4Nations: England v France

[DIEHARD]

England v France

Gillette Four Nations - Fri 23rd Oct KO: 20:00, Keepmoat Stadium

[DIEHARD]

I'm looking forward to seeing Tomkins and McGuire, hopefully partnered in the halves together.

[GCT_89]

is this game televised on nine or fox?
sat morning i assume....

[DIEHARD]

Adam, 4:30am Fox Sports 2, according to the Foxtel Program Guide.

Anyone else getting up early to watch?

I'll be getting an early night, so I can soak it up.

[DIEHARD]

Really enjoyed seeing France go so well in the first half. England were woeful, but they clicked better in the 2nd half. France need to be more patient and control the ball. Also be more disciplined. That coat hanger and elbow to England wasn't neccessary and they'll probably pay further for it, something thier depth cant cope with...

Fitness helped kill France, but hopefully this match will help them with fitness and confidence. They belong in the 4 Nations.

They need to be careful about constantly coming out of the line to make a tackle against Australia or New Zealand.

England need to do alot better, or are doomed to continue their World Cup form. Give Tomkins a go! I hope they can mount a better campaign in front of a national audience on the BBC.

Australia will smash 'em though.

Well done France, can't wait to see the next game, New Zealand will be hard to beat with their monster pack.

[DIEHARD]

England recovered from halftime deficit to beat France 34-12

England recovered from a 12-4 halftime deficit to defeat France 34-12 in the opening match of the Four Nations tournament.

Teenage scrum-half Richie Myler scored two tries as Tony Smith's side ran in 30 unanswered second-half points with Kevin Sinfield, Ryan Hall, Tom Briscoe and Lee Smith also crossing.

Sinfield added five goals, but England have plenty of work to do if they are to deny either Australia or world champions New Zealand claiming the title in the four-team event.

Tries from Vincent Duport and Kane Bentley put France 12-4 up by half-time as they sensed a first win over England for more than 27 years.

But England rallied just in time in front of an 11,529 crowd at Doncaster's Keepmoat Stadium - the highest for an Anglo-French international since 1952.

Smith said he was not concerned about France's lightning start.

"We were just a bit excited, even before the game," Smith said.

"We were a bit anxious and put a bit of pressure on one another.

"We just had to settle down and build some pressure on the French. We knew if we did that they would struggle."

Smith admitted that next week's clash with Australia would representa different proposition altogether.

"This is a new team, and it takes a little bit of time to get the combinations - and that showed tonight. We go up about three rungs in class next week."

Source: http://www.foxsports.com.au

[Capital_Shark]

France's inability to maintain intensity for the whole match was obviously their major downfall and it was only compacted by such a weak bench containing no top flight players from the Super League.

I thought France's hooker had an awesome first 40 and really controlled the match from dummy half. Thomas Bosc was good for them also. They need to work towards creating space for that little winger - fast, strong, nuggety little bloke who is also very evasive, reminded me a little of Matt Utai.

Each side played 40 minutes of footy. France's 40 was 12-4, and England's 40 was 30-0. In the end the Poms did it easy but it would of been interesting to see the outcome had France been a little more disciplined.

You're spot on about France coming up and out of the line and failing to put the shot on, DIEHARD. With the footwork and angle running available to Australia and NZ it will be a massacre if they bring that crap.

Finally on that elbow from the French #8 on Sinfield if that isn't at least a sin bin then something is wrong. That was dirty and deliberate and has no place in our sport anymore at any level let alone International.

[~lee~]

I dont think there was anything in this game to scare the aussie or kiwis, as much as im looking forward to playing the aussies and kiwis i fear an embarrassing scoreline.
At this moment in time we are not good enough to compete for the title even with home advantage. It was good to see France put on a bit of a display in the first 40 - they needed that after their own previous disasterous international displays.