England beat Papua New Guinea by 22 points but still need Tonga's help
England beat Papua New Guinea by 22 points in Wollongong on Friday, but a win was only part of what they needed to reach the semi-finals of the Rugby League World Cup.
Rugby league is a little different from union, so here is the maths. Teams in a group collect competition points for wins, and when two sides finish level, the points difference (the points scored minus the points conceded) decides the order. England needed to beat Papua New Guinea, overturn a 68-point swing on Samoa, and then hope Tonga beat Samoa on Sunday. The Guardian reported that after the 22-point win, England now need Tonga to win by 46 points, which is a very big ask.
The match itself started brightly for England. Matty Ashton opened the scoring after six minutes, and AJ Brimson crossed five minutes later. Dom Young added another try, with George Williams setting it up. England led 22-0 after 21 minutes, having scored four tries in a row without reply, and were 24-0 ahead at half-time.
A try, the main way to score in league, is worth more than a goal kick, and the points came quickly. Papua New Guinea came back after the break. Dudley Dotoi scored their first try against England, and Gairo Voro made it 24-12. England finished strongly, with late tries from Morgan Knowles and Mikey Lewis.
Coach Brian McDermott's side were ranked world number three by AFP before the game, so a heavy win was expected. Still, the group table is what matters now. England have done their part, and the rest depends on Sunday's game between Tonga and Samoa.
The women's side had a much harder day. England women lost 6-24 to Samoa in Wollongong, and for the first time they will not reach the final stages of a Rugby League World Cup. Head coach Stuart Barrow's team had also lost to Tonga, who beat England 30-12 in Perth earlier this month, so the result closes a difficult tournament.
For England's men, the result is the best they could have hoped for on the field. Whether it is enough will be decided by the scoreboard at the end of Sunday's Tonga v Samoa match.
