Mikolaj Oledzki on his Ashes call-up: ‘I didn’t know what rugby league was when I moved to England’

The Leeds prop moved from Poland 20 years ago. Now he is preparing to face Australia in the Ashes at Wembley

By No Helmets Required

Twenty years ago, a Polish primary schoolboy was getting to grips with life in the Northamptonshire steel town of Corby. His parents had moved from Gdansk, giving up successful careers back home to start a new life in England. Young Mikolaj Oledzki had never even seen rugby league on TV – and yet this week the Leeds prop is preparing to play world champions Australia at one of the world’s most famous stadiums.

“Sometimes I still look around and I can’t believe I’m in this position,” he said at Wembley on Tuesday afternoon. “That nine-year-old boy wouldn’t believe it if you said I’d be playing professional sport, never mind at the top of it. I didn’t know what rugby league was.”