Rugby League World Cup- The 18th man: 'The sport is leading the way once more'

The 18th man contributors reflect on England’s last outing and discuss the Rugby League World Cup as a whole.
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Darren Wrudd

Watching the England game last week I felt that the French did not play particularly well, but our standards certainly dropped overall, letting them score a couple of soft tries and making them look a lot more threatening than they should.

Is it a complacency that sets in to UK Rugby League players after a good win, as how many times do we see this in the domestic game?

Kasey Badger made history by being the first female referee in a Rugby League World Cup gameKasey Badger made history by being the first female referee in a Rugby League World Cup game
Kasey Badger made history by being the first female referee in a Rugby League World Cup game
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That said, we did what needed to be done but the flattery from the previous week must have been ringing in their iPhones all week long.

I can’t imagine Shaun Wane would have been happy and feel sure that a lesson has been learnt early on to hopefully steel ourselves for what is to come in the quarter-finals.

Before that of course, we have a match against Greece to contend with.

Although roundly beaten so far, I like this Greek side, I really do.

England have won both of their World Cup games so farEngland have won both of their World Cup games so far
England have won both of their World Cup games so far
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They play the game in the proper spirit of the competition and don’t seem to want to trophy hunt with cheap shots.

They know it’s not their year but who knows in future what a surprise the Greece national side could be as they improve year on year.

Everyone expects an England win, but the way we perform is of utmost importance if we are to take anything into the knockout stages.

Clinical and controlled is what I hope to see with well rehearsed moves and no silly errors. We need to be good with the ball and careful with our discipline too.

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Overall I suppose I am really enjoying the tournament as a whole, probably much more than even I thought I would, but it is the attitude from some of the lesser known squads which is a shining light for the game.

Jamaica scoring their first ever World Cup try was a brilliant moment and the celebrations were a joy to behold.

Some super play from Lebanon to put down a decent Irish side quite convincingly while the effort and class shown by Wales in defeat was inspirational.

Our old boy Rhodri Lloyd played really well and they should be proud of their performance as should all the nations.

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The commentaries have been a breath of fresh air too and my favourite Aussie caller Andrew Voss (Vossy) is hot on social media and taking in the culinary delights of each area he finds himself in.

Needless to say his trip to Galloways pies received top marks.

Finally, what a fantastic effort by Kasey Badger to referee the Tonga v Wales fixture this week.

She did a fantastic job in the middle as the first female referee to take charge of a World Cup fixture and kept the game flowing really well.

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Her husband had apparently flown in especially for the game when he found out she was to take charge.

Rugby league leads the way once more. Well done Kasey, I hope we see much more from you and that you can perhaps inspire many more to follow your path.

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Glynn Bradshaw

It was a decent win in the end for England.

They looked a bit vulnerable before the break but ran away with it in the second half with the help of a suspected forward pass from John Bateman to Elliott Whitehead.

Against Greece it should just be a question of how many we win by.

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Starting players who haven’t yet played a game shouldn’t affect things too much.

The tournament as a whole has been quite enjoyable with some blow outs along with some closely contested games, which will increase as the competition progresses.

A lot of comments have been made about some of the attendances, but what do they expect when people’s incomes are being squeezed to the limit with record high inflation, plus all games covered live too.