'Keep talking about Tonga and Samoa': Elliott Whitehead backs England to prove World Cup credentials

The Pacific island nations have been widely tipped to take the tournament by storm after assembling formidable squads packed with NRL talent.

Samoa have the opportunity to lay down an early marker against hosts England in the St James’ Park opener, which could go a long way to deciding which team avoids Tonga in the quarter-finals.

With Australia and New Zealand considered the favourites once again, Whitehead has been happy to fly under the radar heading into the delayed 2021 tournament.

"It doesn't really bother me who you talk about," said the former Bradford Bulls back-rower.

"I know what this group is capable of and they've shown that over the last couple of weeks in training. We've got some great individuals – a mix of experienced players and young players – and come Saturday we're going to show what we can do.

"Everyone always talks about Australia and New Zealand when these tournaments come around but we're very confident.

"You lot can keep talking about Tonga and Samoa but we're ignoring the outside noise and focusing on us."

A seasoned NRL forward, Whitehead is no stranger to the threats posed by the Samoans, from classy half-back Jarome Luai to blockbusting winger Brian To'o.

The 33-year-old is unperturbed, pointing to the fact that Matt Parish's team are untested as a group.

"They've got some great individuals but as a squad, we don't really know much about them," he said.

"They had a game against the Cook Islands (in June) but there's going to be different players playing come Saturday. We've got a great game plan and whoever does get selected this weekend will put a great performance in for us. I'm sure we can go there and get the win."

Whitehead is one of four survivors from the team that lost to Australia in the 2017 World Cup final. He is using that pain as fuel in his quest to go one step further on home soil.

“It was disappointing that night but this is a different group and I believe we can go all the way in this tournament,” added Whitehead.

“It’s a tough task against Samoa but there's no greater game. It will be a great atmosphere up at St James’ and two great teams going up against each other. It should be a good spectacle to start the World Cup.”