WOOLSTON Rovers' tradition of developing young players who go on to gain international selection continues with 18-year-old Chris Twigg.

He has been selected for the Thailand Rugby Football League squad to play two test matches in Australia against El Salvador and Hungary.

Twigg was originally called up last October to play against Malta but unfortunately that game got cancelled when the King of Thailand, who had reigned for over 66 years, died two days before the scheduled fixture.

The first game for Thailand is against El Salvador and takes place this Saturday at Hillier Oval, Liverpool, New South Wales and then they will face Hungary at Erskineville Oval, Sydney, on Wednesday, February 8 in games that have been sanctioned by the Rugby League International Federation.

Thailand have had a massive boost in the past couple of weeks with the appointment of Australian Brian Smith, elder brother of Warrington Wolves boss Tony Smith, as head coach.

This is a massive coup for the Thailand RL to get somebody of the stature of him to take on the role.

Chris, from Tarvin near Chester, qualifies for Thailand through his grandmother and said: “It will be a very proud moment for me to pull on the Thailand jersey and hopefully we can get two victories under our belt.”

Woolston public relations officer Dave Whalley said: “We are absolutely delighted for Chris that he has this opportunity and he will be yet another of our player’s to add their name to the club’s list of international players.

"Chris joined Woolston almost two years ago after being released from the Warrington Wolves Academy and he has developed hugely as a player and person while at the club and under the coaching of John Fieldhouse, becoming a regular in the NCL side.

Peter Thompson, President of the Thai RFL said: “We have been watching Chris for a couple of years and have been very impressed with his speed, athleticism and goal kicking.

"He is a young player but one that we have high hopes for and we look forward to seeing him and the rest of the squad playing their first ever Test match on Saturday. It promises to be a very special occasion.”