England
Sam Burgess 'treated unfairly' by England, says younger brother Tom
PA Sport
November 2, 2015
Sam Burgess © Getty Images
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Sam Burgess' younger brother Tom has claimed the dual-code international has been made a scapegoat for England's poor Rugby World Cup campaign.

Burgess was due to report back to Bath on Monday after being given time off to consider his future following his controversial involvement in the England squad but he seems unlikely to play for them again.

As talks continue over his release from the two years left on his contract with Bath, Burgess was a hot topic of conversation among his former England teammates after they began their rugby league three-match Test series against New Zealand with a 26-12 win in Hull.

"Speaking truthfully, he was probably treated a bit unfairly in my opinion and that's probably what's pushing him away at the moment," Tom Burgess said.

"He's had a week or 10 days off that [Bath coach] Mike Ford gave him to refresh him a little bit mentally and he'll assess his options.

"He's not made any decision as yet, at the moment he's still with Bath."

Burgess was an absentee from Sunday's game but watched England's opening autumn international against France a week earlier when he was a popular visitor to the home changing room.

"I hope he comes back to league for us, Sam's a league player," said Brett Ferres, England's two-try man of the match. "He's a fantastic player and I was lucky enough to play with him at the World Cup and Bradford before that so I hope he does."

© PA Sport

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