Coach Wayne Bennett was far from impressed with England's 29-10 victory over Lebanon on Saturday night after a sloppy second half performance at the Sydney Football Stadium.
England raced out to a 22-6 lead at halftime but could only manage seven points in the second, with execution an issue for Bennett's side after a remarkable five forward passes were called throughout the encounter.
Gareth Widdop had a mixed evening at five-eighth before shifting to fullback late in the clash with Bennett opting to test out George Williams in the halves leading into the side's clash with France in Perth next week.
"I thought we lost our way in the second half with the football in particular," Bennett said after the win.
"These games are difficult because you're expected to win and nobody knows by how much. For us, a part of our journey is to be consistent and it's not good enough.
"We're not a good enough team where we can turn it off and turn it back on.
"We've got to keep it on all the time and did until half-time and then lost our way."
England skipper Sean O'Loughlin dismissed talk the side went into the second half with a complacent mentality after racing out to a 16-point advantage at the break.
"We came in pleased at halftime but like Wayne said we lost our way and we're disappointed," he said.
"I don't think it was complacency, the boys were trying. We just weren't nailing the passes or making the right decisions."
Both Bennett and O'Loughlin praised the efforts of Lebanon following the game, who will face heavyweights Australia next week in Sydney after a spirited effort in defeat.
"I thought they played with a lot of energy and tried really hard, they had good structure and their ball control was good," Bennett said.
"Without a lot of star players in their team it was a credit to them."
Meanwhile, Bennett was tight-lipped over Robbie Farah's biting allegations that marred the second half, with England winger Jermaine McGillvary placed on report in the 43rd minute.
"It's hard for me to make a comment," Bennett said.
"From where I'm sitting I can't tell if he bit him or not."
McGillvary was unavailable for comment post-game with the match review committee set to decide if the winger is charged in the coming days.
