England's McDermott blames harsh World Cup format and travel chaos for Tonga defeat

England head coach Brian McDermott said his side's World Cup semi-final hopes may already be over after their opening defeat by Tonga.

• England lost 30-12 to Tonga, leaving the side in danger of elimination from the 10-team tournament's combined group stage.
• McDermott said a nearly 48-hour route via Singapore and Sydney to Perth left players exhausted and allowed only two training sessions before the match.
• McDermott said the format is so harsh that England now depends on other results to reach the semi-finals.
• McDermott named an unchanged 19-man squad for Saturday's match against France, with Matty Ashton starting in place of Zach Eckersley.