Shaun Wane speaks about picking between Sam Tomkins and Marc Sneyd next week

After their three wins from three in the group stage, outsiders looking in on England’s squad have more questions than answers when it comes to deciding upon what Shaun Wane’s strongest team is.

Shaun Wane himself is “very close” to knowing his strongest side but it sounds like he has some big calls to make including who will join George Williams in the spine when the knockout stage comes around.

Sam Tomkins seems set to return to the side as captain which would likely see Marc Sneyd miss out despite the fact he set the record for most points by an England player in one game with 30 points through 13 goals and a try against Greece.

So, whatever Shaun Wane does, it is set to be a big decision for Shaun Wane and he spoke about it yesterday afternoon noting he is not worried about the conversations he’ll have to have when he makes the decision: “I don’t find those conversations hard and the players understand that because they know I try to be honest with the reasons why whether Sam comes back in.

“We’ll have a good look at Papua New Guinea and I’ll pick a team to win.”

Whatever decision he makes, he expects doesn’t imagine that it will impact the closeness in the squad as he praised the attitude in the squad: “The spirit and togetherness between the players and the staff is through the roof.”