Tipping Competition2024

England Head Coach Tony Smith was delighted with the Under-17 Academy’s performance in their 38-22 victory over the Australian Institute of Sport at Wakefield’s Belle Vue.
The hosts shrugged off the disappointment of the previous week's two-point defeat at the hands of the same opposition to square the series with a performance of real quality and determination.
"I'm very pleased," said Smith who watched both matches.
"We made improvements as the series went on, and I thought that our boys were very comprehensive out there tonight.
They showed a lot of determination on their own try-line, and that proved to be a big part of their success, and I thought they played some good Rugby League in both games.
"The improvement was certainly in the defensive area tonight, and I thought they played strong.
"A couple of boys got hat-tricks and I was pleased for them, and I thought there were a whole lot of contributions across the whole team.
These guys are improving all the times, and exposure to games like these is great for them.
"The next step for these boys aren't too far off, and the next step for most of these guys is getting some engage Super League experience, and from there, hopefully they will go to the next step.
"They are getting into the habit of beating Australian teams, and that's a good habit to get into!"
The match left England Academy Head Coach Steve Crooks delighted for his players following the frustrations of the defeat at Warrington after the side had outscored the young Aussies by six tries to five.
"Outstanding. I'm just pleased for the players, because over the past six or seven weeks they've got through a tremendous amount of work, and last week I didn't think we got our just deserts.
"Every player who came into the squad has had a tremendous input, and even though there were a few players who had to pull out, but ultimately the players really wanted to play two games against the Australians and earn some respect for it, and at the end of the day, we have done."
"The difference between us last week and this is down to a little bit of experience, really. I used the phrase 'youthful naivety' after last Friday's game and we've done a lot of work on that.
We've been a bit smarter and really, over the last six weeks, the side has grown up a little bit.
"After our defeat last week, our focus was all about this game, and we determined not to shoot ourselves in the foot as we did last week.
That we didn't is a measure of the learning curve we've come through in the last week."
"We did a lot of work on our defence, but also offensively, where we got the ball a bit wider, were a lot more direct, and worked on the edges. It's very pleasing when the guys are good enough and smart enough to come up with ideas out there, and that's why we beat them I think.
"There were some smart young men out there tonight who can go to the next level.
Tony Smith worked with us this week and the reaction of the players was tremendous, and I think that we can go on to see some of them in engage Super League.
"We had to make a couple of changes and the lads we brought in did a great job for us. Jonny Lomax, like Kallum Watkins, is a year younger than everybody else, and between them they did a fantastic job.
"And Chris Clarkson, he had to play out of position, but that's just international, you can get centres playing back row and forwards having to play in the backs - things like that - but you have to pull out all your trumps and that's what they did - credit to them.
I was very proud of the whole squad, including those who didn't play. They epitomised what the academy is all about."
There were hat-tricks of tries for both Richard Myler and Shaun Ainscough as England outscored their opponents by seven tries to four, but this was a victory which needed to be built on the foundations of solid defence, with the Aussies always posing a genuine threat with their quick footwork and strong running.

Words: Rugby Football League
Photos: R L Photos.com - Read More, Here