ENGLAND secured a clean sheet in their three-match Test series against Tonga with a 26-4 win over Kristian Woolf’s men at Headingley on Saturday afternoon.
While England have steadily improved throughout the series, Tonga have seemingly regressed, but Saturday’s clash at home to Leeds Rhinos had the biggest crowd of the three matches – despite the series already favoring Shaun Wane.
In fact, 15,477 people flocked to Headingley to watch England – the biggest attendance for an English rugby league match not featuring New Zealand or Australia since 1963.
While that number is very impressive, the same cannot be said for the weekend’s Pacific Championship final between New Zealand and Australia.
Because the Kiwis won 30-0, it was the most points conceded in an Australian Test since 1952 when New Zealand won 49-25. However, only 13,269 people turned up at Hamilton’s FMG Stadium in Waikato, New Zealand, an area known as rugby union’s heartland.
The number of empty seats on television is what got people talking and the 25,000 capacity is far from a success.