England has shown that they are a force to be reckoned with in this World Cup, trouncing Greece by 94-4 at Bramall Lane in Sheffield.
It was billed as a battle of David and Goliath before kick-off and as was mentioned several times in the broadcast. It was a game that showcased how far Greek rugby league had come to be on the world stage.
Any slight opportunity would be taken for granted by the English side and it didn't take long for the three lions to show their dominance. An error coming out of yardage from Nick Flocas gave England their first attacking opportunity, from there they took advantage of an injured Greek player and it was Marc Sneyd who found Matty Lees to cross for the first try of the contest. Greece had some ball down England's end, but the English defence held their own.
Despite a brief resistance from the Greek defence, their errors in their own end were their ultimate undoing. Off the scrum, it was a clever offload from Jack Welsby who found John Bateman who delivered a suspect final pass to Dom Young who crossed for his fifth try of the tournament to give the three lions an early 10-0 cushion. However, it was the Greeks that delivered the moment of the match when their possession finally delivered into their sole try of the first 40. It was a clever pass selection from Jordan Meads who drew Kai Pearce-Paul at blanks and Siteni Taukamo crashed over to score.
However, the last fifteen minutes of the match were a horror movie for Greece and England ran absolutely riot. George Williams turned provider when a lovely cut-out pass allowed Young to score in the corner. Off the ensuing set, Ryan Hall finished off a great set-play when Sneyd's kick was well-weighted to allow the winger to cross.
Despite some great Greek defence, the class of England shone through crossing four times in the last eight minutes. Tom Burgess crashed over off a lovely inside ball from Williams, then Dom Young crossed twice in as many minutes to complete a first half quintuple. Right on the break, Williams backed up forward Chris Hill to allow England to lead by 40 points at the change of ends.
England were first to score in the second half after a bizarre passage of play. Sneyd kicked early, but the ball missed everybody, the Greek players unfortunately missed the ball and Tom Makinson was jolly on the spot as the three lions were passed the half century. Eight minutes later, Bateman burst straight through to find Sneyd and England were over for their tenth try. Despite their great efforts in defence, Greece were unable to stop England for long, Burgess crossed for his second from relative point blank range.
Off a Greek error coming out of yardage, it was a great pass from Sneyd to find Hall to cross for his second try. Despite showing early rust, England were at their ruthless best. Sneyd showed coach Shaun Wane why he should be considered for the top squad when he found debutant Joe Batchelor to cross. Four minutes later, Andy Ackers caught Greece asleep and raced away to give England a 78-4 lead with just under 12 to play.
Debutant Kai Pearce-Paul joined the scorers when he barged over from close range. Another great team try saw Ackers cross for his second try and the margin was out to 84 points. The pain continued when Young found Mike McMeeken and the margin got out to 90 points. The video referee found an English player offside and denied the three lions a chance at the century.