For half an hour it appeared as if England were incapable of actually beating Scotland, let alone running up the points required to give themselves a fighting chance of making the Four Nations final. Time will tell whether the 26-point margin of victory is enough but, if nothing else, this was at least a victory for Wayne Bennett’s side that keeps their hopes of progression alive.
Scotland were comfortably beaten 54-12 in Hull by Australia last week, but for most of the opening 40 minutes in Coventry, England looked anything like the side tipped by many to reach the final at Anfield.
Crucially though, they eventually found their rhythm – and, in the process, Bennett will have learned a few lessons as he looks to finalise his team for their must-win game against Australia in London. George Williams excelled at half-back and now looks the favourite to partner Gareth Widdop while Mark Percival and Liam Farrell also look to have done enough to be given a chance against the Kangaroos.
Bennett was unimpressed, telling the BBC: “We were bad, we weren’t good first 20. We got closer to what I expect in the second half. I want them to play to their ability and they were a way off that. They have got a bit of thinking to do, they need to have a look at themselves.”
Scotland were 22-0 down to Australia after 15 minutes in their opening fixture but they were much more composed here and the better side by some distance.
England briefly threatened in the opening minutes but, as the influence of the Scotland captain, Danny Brough, grew on the game, the Bravehearts quickly got on top, taking a deserved lead when a wonderful pass from Brough created the space for Kane Linnett to dive over.
That should have been the catalyst for England to wake up; instead, they fell further behind. It was again their right side the Scots targeted, this time gaining success when the Warrington wing Matty Russell produced an incredible piece of individual play to touch down in the corner and double Scotland’s lead as the prospect of a major upset began to grow.
Even though Brough – the Dewsbury-born half-back who was constantly overlooked for the England side during Steve McNamara’s tenure – could not convert, his reaction to Russell’s try said it all: Scotland were not just in front, they were in control.
As half-time approached, England eventually managed to spring into life when Luke Gale’s delicate pass close to the line sent Elliott Whitehead charging over, with the scrum-half’s conversion narrowing the gap to two.
The balance of play begin to shift in England’s favour and the Gale-Whitehead partnership bore further fruit when the Castleford half-back teed up Whitehead for his and England’s second.
Whether England deserved the four-point lead opened up by Gale’s second conversion mattered little but having somehow forged an advantage at half-time their attention now had to turn to not just holding on but running up a comfortable margin of victory.
England’s fluidity drastically improved after half-time and Percival and Ryan Hall crossed for straightforward tries.
Brough was sent to the sin-bin just before the hour mark and that enabled England to run in tries through Jermaine McGillvary, Gale and Farrell which, come the conclusion of the group stage, could prove crucial if points difference comes into play.
Steve McCormack, the Scotland coach, told the BBC: “I am really proud we tested them. In the second half the sin bin didn’t help but I am really proud.”
