A lecturer has shown it’s very much of a case of ‘do as I do’, after using techniques he teaches his students to help coach the England wheelchair rugby league team to World Cup victory.

Dave Banks works with students studying for the sports coaching degree at UCLan, delivering the performance analysis modules.

Dave started working with the Wigan Warriors rugby league team in 2000, and has since gone on to work on the international stage, with teams from Papua New Guinea and Australia.

Dave joined UCLan in 2020, leaving behind the club rugby world to instead share his skills and insight with sports students.

Lancashire Telegraph: England beat France to win the Wheelchair Rugby League World CupEngland beat France to win the Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup (Image: PA)

But after a conversation with the England Performance Unit, Dave was offered a chance to work with the England wheelchair rugby league team alongside his lecturing.

However, the offer coincided with the Covid pandemic, making it difficult at first for Dave to find out more.

He said: “I knew nothing about disability sport, the equipment, the rules – this was all new to me.

"But once the Covid restrictions lifted, I could begin my fact-finding mission.

Lancashire Telegraph: Action from the RLWC final, showing the physicality and athleticism of wheelchair rugby leagueAction from the RLWC final, showing the physicality and athleticism of wheelchair rugby league (Image: PA)

“And once I attended my first training session with the team – just wow.

“I was blown away and totally hooked. The bravery and skill of the players is phenomenal; I knew it was something I wanted to be part of.”

As the team’s performance analyst, it is Dave’s job to capture information about training and matches – looking at what works and what doesn’t from the team’s perspective, analysing the strengths and weaknesses of the opposition - and then collating and passing that information to coaches and players, so that they can adapt and improve.

The World Cup, which took place this autumn after being postponed from 2021 due to Covid, was hosted by England, and the team’s campaign for the trophy kicked off in London at the beginning of November.

The final match against fierce rivals France saw the team draw on every ounce of the training they’d put in to take the win.

Dave added: “It was such a sweet moment, that win, and I keep pinching myself: but after our celebration planned in the new year, we’ll get straight to planning for the 2025 World Cup/

“I am really proud to call many of the people on the team my friends now, and I’m excited to see what we can achieve next together.”