities to get involved in rugby, without having to travel out of the city. He explained: "I have done some rugby coaching in schools around Liverpool and the kids seemed really enthused by it but because of how dominant football is, not many take it up properly."

Another notable exception to the unwritten rule that 'Scousers don't play rugby,' is James Graham from Maghull, who became one of only a handful of professional rugby league players to come from Liverpool. Since breaking into the St Helens first team in 2003, the 24-year-old has been a revelation in Super League and was part of the England side that were beaten by Australia in the Four Nations final at the weekend.

Daniel has been inspired by the success Graham has achieved: "He has proved that people from Liverpool can make it to the big time in rugby league with dedication and hard work. I hope people look at the success he is having with Saints and want to experience that; I know I do.”

Rugby League on Merseyside has been traditionally restricted to the clutches of St Helens and Daniel believes that the Saints could help promote the sport in the rest of the county. He said: "Rugby League isn't promoted well in Liverpool at all, maybe if St Helens came to play a few games at Anfield or Goodison, they could get youngsters to go and watch and they might want to get involved."

Daniel's impressive performance in the defeat against France saw him retain his position in the squad for the upcoming fixture with the Australian Institute of Sport.