GB/England have always made beating 'lesser' teams hard work. Why I don't know. However they are infinitely superior in every facet of the game than PNG. As I say they will make hard work of it but they will do it easily in the end.

Tonga are a much harder proposition but true to the British nature the more they look like the possible underdog the better they will play. I think they will be pumped to play Tonga purely because they will be written off in some quarters.

That said I don't really care how pedestrian England are until the final, just grind out the wins if they can. England only need one maybe two good games and they are word champions.

My team Ireland did great, how can you win two and not get through - gutted!

If England lose in the SF to Tonga then I'm giving up watching RL forever. We've lost three SF's to NZ but this time have managed to avoid having to play them in a SF in their own back yard. If we screw up against Tonga and don't get to the final, I'm done with it all!

Part England's doing and I'd suggest part because lesser teams see England as their best chance to beat one of the big 3 so go in with a different confidence than against Australia for example.

That’s what I was thinking!

Let’s hope so!

Bloody stupid isn’t it? Samoa are through and they have been dreadful!

It should have been:
Top 2 in Groups A+B go through automatically
Top team in Groups C+D go through automatically
Best two next places teams go through

Which would have seen 1/4 Finals of:
Australia v Italy
Tonga v Ireland
PNG v England
Fiji v New Zealand

When the top team wins 3

We don't need the Cook Islands in the World Cup. The country has a population of 19,000 (which makes it smaller than Leigh) and no domestic competition.

We should be thinking of adding Serbia, which has a population of nearly 9 million, a domestic competition, and a few heritage players in Australia. Next perhaps another European country which has a domestic competition, or Canada, to fill the 16th spot.

This is not true. Except for the wingers, PNG has superior outside backs and halves to England, and even the PNG wingers are very good and will be competitive.
It is only in the forwards where England is superior to PNG (except for hooker), and England will depend on its forwards making many yards and defending well in order to win.

Get the ball out to our wingers as the size of them will trouble anyone.
Start with Hodgeson as Hooker and then bring Roby on after about 30 minutes as his running from dummy half will cause them nightmares.

Really? I know you like to talk Engand down and every other side up. Also even though a few players haven't hit their straps, you can't surely dismiss a Daly M winning five-eight Widdop, who's played well for England & this seasons SL Man of Steel Luke Gale, for PNG's Halfs. IMO the only PNG back I'd have in the England team is Nene Macdonald. Also are you saying Watkins for example wouldn't be in the PNG starting 13, or do think Ottio is a better player.

There's also there's more facets to the game than individual players, there's experience both individually and collectively from playing in big International Comps but also at a high level in the NRL and SL. There's the Coaching structures, we're we've got one of the best ever in that regard, whatever you may think of him, plus other tanglible and intangible facets.

Of course it's true you silly person.

And?, your point is