Wayne Bennett lauds England forward pair

Drew Darbyshire

Wayne Bennett believes Sam Burgess and James Graham have changed the face of English rugby league.

Burgess, 30, has made almost 200 appearances for South Sydney Rabbitohs in the NRL since making the switch from Bradford in 2010.

St Helens legend Graham, 33, has played 172 NRL games since moving to Canterbury Bulldogs from Saints in 2012.

On the pair, Bennett commented: “Sam puts it out there every day.

“In Sam, I see a very passionate Englishman every day and he’s very proud of his country. He loves the game and was brought up with it.

“His father played and he’s lived every day to play rugby league and nothing has changed.

“Sam is a great player. For whatever England have done in the last five years – I think we owe Sam and James Graham for that. They put their hands up and make my job so much easier.”

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