That's encouraging. It definitely sounded like a lot more during that second half!

may have looked better if both sides of the upper tier seats were covered with giant flags of the england, wales, nz and australia

Lot of negativity on here. I thought England played very well for the most - a country mile better than the last World Cup or Four Nations. A couple of basic defensive errors (why people continue to run out the line against Aus has baffled me for years) and handling mistakes cost us dearly - but then we know any errors against the ockers will be punished.

Ref was good for the first half, but lost the plot in the second. That idiot who says Williams' shot was accidental has obviously never played and doesn't understand that he lined up for that shot; his entire body set up for it before he threw it. Deliberate and a good case for a straight red, but definitely a yellow. Ref bottled it. Why he didn't go to the video ref for Briscoe's effort I don't understand. Poor effort.

As for Aus, people may say they played within themselves, but then they weren't that great against NZ either. England defended well and put them on the back foot at times, and were intelligent territorially until penalties or mistakes handed over possession in dangerous areas. Aus probably do have another gear but they don't seem as fluid a unit as in the past.

We should beat NZ based on that performance and if we can cut out the small errors we'll give Aus a tougher game in the final.

Im still struggling to see the fuss about Heighington personally....would shift Sinfield to 13 next week and start with Maguire amd Widdop in halves....Confirmed what i have always though of chase today...big fish in small pond and vastly over-rated.

Absolutely bang on. Sinfield is a good, intelligent player, but he has very limited speed and little or no creative spark. This basically means that he's a postbox at number 6. Contrast that to the Aussies, where Thurston and Lockyer take on the line and offer threat every time they touch the ball. Stick Sinfield at 13 (really, Heighington is little more than a cultural cringe towards the NRL - both JJB and Wilkin played better when they came on). Then we can play Widdop at 6. Unfortunately, I suspect all the training has been for this combination, and Macnamara is just not good enough a coach to be able to change things around successfully, or even admit to being wrong in his initial selections.

I thought Thurston was superb and Australia whenever they had to step up a gear they could. England still to me look like a side that when forced to defend there own 20 look like they will concede. If NZ get in the last 20 they will score!!

Sam Thaiday is immense.

Widdop has to play. Sienfield should not be in the halves!!

Ryan Hall is just a brilliant finisher. Everytime I see him play whenever he has a sniff of the tryline he does not disappoint. His 1st try was world class!!

Briscoe did score but he still messed up by not going for the line. It was the wrong decision and there would of been no doubt if he went for the line.

Tomkins was very very good. Thats the 1st time v top opposition for England I have seen him put in the positions to make things happen and he did just that. If there is one English back that Australia will want in the NRL it's Tomkins.

Is that supposed to validate your opinion somehow?

How old are you?

We can take them in the final. Just cut out the silly mistakes and be more clinical close to the line. It was 2 tries a piece at halftime but we should have been going in at the break in front, we had more territory and posession and should have converted it to points. Instead, not only did we not go to the break in front, we went in 4 points behind!

Then a stupid mistake and boom, Inglis is over. Then in the space of 2 minutes aus should have been a man down, and only 4 points ahead with briscoe scoring. Instead none of the above comes to pass aus go up the other end and make it 24-8, game over.

Australia are ruthless and if you give them an inch, they take a mile.

Overall it was 6 tries to 4 (should have been 5) and considering england were pretty much playing without 2 forwards for an entire half, and one on one leg, it's a bloody good effort. We should feel confident we can make the final and beat them, because we can.

England need to tighten up their fringe defence, if they can defend australia better when they work the ball wide, we will win.

On another note, I never read as much rubbish on here as when the internationals roll around. I don't know whether people are taking the m*ck or what, but it's a one opinion fits all thing. It doesn't matter what happens in the game it's ''english rugby league will be dead in 2 years, the poms are shocking, australia won at a canter and would have broken a thousand if they could be bothered, england are further behind than ever before blah blah blah''.

People are idiots.

By 'step up a gear' do you mean simply score when field position is gifted to them? Clinical yes, but hardly stepping up a gear.

I know it sounds bitter but I can't remember a game of england australia where england got the rub of the green in terms of refs calls. Bounce of the ball and 50/50 calls always go aus way and england needs those things going their way to beat them,.

The bounce of the ball consistently going their way is mainly due to the fact that they are always ready for the offload. We spend too much time not doing that and instead setting up for the next tackle. Twice in good positions an England player got the ball out in a dangerous area and players who should have been in a position to capitalise were looking the other way pointing at their own line.

Good turn out,but dare I say it after 31 years of London RL why wasn't it sold out.

I remember going to Manchester City AFC's 'new' stadium a few short years ago and thinking what a fantastic stadium it was,and guess what RL has never been back there.

Had it been at Manchester City's ground today I would definitely have been there,but down to London and staying over is just a bridge too far just now personally.