The brother of Workington Town’s Alex Young is at the centre of a controversial comment made by veteran broadcaster Eddie Hemmings.
While Alex is in the Jamaica squad to face Cumbria at Workington tonight his brother Dom is preparing for his England debut against Fiji.
The bookmaker Betfred has apologised for comments made by Hemmings in a video interview with the England coach, Shaun Wane, that was posted on social media before being deleted.
Hemmings had said Dom Young, who also qualifies to play for Jamaica, was “not English in the strict sense of the word”.
Young, who began his playing career with Huddersfield Giants before moving to the NRL in Australia, was born and raised in Wakefield. His brother Alex plays for Workington and is in the Jamaica squad at Derwent Park tonight.
“Dom Young, he could have played for Jamaica, as his brother is … so he’s not English in the strict sense of the word, either,” Hemmings said.
He later referred to another new call-up, Herbie Farnworth, who was also born in England before moving to Australia as a teenager, saying: “I’ve just listened to him … he’s as English as you and I, there’s no problems with him.”
Betfred are official partners of the England World Cup team and deleted the clip after it was published on Wednesday evening and issued an apology yesterday to Young and Wane.
The bookmaker said: “This morning Betfred have apologised in person to both Shaun Wane and Dom Young with regard to a recent interview ahead of the Rugby League World Cup, of which a clip was re-edited and posted on social media on Wednesday night.
“As a partner we would like to reaffirm our commitment to all staff and players in all of the England squads, and we are extremely proud to be involved in the most inclusive World Cup ever.”
