ENGLAND
1. Sam Tomkins – Another superb game from the Warriors-bound fullback, who tormented the Irish with two line breaks leading to tries, and kicked for a third, to go with his seven tackle breaks. Four errors were a concern. 8.5.
2. Tom Briscoe – A huge game from the Hull winger, scoring a double and setting up another to go with his 137 metres. 8.5.
3. Kallum Watkins – Quieter in attack than his backline colleagues but busy defensively with 18 tackles and 82 metres. 7.5.
4. Leroy Cudjoe – A barnstorming game from the Huddersfield centre. He may not have bagged the meat pies of his outside man but he helped set them up with game highs in running metres (157) and tackle breaks (nine). 9.
5. Ryan Hall – Backed up his strong opening match performance against the Aussies and was devastating early as he completed his hat trick in 21 minutes. 8.5.
6. Rangi Chase – A classy performance from the 2011 Man of Steel, breaking six tackles, laying on a try with a kick and scoring one himself. 8.5.
7. Kevin Sinfield – Busy defensively but quiet in attack, also landing just four from seven with the boot. 6.5.
8. Chris Hill – The busiest forward on the field with 127 metres and 29 tackles in 62 quality minutes, mostly in the absence of his front row partner. 8.5.
9. James Roby – Defended strongly with a team high 30 tackles and no misses. 7.
10. George Burgess – Had just three carries in 18 minutes before leaving the field due a leg knock suffered in the opening minutes. 4.
11. Brett Ferres – Four offloads troubled the Irish, set up a try and scored one himself. 8.
12. Ben Westwood – Up to his usual high work rate with 17 carries and 29 tackles. 7.5.
13. Sean O'Loughlin – Two penalties didn’t help his team’s cause but solid otherwise. 6.5.
14. Gareth Widdop – Only on the field for 27 minutes but still managed to set up a try and land one from one with the boot. 7.
15. Carl Ablett – Didn’t see much ball when England were attacking but did his job defensively with 27 tackles. 6.5.
16. Thomas Burgess – Made 86 running metres in 35 minutes but was let down by two errors. 6.
17. James Graham – Was not heavily involved in his return from an apparent team suspension with 19 tackles and 77 metres. 6.
IRELAND
1. James Mendeika – Well contained on kick returns, and also contributed two errors and two missed tackles. 5.
2. Damien Blanch – A night to forget, with just five runs for 25 metres all game. Also missed a potential chance to score, in the process contributing one of his two errors. 3.5.
3. Stuart Littler – Two errors, four penalties and two missed tackles contributed to his side’s backline woes. 4.
4. Api Pewhairangi – Solid with limited opportunity, running 54 metres and making 14 tackles. 5.5
5. Pat Richards – The bets of the back five, running 86 metres with no blemishes in terms of errors or penalties. 6.5.
6. Ben Currie – Attempted to spark his side, managing two tackle breaks but was well contained. 6.
7. Liam Finn – Took the bulk of in-game kicking duties and could have had a try assist late in the game, but seven missed tackles were a worry. 6.
8. Brett White – Bravely returned from an early head knock but it limited his effectiveness, as he made 48 metres and 23 tackles. 6.5.
9. Rory Kostjasyn – Tackled himself to a standstill with a game high 40 tackles, but one key error led to an England try. 6.5.
10. James Hasson – Tried hard but missed four tackles and earned just 57 metres. 5.
11. Simon Finnigan – Very solid defensively but his side needed more than three carries for nine metres in attack. 5.
12. Dave Allen – Attempted to spark his side with a team high three offloads but otherwise quiet. 6.
13. Tyrone McCarthy – Three errors proved costly. 5.
14. Bob Beswick – Big defensive game from the reserve hooker. 6.
15. Luke Ambler – Did his job from the bench with nine carries and 18 tackles. 6.
16. Danny Bridge – Provided good impact when he came on, notching two tackle breaks, two offloads and 70 metres in just 25 minutes. 7.
17. Anthony Mullally – The towering Castleford prop rounded out a strong series of bench performances for the Wolfhounds, finishing with a team-high 87 metres in just under 40 minutes on-field. 7.
How it happened
2nd minute: A perfect start for England as Ryan Hall crosses out wide after lost ball from both sides. Sinfield’s kick hits the upright. England 4-0.
8th minute: Ireland go on the attack after earning a penalty close to the England line but fail to capitalise on several half chances.
12th minute: Great lead up work from centre Leroy Cudgoe puts Hall over for his second. England 10-0.
16th minute: A cross-field kick from Rangi Chase is fielded by winger Tom Briscoe for his first try. Sinfield misses again, England 14-0.
20th minute: A Sam Tomkins break puts Briscoe away for his second and sets up an easy conversion. England 20-0.
21st minute: England go the length of the field in one set as Hall dives over out wide for a 21-minute hat trick, although Sinfield misses again. England 24-0.
23rd minute: England again go the length to add another try without the Irish getting a touch of the ball in between. This time it’s back rower Ferres, again off some classy lead up work from Tomkins. England 30-0.
29th minute: Ireland squander a rare attacking opportunity, knocking on close to the England line.
40th minute: Ireland hang on til the break with no further damage, absorbing some late pressure from England.
50th minute: A sluggish start to the start from both sides, with Ireland able to repel a few attacking raids from England.
55th minute: Fresh on the field, Gareth Widdop kicks to the corner where Briscoe lays it back for Kallum Watkins to score. England 36-0.
68th minute: A Tomkins line break and grubber puts Rangi Chase over for a try, with Widdop converting. England 42-0.
72nd minute: Irish winger Damien Blanch can’t latch on to a Liam Finn cross field kick and a gilt-edged chance goes begging.
80th minute: England almost add a final try following a Leroy Cudgoe break but the score remains 42-0 at the final siren.
