Brian McDermott remaining positive after England loss in Rugby League World Cup opener
The defeat to Tonga leaves England in a precarious position in the Rugby League World Cup
England head coach Brian McDermott insisted he could take “tonnes of positives” out of England’s opening Rugby League World Cup defeat to Tonga that leaves them on the brink of an early exit from the tournament.
Isaiya Katoa served up a kicking masterclass in Perth to help his side ease to a 30-12 win that leaves McDermott’s men likely to have to rely on points difference if they are to stand any chance of reaching the semi-finals.
Assuming the rest of the preliminary games go to form, England’s only hope is that Tonga beat Samoa in their final group stage clash – and that his side can build a better record than the Samoans, who have already put 78 points past France.
McDermott said: “It was a really good contest and I thought we stood toe-to-toe with them for nearly all the game. They’re a big, strong team and they’ve got some tremendous players in there.
“There are tonnes of positives to take out of tonight. There’s one or two glaring things that we need to get rid of, such as losing possession, but we’ll be chasing the good stuff.”
England trailed 10-0 at the break after an opening try from Stefano Utoikamanu, but forced their way back within four points early in the second half after the impressive Hugo Savala sent AJ Brimson scampering over.
However, McDermott’s men threw away their chance to haul their way back into the game, gifting Tonga a penalty from which Katoa kicked through for Haumole Olakau’atu to score the first of a brace that effectively ended England’s chances.
A late try from Dom Young proved too little, too late, and while England must regroup for games against France and Papua New Guinea, McDermott is adamant he will not let the potential mathematics to cloud his judgement.
McDermott added: “We know what’s in front of us now, we’ve got to win the next two games and improve on the things we need to improve on. But I’ve seen enough tonight that is telling me we’re heading in the right direction.
“We’re certainly not going to trip ourselves up. It would be tremendously disrespectful to either France or PNG to suggest we’re going to rack up a load of points.
“We’ll just focus on winning the next two games. I can start looking at the points difference and start working out our strategies, but the road will lead us back to winning those two games, and winning them in a strong way.”