England 94-4 Greece: Shaun Wane’s men set new Rugby League World Cup record as they score SEVENTEEN tries in dazzling display in Sheffield
- England scored 17 tries to thrash Greece in Sheffield and win Group A
- Dom Young scored four first half tries, bringing his tournament tally to eight
- Tom Burgess, Andy Ackers and Ryan Hall all grabbed braces for England
- England topped Group A with three wins in three games
- Shaun Wane’s men will play in the quarter-finals in Wigan on Saturday
This World Cup is fast becoming the Dom Young show.
England’s 6ft 7in winger had already registered four tries from his first two games of the tournament. But here in this demolition of Greece, he scored four in the first half – equalling the England record for most in a match.
Before this tournament, few fans had even heard of Young, who plies his trade for Newcastle Knights in Australia’s NRL and had yet to make his international debut.
Dom Young scored four first half tries as England thrashed Greece 94-4 in Sheffield
Yet the 21-year-old could become a household name if he carries on in this manner and helps England win the World Cup. The form Young and his side are showing, they have every chance.
The hosts came into this Group A clash at Bramall Lane having already qualified for the quarter-finals after smashing Samoa and France.
Yet they still showed no mercy against the part-timers from Greece – where rugby league was illegal until earlier this year – and registered a record World Cup win.
This 17-try thrashing sealed their spot at the top of the group and they will now likely play Papua New Guinea at Wigan next week, before a probable semi-final with Tonga and Samoa and a possible final against Australia or New Zealand.
Marc Sneyd scored a try and converted 13 of England’s 17th scores on Saturday
Tommy Makinson (middle) scored England’s first try in the second half after a series of defensive mistakes from Greece
Tom Burgess (left) grabbed a double as England racked up a cricket score against Greece
England were as short as 1,000-1 on to beat the Greek part-timers and they scored their first try inside three minutes when Matty Lees went over before Young got his first 10 minutes later.
The biggest surprise of the day came when 18-year-old Siteni Taukamo grabbed a try for Greece, sparking wild celebrations from their few fans in the sparse Bramall Lane crowd.
They were right to enjoy the moment because England then ran riot.
Young touched down again in the right corner before fellow winger Ryan Hall tore down the left to score his first try.
Siteni Taukamo wrote his name in Greek’s rugby league folklore as he scored his team’s only try of the afternoon early in the first half
Tom Burgess barged over, then Young completed his hat-trick and registered his fourth in the space of two minutes, both assisted by Kai Pearce-Paul.
George Williams, standing in as captain in place of the rested Sam Tomkins, scored England’s eighth try of the first half to give them a 44-4 lead at the break.
The onslaught continued just two minutes after the restart when Tommy Makinson touched down.
Young has now scored eight tries in three games at the Rugby League World Cup
England scored 17 tries but fell just short of scoring 100 points in a Rugby League World Cup game for the first time in their history
Marc Sneyd – who registered 28 points altogether – then scored before setting up Burgess and Hall to bag their second tries each.
Joe Batchelor and Kai Pearce-Paul both went over on their Test debuts and Andy Ackers grabbed two.
Mike McMeeken then completed England’s demolition job with his side’s 17th and final try.
Relive all the action from the Rugby League World Cup clash between England and Greece with Sportsmail’s live blog.