England boss Shaun Wane to use Tonga series as marker of progress

Wane's men made a promising start to last year's World Cup before fluffing their lines in a golden-point defeat to Samoa in the semi-finals.

England shrugged off their hangover to hammer France 64-0 in April but face an altogether different challenge against a Tongan team boasting the likes of Addin Fonua-Blake and Daniel Tupou.

"We fell short at the World Cup and need to improve," said Wane, whose 24-man squad is a blend of youth and experience.

"Samoa was a massive test for us last year and we fell short but we learned a lot of lessons and have made progress.

"I’m very happy with the squad that I’ve got and I’m really excited to see how the young players perform in such a pressured environment. I'm going to find out a lot about my players in the next few weeks.

"There are a few England standards that we want to be about, personal things we've discussed as players and staff. If I see them then we've got a chance of getting success in the game. They're not major technical things but effort and things like that.

"I want to see a passionate team that is proud to represent England."

Wane’s options were restricted by a raft of injury-enforced withdrawals, including St Helens pair Jonny Lomax and Alex Walmsley and Wigan Warriors centre Jake Wardle, fresh from winning the Harry Sunderland Trophy for man of the match in last Saturday's Super League Grand Final.

Leeds Rhinos centre Harry Newman and Hull KR half-back Mikey Lewis are among the beneficiaries as they prepare to take their first steps in international rugby.

Wane believes his back-up options highlight the growing talent pool – but he will never be satisfied.

"That's the way I view it," he said.

"I'd never be happy with what we've got and think we can always improve and get players playing various positions.

"It shows that the Super League quality is getting better. It has to carry on improving because we need the talent pool. The NRL is another level and that’s what we need to aim for."

Tonga came of age as a rugby league nation in 2017 when they reached the World Cup semi-finals and backed that achievement up by beating Great Britain and Australia on consecutive weekends two years later.

Kristian Woolf's side were edged out by Samoa in last year's quarter-finals but there is no chance of Wane underestimating the Pacific Islanders.

"They've very, very talented and play in an unbelievably good competition (the NRL) that I watch a lot," said Wane ahead of the first meeting between the nations since the thrilling 2017 semi-final.

"They're great athletes and it's going to be a massive challenge for us. I admire a lot of their players.

"That's going to make it more exciting for some of my young players as well."

Along with Samoa, Tonga are now regarded as a genuine threat to the established big three of Australia, New Zealand and England.

Woolf views a historic first-ever Test series against England as the next step for the Tongans.

"It's very exciting," said the former St Helens boss.

"We're the first tier two nation to get this sort of invite. To come over and play a three-game series against a tier one nation in England is a big deal for us.

"For a long time now we've been drumming on about wanting more opportunities and meaningful games, big games.

"We've got everything we want and are really looking forward to it."

Woolf enjoyed great success during his three-year spell in charge of Saints, leading the club to a hat-trick of Super League titles as well as Challenge Cup glory in 2021.

The 48-year-old, who is now on the coaching staff of NRL newcomers the Dolphins, is relishing the prospect of returning to the Totally Wicked Stadium this weekend but appreciates the size of the task facing his team.

"It's a great place to come back to," said Woolf.

"Just the feeling when we got off the plane at Manchester and driving past St Helens into Liverpool, it is like coming home. I loved my time over here. I loved the town, the club and the players I got to deal with.

"It's going to be great to come up against some of those players. I hold them in extremely high regard and know how good they are and how strong the competition is over here. It makes it that little bit more exciting.

"We've got a great side, a very talented side and I'm very confident what we're going to come up with. I also know it's going to be a real challenge when I look at that England squad."