Tom, 27, was appointed head coach for the England squad in early 2020, having previously held the position as assistant coach from 2018. He played the running game in Kent for the community club Medway Dragons, and also coaches for London Roosters, a Super League Wheelchair Rugby League Team

Tom's younger brother Joe is a key member of England’s World Cup winning squad, and his father, Martin Coyd OBE is involved in the development of Wheelchair Rugby League in England.

He is younger than a number of players but is highly regarded by the team, combines his role with a full-time job in sales. The England Rugby League Wheelchair won the Rugby League World Cup 2021, which was postponed to 2022 due to the pandemic.

This is the second time England have won the tournament, the first was in 2008. This was the first Rugby League World Cup where the wheelchair tournament was played simultaneously with the men’s and women’s tournament. All players received equal participation fees and prize money across all three tournaments.

Tom told KentLive: "Coaching my country at this young age, it is a total privilege. There is a lot of pressure that comes with leading a team at the highest level in the sport, but it is the most exciting thing I have ever done and that is because of the pressure.

"I am so grateful for the opportunity to have come relatively early in my coaching career. About half of the players on the Team are the same age or older than me, so I have had to work really hard to earn their trust and respect."

"I was blown away by the honour when the letter from the Cabinet Office arrived. None of the work we do is for individual honours so the thought hadn’t crossed my mind.

"What I am most pleased about is that our inclusive game of Wheelchair Rugby League is now gaining recognition alongside the traditional sports. I will do whatever I can to promote our sport because I believe it is really special."

The England Wheelchair team matches were aired live on the BBC and the final between England and France was viewed by a peak audience of 1.5m people, with an additional 4,500 spectators - a world record attendance for a wheelchair rugby league match.

The England team’s performance was "consistently excellent" said the submission, which also said: "Anecdotally, a number of wheelchair rugby league clubs have seen high numbers of new joiners as a result of the England team’s performance in the tournament, doubled participation since last year and only halfway through the season".

RFL Chair Simon Johnson has hailed the publication of the King’s Honours List as “a great day for Wheelchair Rugby League and the whole of the community game”.

“Tom Coyd MBE has been an inspirational head coach for the group at a remarkably young age, and it is fitting that he now joins his father, Martin Coyd OBE, in being recognised – Martin having received his OBE ten years ago for his role in the early development of Wheelchair Rugby League and also in the lifting of the ban on our sport being played in the Armed Forces, and continuing to play a key role in the ongoing success story of the Wheelchair game, as well as at the Medway Dragons community club.”