England can whitewash Australia says Brian Nobel - Gillette Four Nations 2011: Rugby
Brian Nobel, the BBC rugby league pundit and ex-Great Britain coach, stated in a written piece which was published on BBC’s website on Thursday, November 17, that England has the potential to annihilate Kangaroos during the Gillette Four Nations 2011 Final.
The title-decider of the series will feature Red Roses and Kangaroos at Elland Road, Leeds, this Saturday, November 19.
Nobel added that an English win against the series’ favourites, Australia, is achievable if and only if the squad sticks to the basic principles that made their sudden death victory over New Zealand possible.
Previously, the Red Roses managed to whitewash the Kiwis by keeping themselves as far away from errors and penalties. This was what Nobel was referring to when he pointed at the key to break down the Australian wall of defence. In that match, England reaffirmed
their strength over the opposition by establishing an early lead during the initial half of the game, which wrapped up at 8-0 by half-time. During the first-half of the game, the Kiwis failed to offer any resistance at all. Their attacking side was also sloppy,
as they did not make successful contributions to the score card.
The BBC author acknowledged that England is currently exhibiting extremely good form with all possible loop holes addressed well before the big game. He said that the English side made sure that that they had checked all the necessary points, ranging from
keeping the ball in their possession, running down the length of the field and booting the ball to score goals.
Noble stated, “I am sure Wales coach Iestyn Harris has tipped off England counterpart Steve McNamara about a couple of ideas they had on quickly moving the ball away from where the action is, because that takes a little bit of the sting out of the Australia
defensive line.”
He also shared that England has shown persistent improvement down the length of the tournament, which is a major plus for the side.
Noble also branded Sam Tomkins as the strike weapon of the English side, who should be given more on-field opportunities. He also added that if Rangi Chase and Kevin Sinfield manage to place themselves at the right on-field positions, the squad’s chances
of winning the title-decider of Four Nations improve dramatically.
Gareth Ellis, who will be returning from his back injury before the start of the final, will also be a boost for the squad. Wests Tigers' best player in the National Rugby League (NRL) in Australia for over two years is a formidable force that will add to
the attack of the English side.
Gareth Carvell filled in as his replacement in the last game and his performance for the English side proved to be the right choice. However, he is not expected to return to field because Steve McNamara wants to bolster his side to its maximum potential
with Ellis’ comeback to the final showdown.
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