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Match Report

England overcome France with big second half

Author
Corey Rosser NRL Reporter
Timestamp
Corey Rosser

Four second-half tries from England has seen them past a resilient France 42-18 in Bolton, with former Raiders half George Williams starring in the halves. 

After trailing 18-0 after 25 minutes, France fought back with a pair of converted tries to be behind by just six at the break, but couldn't match it with England in the second period. 

Short of Greece pulling off a couple of massive upsets, the win means England are safely through to the quarter-finals as the top seed out of Group A.

Shaun Wane's side completely dominated field position on their way to the 18-0 lead - helped by a double to prolific wing Ryan Hall - before France hit back with a pair of tries to trail by just six at half-time. 

But the second stanza was all England, with tries to to their NRL contingent of Elliott Whitehead, Victor Radley and Dom Young helping to see off the French threat. 

Match Snapshot 

  • Ryan Hall scored the first two tries of the match to take his personal tally to 37 tries in 29 Tests, while Marc Sneyd kicked a perfect seven from seven in his England debut.
  • Both Hall and Knights flyer Dom Young registered over 200 metres of running.
  • Tom Burgess was sent to the sin bin and put on report for contact off the ball in the final minute of the game. 
  • England centre Kallum Watkins left the field with a head knock on 50 minutes and failed his HIA, meaning he will miss England's final group game.  
  • Following Hall's double inside 15 minutes, some nice build-up from Victor Radley saw him put Luke Thompson over for England's third, before Arthur Mourgue got one back for France off a grubber which took a deflection. 
  • After forcing an error as England came off their own line, the French took full advantage to score through Eloi Pelissier.
  • Former Warriors fullback Sam Tomkins didn't return to the game after half-time and was replaced at fullback by Jack Welsby in a tactical switch. 
  • A late offload from John Bateman put Elliott Whitehead over to restore a 12-point lead for England. 
  • Tries to Roosters enforcer Victor Radley and Knights centre Dom Young got England to a 36-12 lead. 
  • Young went the length of the field on an intercept, before France got one back with five minutes to play through Arthur Romano.
  • England ran for 2109 metres compared to France's 1348. 

Play of the Game

Given the chance to show his top-flight speed, Dom Young didn't disappoint. The young Knights back continued his strong start to the tournament with this eye-catching effort, which was his second try of the game. 

What they Said

"We did some really good things, we just weren't consistent enough. We are into the Greece [game] week and we will just take it [as it comes]" - England coach Shaun Wane

"The first 30 minutes was tough for us and England put massive pressure on us, but we got back into the game which I think we can be proud of. I am proud of the effort of the boys, we challenged a great England team in a few areas." - France coach Laurent Frayssinous

What's Next 

England finish up group play with a match against Greece in Sheffield, while France take on Scotland in Warrington. 

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