Jarome Luai falls flat in Samoa captaincy debut after dramas around Stephen Crichton's wedding

Jarome Luai's first game as Samoa captain ended in ignominy on Monday morning as England ran away with a 34-18 victory in their rugby league Test. Luai was promoted to captain after Stephen Crichton withdrew from the series in the UK due to his wedding and subsequent honeymoon, which were booked in before the series against England was confirmed.

And although he played well, Luai was unable to stop a worrying slide for Samoa on the international stage. The Samoans have now lost four Tests in a row and haven't won since they shocked England in the semi-finals of the World Cup in 2022.

Luai is the biggest star playing for Samoa against England, but Crichton leads a long list of players who made themselves unavailable. Brian To'o isn't playing after picking up a knee injury in the NRL grand final, while Junior Paulo, Tommy Talau, Murray Taulagi, Heilum Luki (all injured), Spencer Leniu and Stefano Utoikamanu (both personal reasons) are also missing.

Crichton would normally make himself available to represent his country, but his wedding and honeymoon were already booked in before the England tour was confirmed. Officials even had to push the Samoa and England Tests back by a week because a number of Samoan players wanted to attend Crichton's wedding.

According to some, the situation showed how international rugby league has fallen down the pecking order, with the Pacific Championships also devoid of some serious star power. The under-strength Samoan team is a shadow of the one that played Australia in the World Cup final just two years ago, and many believe it shows how Test matches are far from the pinnacle of the sport.

NRL stars shine as England beat Samoa in first Test

On Monday morning (Australian time), the Samoan side didn't have the discipline to match their fire as England capitalised on a fast start to run in six tries. Dolphins star Herbie Farnworth and Roosters forward Victor Radley both crossed the line amid a ruthless showing from England.

Luai's team, which featured eight debutants, need to be much sharper and cohesive to challenge a well-drilled home side when they meet again in six days' time at Headingley in Leeds. Samoa coach Ben Gardiner said after the game: "I felt that we didn't take our opportunities when we needed to. We did a much better job in the second half and put more pressure on. For us, it's about learning lessons, controlling the momentum for longer, putting it deeper into the corner and being able to control the middle parts of the sets."

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England coach Shaun Wane reckoned his side needed to improve despite the win. "We need to be better than that," said Wane. "That performance wouldn't trouble Australia. We know what we need to fix as a group. I don't mean that in a disrespectful way to Samoa, but we need to be better."

Samoa were much more competitive after half-time, but England - featuring nine who'd played in their World Cup golden-point loss at the Emirates Stadium in 2022 - seemed the hungrier outfit in front of a crowd of 15,000 at Wigan's Brick Community Stadium. Former Canberra halfback George Williams led the way for England, while 'Man of Steel' Mikey Lewis also starred for the home team.

with AAP