Hawkins scores five tries as England beat Australia 86-18 to reach World Cup final

England reached their fifth consecutive Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup final with an 86-18 victory over Australia in Wollongong on Tuesday. Rob Hawkins scored five tries in a semi-final that produced 15 England tries overall, according to BBC Sport. The defending champions will face France for the fourth successive final, continuing a sequence of title matches between the competition's only two previous winners.

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Hawkins contributed 30 points, adding five conversions to his five tries. His third try was a particularly difficult finish: he chased a long kick, beat Adam Tannock to the ball and touched down close to the dead-ball line while under pressure. Nathan Collins, who supplied several of the kicks Hawkins pursued, praised his team-mate's ability to turn those deliveries into scoring opportunities.

Despite the margin of victory, Hawkins told BBC Sport he did not regard England's performance as their best. He rated the display at six or seven out of 10 and said there were still areas to address. He also described the challenge posed by Australia and the home crowd, making clear that the comfortable final score did not mean England had found the contest easy.

Collins similarly said England had further work to do. He stressed the importance of following coach Tom Coyd's approach and building on their semi-final display. Although members of the squad have experience of league title contests and Challenge Cups, Collins described the international occasion as another level. Friday's final at WIN Entertainment Centre is scheduled to start at 08:45 GMT.

England's recent finals against France provide a much closer set of results than Tuesday's semi-final. France won 42-40 in Gillingham in 2013 and 38-34 in Perpignan in 2017. England then reclaimed the trophy with a 28-24 victory in Manchester in 2022. Each of those three meetings was decided by four points or fewer.

For Collins, now 26, this will be a third World Cup final after one victory and one defeat. He made his England debut at 16 after moving from running rugby league into the wheelchair game. Speaking to BBC Sport, he expressed pride in the team's achievements both on and off the court and said bringing the trophy home again would mean a great deal.