England coach Steve McNamara was keen to look for positives after their Four Nations campaign ended in a bruising 36-10 win over Papua New Guinea.

His team had already lost against New Zealand and Australia, ending their hopes of reaching the final.

"In each game there have been signs of the potential we can do with a young side. They'll develop and grow," said McNamara after the game in Auckland.

"The effort the group has put in over the tournament has been outstanding."

England's victory against Papua New Guinea came at a heavy physical cost, with Kevin Brown concussed during the encounter while Sam Burgess and Luke Robinson both suffered dislocations.

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England opened up a 24-0 half-time lead but injuries meant they were restricted to just one replacement in the second half, and they ran out of momentum.

"There are some pretty bad ones," added McNamara. "Sam has got a dislocated shoulder, Luke Robinson has dislocated his elbow and Kevin Brown is still not with us.

"The injuries really hurt us. We only had one interchange in the second half, we had to keep rolling on the big fellas every now and again."

Tony Clubb's four tries were a highlight for England, and McNamara's Papua New Guinea counterpart and former team-mate Stanley Gene said the performance was encouraging for England.

"I'm pretty sure Steve Mac is a very good up-and-coming coach and the future is bright for him because there are so many young kids out there playing today," said Gene, who also paid tribute to his own team's efforts.

"We've got kids who have never been on a plane or seen the other side of the world, I'm so proud of them.

"It's a learning curve for us and next year we will be better and stronger.

"This tournament has been huge for them, there are a lot of positives from all three games."

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