LAM TIPS ENGLAND FOR FINAL PLACE

[josie andrews]

Former Wigan scrum-half Adrian Lam is aiming to scupper England's World Cup ambitions but concedes they play the best brand of football and have a good chance of reaching the final.

Lam's Papua New Guinea team are England's opponents in Saturday's opening match of the tournament at the Dairy Farmers' Stadium in Townsville.

The Kumuls coach admits his side drew the short straw after being placed in the same pool as England, Australia and New Zealand, with three of the teams to go into the semi-finals.

"It's a tough group," he said.

"I think England are in with a chance of progressing through to the final.

"I spent a bit of time in England and enjoyed the competition. I think it's more enjoyable than the NRL. They have a different style which is entertaining to watch."

PNG will have the advantage of the conditions in this sub-tropical part of Australia and the backing of a partisan crowd in Townsville, which is twinned with Port Moresby.

But Lam, who was in the side that outscored Great Britain in tries but lost 32-30 to them in Lae in 1996, admits a difficult task awaits his players, many of whom have been deliberately keeping a low profile since they flew in from Port Moresby.

"The majority of the players haven't been to Australia and some don't speak English," he said.

"We've just tried to prepare ourselves the best we can. The players are obviously from all around the world so it's been pretty tough to get them together in the first place.

"But they have been exceptional and I'm really proud of the efforts they have put in."

In addition to captain John Wilshere, of Salford, and Hull KR duo Stanley Gene and Makali Aizue, the PNG side includes second rower Trevor Exton, 26, who is poised to complete a move from Queensland Cup side Ipswich Jets to Sheffield Eagles for 2009.

But Lam's initial squad also included 10 players from PNG's domestic competition, a sure sign of the growing strength of rugby league in the islands, where it is already established as the national sport.

The PNG government have launched a bid to enter a team in Australia's National Rugby League and Lam is excited by the prospects for the game in his native country.

"We've improved out of sight over the last four or five years," he said.

"We don't play enough games to see where we're at but it's something we're working on.

"We've got the biggest growing schoolboy rugby league in the world, which is something we've got to build on.

"The PNGRL are pushing for an NRL team and I know they have got a major financial backer. The government are talking about having an international stadium and playing some matches out of Cairns.

"The overall package looks good but the government has got to get behind the team a bit more before they start pushing that."


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