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Golden Boot winner Isaah Yeo has backed next year's Ashes series to captivate English audiences and replicate the success of the Pacific Championships. 

 The Kangaroos will take on England in the first Ashes series since 2013, while the Australian and England women's sides will also face off in the tour. 

While exact details are yet to be confirmed, the series is likely to be held in England in a major boost for the game in Europe. 

Yeo witnessed the passion and intensity of Tongan and New Zealand fans throughout the Pacific Championships and expects a similar atmosphere if the Kangaroos do travel to the UK next year.

2024 Golden Boot Winner: Isaah Yeo

"This current group of players hasn't actually played England before," Yeo said. "We didn't play them in the World Cup and haven't played them in the last few years. 

"The experience to go over there and deal with the crowd and hostility and the history that comes with it, I'd love to be part of it. There's a real opportunity to go over there and do your country proud.

"Rugby league in England is growing, the England team has had success over the last few years. Something like this and the hype around it would grow not just over there but in Australia as well. Everyone would really get behind it."

Friday's awarding of the 2024 Golden Boot to Yeo caps a memorable year that included a State of Origin series victory, fourth-straight NRL title with the Panthers and Pacific Cup glory.

Isaah Yeo and Tarryn Aiken were awarded the men's and women's Golden Boot awards on Friday.
Isaah Yeo and Tarryn Aiken were awarded the men's and women's Golden Boot awards on Friday. ©NRL Photos

The lock forward is rapidly joining the greats of the game and looks set to lead Australia to the 2026 World Cup and beyond. 

Kangaroos coach Mal Meninga said Yeo's presence within a squad is immediately felt and praised his skipper for emerging as a role model for the team and the sport as a whole. 

"He's had a terrific year and he's a great leader of men," Meninga told NRL.com. "He thoroughly deserves this award and I'm very pleased for him. 

"Teams are reflective of the leader and to have the traits he has, they're perfect traits for any human being and he leads by that. He leads by example, when he speaks everyone listens. 

"Everyone respects the words that come out of his mouth and when he goes on to the footy field he's a leader of men." 

Meninga captained the Kangaroos on their 1994 tour of the UK and France and has spent the past eight years as coach growing the international game.

Just in case you thought it was a Kangaroos home game

The sold-out crowd at CommBank Stadium last month was a clear indicator of the success of this process and the coach is now determined to expand the sport's growth beyond the Pacific. 

"People are starting to follow it and have passion for it," Meninga said. "It's a movement now, a passionate movement. I've seen it with Origin, you just have to keep going out there and making sure the underdogs are competitive. 

"They're chasing us and it's getting closer and closer. We've been beaten a few times over the last few years, we're enjoying the challenge."

Acknowledgement of Country

Penrith Panthers players and staff respect and honour the traditional custodians of the land and pay our respects to their elders past, present and future. We acknowledge the stories, traditions and living cultures of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples on the lands we meet, gather and play on.