Tony Smith, the England coach, has kept faith in his young players by naming an unchanged team for the Four Nations final against Australia on Saturday.
England will stick with the side that beat New Zealand 20-12 at the weekend, with Sam Tomkins and Kyle Eastmond retaining their places as the half-back pairing. Winger Peter Fox will hope to add to the two tries he scored against the Kiwis in Huddersfield.
“We analysed everybody’s performances and decided to stick with the players from last week and give them a chance to build on some continuity”, Smith said. “We got a lot of confidence out of last week.”
Tim Sheen, the Australia coach, is set to hand a first start to second rower Luke Lewis in place of Anthony Watmough for the match at Elland Road. Centre Michael Jennings is amongst those being considered after his impressive hat-trick on debut against France.
“Jennings is still in the mix - he’s a match-winner,” Sheen said. “I’m just playing that one close to my chest. I’ve told him to keep his shorts ready, that he’s not just part of a squad.
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“My main worry is will it be wet or will it be dry. If it’s wet and England go with the four big blokes we may have to go with some size.”