Ben Currie believes England have showed they can beat the Aussies
An 18-4 loss in the opening game has done little to dampen hopes of Wayne Bennett's squad
BEN CURRIE believes England have removed the fear factor that surrounds the Aussies – and they know they can beat them if they meet again, maybe in the final.
The Warrington second-rower may have tested defeat on his Test debut but the scoreline flatters the Kangaroos.
England boss Wayne Bennett insisted the display was a vast improvement on last year’s Four Nations, when they were thumped 36-18.
Yes, England soaked up a lot of pressure and yes, once again they were the architects of their own downfall with all three Aussie tries coming off the back of mistakes.
And yes, Sam Burgess’ medial knee ligament injury that forced him off and could see him out for up to four weeks is a concern.
But Currie is adamant that if they manage to get all the way through to the final and face Mal Meninga’s side again, they will have belief they can win rather than hope.
He said: “We know we can beat them now.
“I don’t think they won it, it was more a case of us losing it in a way.
“We made some silly errors that we’re not used to making, especially in the first half and they took advantage. That’s all they do, they stick in the game, they don’t make errors, they just keep grinding away.
“We just need to match them for that and I think we can and come out on top.
“You can maybe get a bit panicky about the fact you’re not scoring points and end up trying to force that final pass or that little offload when it’s not the right time to do it and it ends up getting you.
“But we know we can defend against them now. In the second half they got the penalty for two points then we were chasing the game, so we had to try something and they ran the length of the field.
“However, we know we can defend against them and we know we can score against them, we’ve just got to keep hold of the ball a bit better. 100 per cent I’m more confident we can beat them despite a defeat.
“We’ve lost a game but if you ask anyone, they’re not too downhearted. We know we can play a lot better and the tournament isn’t won yet, is
it? We’ve got to beat Lebanon and France now and finish second, maybe first, and move on and hopefully meet the Aussies again in the final.
“But that’s why the Aussies are the number one team at the moment – they just keep going and don’t get bored of what they’re doing and it grinds a team down. We’ve just got to match them doing that.”
Currie, who has overcome a serious knee injury to make the squad, found out he was playing at about 11.30am on Friday as Alex Walmsley had not recovered from a virus.
The 23-year-old was as frustrated as anyone else when Matt Gillett cancelled out Jermaine McGillvary’s opener after an error in possession downfield.
Billy Slater touched down after kipper sean O’Loughlin conceded a penalty and Josh Dugan rounded it off by going 80 metres as England chased the game.
But in the second half with the scores 10-4, England pounded on the door and looked capable of winning – something they did not look last year.
And Currie revealed how the message in the dressing room was very different from previous years.
He added: “James Graham spoke in the changing rooms, over the years that first half has ended up being 50-odd points and England have got hammered.
“They might have broken through us a few times but to show the character we did to turn up for each other, to still make those cover tackles, was great. There are still a few things we need to iron out in attack but we can beat these.”
Former England and Great Britain star Adrian Morley was an interested spectator among a poor opening game crowd of 22,724, which should raise questions among organisers.
And he believes there is reason to be cheerful.
He said: “It was the same old story in the fact that they didn't get the win, but there were some positive signs. It was a good effort.
“The first half was poor but there was a lot of improvement in the second so if they can cut out the unforced errors and give themselves equal amount of possession and play the game in the Australian half there is no reason why they can't compete against the big boys.
“The big concern is the injury to Sam. Without a doubt they need him playing to have a better chance. It will be a huge blow, they have not got many world class superstar players and Sam is definitely one.”
