England are on the brink of a Rugby League World Cup pool stage exit despite a 34-12 victory over Papua New Guinea in Wollongong. Brian McDermott's side's qualification hopes have been out of their own hands since a heavy 30-12 defeat to Tonga in their tournament opener, and required a big win against PNG even after a 82-0 demolition of France. England needed victory by 70 or more to overtake Samoa on points difference in the standings, which looked a possibility after they scored four tries in the first 21 minutes, only for sloppy errors and an impressive PNG display to halt early momentum.
PNG limited opponents to a penalty goal over the rest of the first half and then scored two converted tries to spark a second-half comeback, with a frustrated England going 48 minutes without a try until Morgan Knowles' score. Mikey Lewis added another with the final play of the game, but England's 22-point winning margin is likely to be nowhere near enough to avoid a first group-stage exit in their World Cup history. The only way for England to avoid a pool stage exit and snatch second spot would be for Tonga to beat Samoa by 46 points or more on Sunday, the final day of group fixtures.
The team finishing runner-up in the combined Group B+C will go onto face Australia in Sydney on November 8, a day from on from the other semi-final in Newcastle, before the final is held in Brisbane on November 15.
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