Rugby League World Cup: Shaun Wane says England will improve after beating France

Head coach Shaun Wane is confident his England team can improve on another positive display against France in their second outing of the World Cup.

England followed up a 60-6 win over much-fancied Samoa with Saturday's 42-18 victory over the French in Bolton.

They were in control for long spells, other than just before half-time when they conceded two quickfire tries.

"It's a win in an important Test match but we will, without a shadow of a doubt, improve on that," said Wane.

Host nation England scored seven tries in all, with wingers Ryan Hall and Dominic Young contributing two apiece, to almost certainly secure a quarter-final place as Group A winners.

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Wane rotated his squad against France, with five alterations to the matchday squad of 17 that beat Samoa.

Marc Sneyd started alongside George Williams at half-back, while fellow debutant Andy Ackers got minutes at hooker and John Bateman returned after missing the Samoa game through suspension.

St Helens forward Joe Batchelor and Wigan centre Kai Pearce-Paul are the only two England players yet to feature at the World Cup, but they are expected to play in England's final group match against Greece in Sheffield on 29 October.

Speaking to BBC Sport, Wane continued: "We're a good team, we've got a good (squad of) 24 and we need to keep that competition.

"I don't want to make my team selections easy, I want them to be really hard and I want a conversation to be had. I've got a great group of staff who work so hard to prepare these players.

"When we pick our team against Greece, I want there to be 24 players fighting for a spot."

'I knew they can do better'

England raced into an 18-0 lead against France but led by only six points at the interval.

Player of the match Williams told BBC Sport that Wane had given the team "a bit of a roasting at half-time" and while the England coach played down the severity of his team talk, he conceded that he was unhappy with aspects of their performance just before the break.

"I knew they can do better," added the former Wigan coach. "We have to do better, some of the things weren't good enough and even now I feel the same.

"We did some really good things, just not consistently enough."

Ryan Hall's two tries took his tally at international level to 37, extending his record as England's all-time leading try-scorer

Former England captain and BBC pundit Jamie Peacock was extremely impressed with the display, but warned that a similar spell of complacency against stronger teams later in the tournament would be more harshly punished.

"I think it's very difficult to go all the way through the tournament and play 10 out of 10 every single minute of every game," said Peacock.

"We saw a definite drop-off from England around the 20-minute mark, up until they got in for half-time. Shaun Wane brought out the hairdryer and we saw a change in intensity from the players.

"I think they played exceptionally well for 70 minutes of the game, but Jon Wilkin made a great point in commentary; that 10 minutes, if you drop in intensity and concentration against New Zealand or Australia, you'll find yourself 12 or 18 points down or you won't have the ball for the next 30 minutes.

"That's where England need to be better. You can't go through a World Cup and expect to win without being able to defend three, four or five back-to-back sets. That'd be my point."

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Like Peacock, fellow BBC pundit Robbie Hunter-Paul believes England are in a good place after two convincing wins.

"I saw what you'd see at any World Cup - you saw a coach trying out different combinations, seeing what works, and giving five new players an opportunity to stake their claim," said the former New Zealand international.

"Those combinations and creating that internal competition is an important thing we can't overlook.

"Players are going to get their opportunity, you need to keep that competition going off the field. That keeps everyone sharp and we'll see that unfold over the next few weeks."

England can win World Cup, says Frayssinous

France head coach Laurent Frayssinous could take positives from his side's defeat, which means their final group match against Samoa is likely to be a straight shootout for a quarter-final spot.

Asked if he believes England can win the World Cup, Frayssinous said: "Yes I think so.

"They have a massive pack of forwards, some big guys and their back five could be the best in the competition.

"Tommy Makinson did not even play tonight and they have experience and quality.

"What I am sure is they will challenge Australia and New Zealand, and on their day they will be able to beat them. I definitely think they can win the World Cup."