It's not the done thing but England star Seb Bechara admits his side are already thinking about the World Cup wheelchair final.
England, who have lost the last two finals to France, must defeat Wales in Sunday’s semi at Sheffield to book a spot in Friday’s decider. But they have sailed through the group stages with three emphatic wins and are big favourites to see off the Welsh. Catalans favourite Bechara, who lost part of his right leg in a motorcycle accident ten years ago, insisted: “We’re not taking Wales lightly. We’d never take anyone lightly.
“We’ve analysed them and done a preview of their players, teamwork, weaknesses and strengths. But I think in our minds we are already ready for the final. We’re looking at it. We’re going to use this semi as a trampoline to get ready for that final.
"We’re confident going in against Wales and my bet is on France beating Australia in the other semi. I think they’re just too good at the moment. We’re already planning on France: looking at what they’re doing, checking out their players and going through them quite thoroughly.”
The exciting sport has won an army of new fans with an average of half-a-million viewers watching England’s games on the BBC. Bechara admitted: “It’s breathtaking. We’ve loved this sport forever but always played in the shadows. We’ve been doing these World Cups but no one’s been seeing them. But on free-to-air TV it’s been attracting so many people and the reaction to it’s been mad. It’s brilliant.”
