Denis Betts says England can use Four Nations failure to drive them to World Cup success
Thursday 26 October 2017 08:23, UK
England will use their 2016 Four Nations failure to drive themselves to World Cup success, according to assistant coach Denis Betts.
Wayne Bennett's tenure as head coach got off to a disappointing start when England failed to reach the final of last year's tournament, despite having home advantage.
But Betts says England's plan was to peak for the World Cup, and that they can use their Four Nations flop as a positive.
Betts said: "We wanted to win the Four Nations last year, but that experience is the strength of this group now.
"The World Cup has always been the goal, it's why the coach is here, to get England into a World Cup final with a possibility of being the team that wins it.
"What this group have done together has brought us to this place."
Betts was the last man to lead England into a World Cup final, which they lost to Australia at Wembley.
He said: "My worst day and my best day were both on the same day. I was captain of England in a World Cup final, walking out at Wembley with my family in the stand.
"I felt we were good enough to win that tournament, but I was disappointed in the team's overall performance. It was a chance that went missing. We just didn't perform on the day and that lives with me.
"Nobody thought we wouldn't be in a World Cup final from that day to this. Twenty-two years is a long, long time to be out of that situation. We might only get one chance and this might be it."
Betts was full of praise for Alex Walmsley, the St Helens prop who will make his debut off the bench on Friday. Walmsley was absent from training earlier this week, but was able to take part in the captain's run.
Betts said: "He's mentally tough. I don't think it will matter where he was 24 or 48 hours earlier or what he was dying of.
"He knows what responsibility he has and he's got some energy about him. He's excited and it's nice to see a fellow that big who wants to carry the ball as hard as he does involved in the group."
