Scotland's shock draw against the Kiwis to see out their Four Nations campaign has offered England plenty of confidence according to centre Kallum Watkins.
Watkins said the Bravehearts' spirit was a great example of what's required for England to be successful in the Four Nations tournament ahead of their do-or-die Test against Australia on Monday morning (AEDT).
If nothing else, it highlighted that anything is possible in international rugby league.
New Zealand's disappointing showing makes the equation simple for England, with either a win or draw against Australia required to ensure their place in the Four Nations final at Anfield on November 20.
"[Our spirit] is something we have to keep bringing to our squad. It's been important for how we have prepared these couple of weeks. How we have been as a group, it's been like a family-oriented environment," Watkins said.
"We've stuck together this whole time and that's something we've maintained for many years."
Watkins said the strong bond among England's squad was on show while watching Scotland and New Zealand play.
While admittedly time spent playing cards or the PlayStation and watching England's FIFA World Cup qualifier offered temporary distractions, Watkins said his team were buoyed by the Bravehearts' efforts.
"They did fantastically well to get the result and it showed they're a good team and they have some great players," Watkins said.
"They haven't had much time together so in terms of their spirit it proved that anything can happen which showed in their performance."
A showdown with veteran Australia international Greg Inglis beckons for Watkins but the 25-year-old remained unperturbed.
With almost 200 games at the Leeds Rhinos and 14 caps for England to his name Watkins is no spring chicken.
"Greg's been there for a long time and consistently performed well at international level. I've come up against him twice before and I know what he's all about," Watkins said.
"It's a huge challenge for me because these opportunities don't come around too often."
While England's last start was a win over Scotland, coach Wayne Bennett was disillusioned by the Wall of White's performance in Coventry.
With plenty of hard truths coming England's way throughout the week Watkins was confident England could get the job done.
"All our focus is on ourselves to perform the best we can to beat Australia," he said.
"We know what we're up against but we have plenty of belief."
