Rugby League World Cup: Brian Carney warns England ‘have it all to do’ to avoid group-stage exit

Brian Carney says England ‘have it all to do’ to reach Rugby League World Cup semi-finals and avoid historic group-stage exit.

England's 30-12 defeat to Tonga in their opening match raised doubts over their chances of reaching the knockout stages.

Even after sealing an 82-0 victory against France on Saturday, Brian McDermott's side still needs a series of events to go their way to qualify.

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England must beat Papua New Guinea (PNG) in Wollongong on Friday by a large margin. They will then need to wait two days to learn their fate, with Tonga set to play Samoa in Sydney on Sunday.

A Samoa victory would send England out, while a Tonga win could see them progress on points difference.

"The whistle went on the Tonga game, and everybody went: 'well, this format is appalling. England are essentially out. It's one and done in the tournament'," Sky Sports Rugby League's Carney said.

"They went out against France, and they built a huge scoreline to give themselves a hope.

"They're gonna have to do the same again against a PNG side, who I have found disappointing, in the tournament so far. They will need Tonga to beat Samoa, so they're going to need an awful lot to go their way."

This year's tournament features a unique format, with six teams included in Pool B and C. If multiple teams finish tied, final group standings will be determined by a team's head-to-head record.

That means Tonga will finish above England in the standings after their first-round victory.

England trail Samoa by a points difference margin of 68, heading into the final round of fixtures, and will need to cut that deficit with a big win against PNG to leapfrog Samoa.

"What England have to do, and you've heard this a thousand times in different sports, is control the controllables," Carney said.

"They'll have to go out. Pile on the points, and the more points they put over, the less Tonga have to win by."

England Women must change to catch up with Australia

England's Women's side were outclassed by Australia on Saturday, suffering a 78-0 defeat to the defending world champions.

The defeat follows Stuart Barrow's side's 90-4 loss to the Jillaroos in Las Vegas in March 2025, raising further questions about the gap between England and the world's leading teams.

Despite opening the tournament with a commanding 70-6 victory over Wales, England must beat Samoa in a winner-takes-all final group-stage clash on Saturday to secure their place in the knockout stages.

Reflecting on the heavy defeat to Australia, McDermott acknowledged that significant changes are needed across all levels of rugby league in the UK if England are to close the gap on the Jillaroos.

"I'd ask this question, what did one expect?" Carney said, reflecting on the match.

"The English Women's side, it's coming from a competition that is struggling for competitive games, struggling for resources, fighting for resources, against a Jillaroos side who are very well resourced in a very competitive environment with very strong competition, and all the best players in the world are in Australia's competition, the NRLW.

"So, I'm not sure what people expected the game to be. Was it an improvement on the Las Vegas defeat? Marginally on the scoreboard.

"Some will argue that they have seen signs that England have turned the corner. I'm not so sure.

"Unless you sort out the competition over here, and rugby league in this part of the world, and everybody is adequately funded, you're not going to close the gap."

(c) Sky Sports 2026: Rugby League World Cup: Brian Carney warns England ‘have it all to do’ to avoid group-stage exit