Kai Pearce-Paul, Luke Thompson and Dom Young look dejectedImage source, SWPix
Image caption,

England's men won two of their three group games and finished with a points difference of +86, but it was not enough

ByMike WhalleyBBC Sport Senior Journalist

The time for excuses is over - and those in charge of English rugby league know it.

There were mitigating circumstances behind England's early departures from the Men's and Women's Rugby League World Cups.

But there is also an acknowledgement within the Rugby Football League that, for both the men and the women, a group-stage exit is just not good enough.