Rugby league greats Aaron Woods and James Graham have clashed in a heated on-air debate over England’s performance against Tonga in their World Cup opener.
England crashed to a disastrous 30-12 loss, which leaves their chances of qualifying for the semi-final stage hanging by a thread.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: England’s effort against Tonga divides opinion
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Should they fail to qualify for the next round it will be the first time in history they haven’t reached the final four.
They were never really in the match against Tonga despite their opponents having a makeshift forward pack.
Woods labelled England’s attack “poor” in a brutal takedown.
“I thought that was a really big missed opportunity … Salesti Foketi, he’s not a No.9, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him play nine, ever,” Woods said on The Agenda Setters: Rugby League.
“They lose Latu Fainu, they’ve got to bring (Tuimoala) Lolohea on, and I just thought their goal line attack was poor for their standards.
“Like, their competition over there, they score a lot of points in the Super League. I just didn’t think they had enough creativity.”
But legendary England prop Graham disagreed, saying he thought they played really well.
“It came down to some one-on-one stops with two of the game’s best finishers, not over there in the Super League, here in the NRL,” Graham said.
“Farnworth, in some of the situations that he found himself in, he scores 99 times out of 100. Likewise, with Dominic Young.
“Maybe they weren’t prepared for the try-saving defence of Lehi Hopoate. I actually, honestly, I thought England played really well.”
Woods then hit back as the pair went toe-to-toe.
AW: “It’s an international. Blokes are going to be doing absolutely everything they can.”
JG: “They did everything they could. Did you watch the game, Woodsy?”
AW: “Yeah, I did watch the game.”
JG: “They actually played really well. It’s more nuanced than that. It’s surely more nuanced than saying that they played poorly. I watched the game and every player that represented England, they put in effort, they cared.”
AW: “I’m not saying they didn’t put in effort. I just thought the lack of execution was poor. Trying to score on every play … play to your strengths. Go out there and do what the other sides have done. Show up for your teammate. You leaked 30 points to a Tongan squad. The ball to Haumole Olakau’atu was a soft try, but the ball bounced up and there was no one there to cover and take it.”
JG: “What are you saying about Tonga? I think that’s a bit disrespectful to them.”
AW: “They went into the game as clear favourites.“
JG: “No, they weren’t clear favourites.”
AW: “They were definitely not clear favourites.”
JG: “Go back and look at the odds.”
AW: “You can protect them as much as you want, but obviously the standard that England are playing. I think they are well below the top-four sides.”
JG: “If you go back and look at the odds, the evidence will show otherwise. And look, for me, as a former England player, I look for attitude and I look as if they care. Were they perfect? Absolutely not. They were beaten by a strong team.”
Graham went on to say that England need to shift their attitude and chase big points in Saturday night’s clash against France.
“I’d like to see a bit more attacking ethos, even though they displayed that with their second phase football. They beat them in the line breaks, they beat them in offloads … they came against a very good Tonga team and were always going to be up against it,” he added.
For the record, England were priced at $2.35 for the match with Tonga slight favourites at $1.60.
