England bid to get jump on Kangaroos in World Cup opener
England will aim to use their 2016 Four Nations Series failure to drive them to success in the Rugby League World Cup, according to assistant coach Denis Betts.
Wayne Bennett experienced a disappointing start to his tenure as head coach when Eng- land failed to even reach the final 12 months ago, despite having home advantage, but Betts says the plan all along was to peak for the World Cup.
“What this group have done together has brought us to this place,” said Betts after England’s final team run at Melbourne’s AAMI Park ahead of today’s opening game against Australia.
“The World Cup has always been the goal, it’s why the coach is here, to get England into a World Cup final with a possibility of being the team that wins it. We wanted to win the Four Nations last year, but that experience is the strength of this group now.”
Betts says the aim is to beat the Kangaroos twice in a tournament for the first time since the last Ashes triumph of 1970.
“Nothing’s won or lost tomorrow,” he said. “We will get better as we go through the tournament. We haven’t beaten Australia twice in a tournament, whether it be an Ashes Series or a World Cup, for a long time and that’s got to be the benchmark.”
Betts was in the Great Britain team that gained a landmark win in Melbourne in 1992andhewasthelastmanto lead England into a World Cup final, some 22 years ago when they lost to the Kangaroos.
“My worst day and my best day were both on the same day,” he recalled. “I was captain of England in a World Cup final, walking out at Wembley with my family in the stand. I felt we were good enough to win that tournament, but I was disappointed in the team’s overall performance. We just didn’t perform on the day and that lives with me.”
Scotland’s opening match in the tournament is on Sunday against Tonga in Cairns.