“The size of him and the speed makes him one of the best in the game.”
England has a new superstar winger, described as “an unbelievable freak” of a player by captain for the night George Williams.
Dom Young produced a man-of-the match international debut to destroy Fiji in Salford, as Shaun Wane’s side thumped a depleted opponent 50-0 in their only World Cup warm-up match, scoring nine tries from nine different scorers.
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The 6’7” Young was at the heart of it, with one flying finish and a devastating break to send Williams in for another. The 21-year old had two other acrobatic efforts ruled out as he emerged on to the international stage with devastating effect in a promising right-edge partnership with Salford centre Kallum Watkins.
“I loved it out there” Young told The Sportsman. “It’s been a while since I’ve been in front of the England fans and my family as well.
“Me and Kallum had a bit of space on the right edge and managed to take advantage of it. Playing outside a class player like him can only make me look better, I love playing outside him and hopefully we can build on that when the World Cup starts next week.”
Young was born in Huddersfield but played just twice for the Giants before he was snapped up by NRL side Newcastle Knights. He crossed for 14 tries in 20 appearances this season in the strongest domestic rugby league competition. That form meant his proposed involvement for World Cup minnows Jamaica instead turned into an England call up. It was an England call that came so late in the day that Jamaica had even ordered and allocated Young his kit.
“We knew Fiji are big and would front up but we did and good job and were really clinical,” he added, of an opponent chosen by Wane to best replicate England’s opening World Cup opponent Samoa next weekend.
“Shaun just told us he wanted to see how much it meant when the boys put on the shirt. The aggression and desire and how much it means.
“We haven’t had too much time together so that is what you build your game on when it is new combinations. That’s what he wanted to see and that’s what he saw.
“I think he will be pleased and we were definitely pleased with that result. I’m really excited for a massive test against Samoa. To open a World Cup in front of our home fans at Newcastle is just exciting so I can’t wait to get out there.”
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Fellow NRL star Tom Burgess put in a powerful performance in the pack as England overwhelmed an out-of-sorts Fiji who picked up half a dozen injuries ahead of their tournament opener next Saturday against defending champions Australia.
“Waney will be happy to keep them out,” said the South Sydney star.
“We had to defend and stick our shoulders in and it’s great we kept them to nil.
“I’ve seen plenty of Dom Young this year and he’s had a really good season in the NRL. The size of him and the speed makes him one of the best in the game. He’s young and when we played them this year he chased a few of us down. He’s a really good prospect and it’s nice to see him in an England shirt.”
Head coach Wane says he already has the starting 13 in his head for that Samoa game at St James’ Park, but on the face of it he has some tough calls to make.
Young already looks a menace, and a certainty to keep his place on one wing. On the other, veteran Ryan Hall strengthened his position as the nation’s leading scorer with another touchdown against Fiji. It will have been a difficult evening watching on therefore for the rested St Helens flyer Tommy Makinson, who would have been the first winger on the teamsheet a month ago.
“I thought we did some really good stuff and there was good detail in our attack,” Wane said.
“We handled the conditions superbly and Dom Young and Kallum Watkins looked like they had played together for years. They were outstanding.”
Wane has decisions to make in the halves too, with scrum-half Marc Sneyd again impressive with his kicking game, but captain Sam Tomkins certain to come back in at full-back. That would see Young Player of the Year Jack Welsby move into the halves, with Sneyd’s position most under threat.
At hooker another debutant excelled, Andy Ackers rewarding Wane for his faith with a typically all-action display. The front row saw veteran Chris Hill start with Mike Cooper with Mikolaj Oledzki rested, and with no fresh injuries from the game Wane is left with a wealth of options as he looks to get England off to the perfect start that both they and the tournament need.
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