KAI PEARCE-PAUL hopes to return Down Under and find a message sinking in – England are to be taken seriously.
Defeat Samoa tomorrow and that would be 5-0 in Tests against them and fellow Pacific powerhouses Tonga.
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Yet still in Australia, some people write the national side off and doubt players are good enough to play there, even though many do.
And back-rower Pearce-Paul – who plays at NRL side Newcastle Knights – believes it would be time to give some credit where it is due.
He said: “I wouldn’t say people talk England down because there are English superstars about – the likes of Dom Young, John Bateman and Herbie Farnworth.
“People are aware there’s good talent in England but maybe as a whole it can be overlooked sometimes. I don’t think it’s given enough credit.
“The country and our game deserves to be heard a bit more and hopefully if we can get another win we can send a message out to everyone else.
“We never take a step back, what comes first is winning. Whether it’s by one point, 10 or 30, as a nation we just want to win.
“And I think it’ll send a message out to the rest of the world and the NRL that England are competitive and we’re up there with the top teams.
“We’ve one game to go and we want another win. That’ll send a message to the world – you can’t take England for a joke as the proof will be on the paper.”
Pearce-Paul spent time back in his native Bromley before linking up with England and reuniting with best mate Junior Nsemba.
The pair have been inseparable since camp started after becoming firm friends during their time at Wigan, which the 23-year-old calls his second home.
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And he revealed the huge Warriors back-rower was on many players’ radar a long time before his breakout season, which will end with his Test debut.
Pearce-Paul added: “I hear a lot that we’re always together – but he’s my best mate. He’s a good kid and a very special player as he’s shown. This year’s been amazing for him.
“He’s like a brother to me, I’m always proud of my kid.
“I haven’t really known him for too long considering how close we are. I guess we got on pretty well pretty fast and I see him as family.
“It was only in my last year at Wigan that I actually met him. It was the start of last season as Junior had just started training with us full-time.
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“I was chatting to some of the England boys and around World Cup time in 2022, we had an opposed session and Junior came in with the academy boys from Wigan.
“They came to train against us and a lot of the players were like, ‘Who’s this human? He’s massive. Where the hell have you found him?’
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“Now a lot of those are alongside him. The growth in a few years has been absolutely crazy. He was an academy boy two years ago. Now he’s just a big, strong human. He’s massive.
“And it would be great to see him get some game time. He’s ready for that level.”
