Rugby League: Harris Set for Wales Comeback

Iestyn Harris will return to the Wales team for the first time in almost six years next month in an effort to help secure their qualification for a fourth World Cup. Despite making himself unavailable for the Great Britain squad for the Tri-Nations series in Australia and New Zealand, the Bradford stand-off has agreed to play for his country against Scotland at Bridgend's Brewery Field on October 29, the first game of a two-leg tie that will determine which of the countries joins England in the southern hemisphere in 2008.

"Iestyn has telephoned our coach Martin Hall to tell him he can play, which is a major boost to everyone involved in Welsh rugby league," said the WRL's chairman Mark Rowley. "He was an integral part of the teams who reached the semi-finals of the last two World Cup competitions, but this time we have to qualify for the tournament proper so the Scotland game is a vital one for us."

It will be Harris's first appearance in Wales since he returned to league shortly after the 2003 rugby union World Cup, which was his third in total after also representing his country in the 1995 and 2000 rugby league World Cups.

Rowley still hopes that Warrington's Lee Briers will be available after he missed out on Britain's Tri-Nations squad this week, but Wales have lost the Hull prop Garreth Carvell to the Lions and Keiron Cunningham has made himself unavailable for Britain and Wales this autumn for personal reasons. Wales will make another approach to Cunningham to play in the second leg of the qualifier in Scotland next year.

Brent Grose is in contention to make a surprise return from injury in Warrington's Super League elimination semi-final at Bradford on Saturday. The Australian centre had not been expected to play again this season after damaging knee ligaments six weeks ago, but he was included in a 20-man squad by the Wolves coach Paul Cullen yesterday.

Paul Cooke is the most notable inclusion in Hull's 20 for the qualifying semi-final at St Helens on Friday, when the winners will secure the first place in the Old Trafford grand final.

Cooke kicked the winning drop goal when Hull beat Saints 27-26 at Knowsley Road in June, the minor premiers' only home defeat of the season, but has been at the centre of a media storm in Hull for the past 48 hours, which prompted the club to issue a statement on their website denying that the 25-year-old had been sacked.

The speculation seems to have been prompted by Cooke's non-appearance at an end-of-season awards function nine days ago, and there has even been talk of a move to the old enemy Hull Kingston Rovers should they join Hull in the Super League next season.

However Cooke was happy to dismiss such rumours as "rubbish" before the coach Peter Sharp did likewise at a press conference yesterday.

Paul Sculthorpe and Jason Hooper, who missed St Helens' last game at Warrington two weeks ago, have both been recalled to their 20-man squad.