Barrow has been involved with the England Academy coaching set-up since 2010 and will take over the Youth coaching reigns from Dave Elliott who will continue to oversee the development of both the England Academy and Youth programmes in his role as National Development Coach.

Barrow has been working closely with Elliott during the past two months to prepare the Youth squad for their upcoming two-Test series against France this Easter and will be hoping to get his tenure off to a winning start when the teams line up at the Provident Stadium, Bradford, on Friday March 29. The second Test will be played at the Rapid Solicitors Stadium, Wakefield, on Tuesday April 2 (both 2.30pm KO).

“It’s a great honour for me to get the opportunity to coach some of the finest young talent in the game,” said Barrow, who was Player Performance Manager at Bradford Bulls from 2009-2012 and at Castleford Tigers from 2005-2009.

“To be involved at this level in developing the next generation of Super League and England stars is a very exciting prospect for me.

“I’ve had the privilege of being involved in the England set-up working with Dave Elliott for the past few years and we’ve seen some fantastic talents come through the ranks in that time and I’m very proud to know that Dave and the rest of the England set-up have confidence in my abilities to take over the Youth role and I’m looking forward to putting my ideas into practice.

“We’ve got a big challenge ahead of us against France next week and we also have a game scheduled against Wales in Wrexham on Saturday April 6 so it’s going to be a massive week for every player involved in this group.

“At this age-level we have seen that France are always very physical and they will be a big test for our players. A lot of our guys will be making their first appearance in an England shirt and that brings its own pressures, so we’ll be keen to see how they respond.

“For some of these guys it will also be the first time they’ve ever experienced not being selected for a team and it’s important for us to see how they respond to that situation as well so there will be a lot of challenges, both physically and mentally, for the group to face over the next few weeks.

“We have some fantastic players in the group and if we can put everything together on the pitch then we should be able to come away with a strong performance and hopefully the results that we want.”

England Youth Squad (community clubs in brackets):

Aaron Smith (St Helens, Blackbrook)
Ash Goulding (Leeds Rhinos, Stanningley)
Brad Harrison (Hull FC, Skirlaugh Bulls)
Brad Parker (Hull FC, East Hull)
Charlie Pythian (Warrington Wolves, Latchford Albion)
Daniel Douglas (Leeds Rhinos, Drighlington)
Frazer Morris (Huddersfield Giants, St Josephs Sharks)
Harry Tyson Wilson (Hull FC, West Hull)
Harvey Livett (Warrington Wolves, Rylands Sharks)
Issac Noi (Wigan Warriors, Ince Rose Bridge)
Jack Etchells (Wigan Warriors, Oldham St Annes)
Jack Rush (Wigan Warriors, Rochdale Mayfield)
Jack Wells (Wigan Warriors, Folly Lane)
Jacob Ware (Leeds Rhinos, Westgate Wolves)
Jake Campbell (St Helens, Blackbrook)
Jake Moore (Wigan Warriors, Wath Brow Hornets)
James Brown (Castleford Tigers, Castleford Lock Lane)
Jordan Crowther (Wakefield Trinity Wildcats, Westgate Wolves)
Jordan Lane (Hull FC, West Hull)
Kameron Pearce Paul (London Broncos, Croydon Hurricanes)
Lewis Fairhurst (St Helens, Hindley)
Liam Cooper (St Helens, Blackbrook)
Liam Johnson (Huddersfield Giants, Newsome Panthers)
Max Jowitt (Wakefield Trinity Wildcats, Stanley Rangers)
Morgan Smith (Leeds Rhinos, Normanton Knights)
Reece Brunt (Warrington Wolves, Latchford Albion)
Roshane Johnson (London Broncos, Medway Dragons)
Ryan Haughton (Wigan Warriors, Blackbrook)
Ryan Ince (Widnes Vikings, Widnes Moorfield)
Sam Hallas (Leeds Rhinos, Stanningley)
Will Gledhill (Huddersfield Giants, Wakefield Westgate)

England Youth play France at Provident Stadium, Bradford on Friday March 29 (2.30pm) with tickets priced at £5 adult and £3 concessions. The second Test will be played at Rapid Solicitors Stadium, Wakefield on Tuesday April 2 (2.30pm) with tickets priced from £3 adult and £1 concession.