England reached the wheelchair rugby World Cup final after defeating hosts Australia 86-18 in Tuesday's semi-final in Wollongong, Australia.
England scored 15 tries in the match, led by Rob Hawkins with five. Hawkins also converted five penalties to collect a total of 30 points for his team. His third try was a long kick that he chased down and scored under pressure from Adam Tannock.
England are now preparing for a fifth consecutive World Cup final. It will be their fourth successive final against France. England won the title four years ago on home soil, with a narrow 28-24 victory in Manchester. France, however, triumphed 42-40 in Gillingham in 2013 and 38-34 in Perpignan in 2017.
The final will begin at 08:45 GMT on Friday at the WIN Entertainment Centre.
Nathan Collins was born with dwarfism. As a child, he played rugby union but was told he was too small. He then switched to wheelchair sport and debuted for England at the age of 16. Now 26, he is preparing for his third World Cup final, having won one and lost one.
French referee Laurent Abrial officiated the 2022 World Cup final. He was suspended until January this year after his unacceptable conduct brought the game into disrepute. The International Rugby League's misconduct panel found that Abrial made obscene gestures that could have incited the crowd. Abrial was the defensive referee during the final and protested with vigorous gesturing after his decision was overturned by attacking referee Ollie Cruickshank.
Tom Coyd is the England coach.
