ALEX Walmsley will make his England debut in the crucial World Cup clash with Lebanon.
But coach Wayne Bennett admits Saturday’s game will be a voyage into the unknown as he has not seen them play or looked at their squad.
Defeat to Australia means England could do with beating the Cedars in Sydney then France in Perth to make the quarter-finals.
And St Helens prop Walmsley, who missed the 18-4 loss in Melbourne on Friday because of a virus, will come in for his international debut.
Bennett said: “Alex will be playing. He’s doing it tough with the physio department at the moment but he’ll be playing.
“Regardless of which other players I pick, he’ll definitely be in the team as he should’ve been there on Friday but he wasn’t up to it.”
England will be without Sam Burgess, who injured his knee against Australia and trained separately from the team today.
However, Bennett revealed they are aiming to have the South Sydney star back for the last eight.
He added: “We’re all good, except Sam of course.
“I still don’t know the full team yet. I will in the next 24 hours but I’ll let them know as soon as I decide.
“We’re aiming for the quarter-finals with Sam. He’s not too bad, it’s not as serious as it could’ve been.
“So we’re looking at the quarters at best, if not we’ll look at the game after that.”
Lebanon will have the crowd behind them on Saturday as Sydney is home to a large Lebanese population, which sees NRL stars like Robbie Farah and Mitchell Moses line up for them.
Brad Fittler’s men defeated France 29-18 in their opening game but Bennett is in the dark about them, and any other side in the tournament.
He said: “I’ve no idea how Lebanon played as I haven’t seen the game.
“And I don’t know what they’re like as a squad as I haven’t even looked at it. I don’t really ever look at the opposition much.
“Of course Robbie Farah is a good player, but I haven’t seen him with Lebanon as my priority now is getting these boys right.
“And I haven’t watched any of the other games in the World Cup. I’ve been to the races and I didn’t back a winner either!
“I honestly couldn’t tell you if Lebanon are a bigger challenge than France as I didn’t see the game yesterday. The bigger challenge is here, not the opposition.
“Over the next two games I’m looking for us to do more things right and more things better.
“And the English players are used to a great atmosphere, so it won’t worry them. You don’t want to a game without atmosphere, it makes the occasion and the players play better.
“I hope the English fans went away from Melbourne with plenty of optimism that we’ve got a good team here that just needs to be a bit better.”
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