sport news Hull-born assistant coach looking to leave English imprint on Samoan fairytale trends now 'We're sick of seeing Australia win it': Hull-born assistant coach Lee Radford hopes to leave an English imprint on Samoan fairytale... as the Pacific Islanders aim to pull off a huge upset against the Kangaroos in the Rugby League World Cup final Australia have won eight of the last nine Rugby League World Cup tournaments They will face Samoa in the final on Saturday evening at Old Trafford Samoa's assistant coach Lee Radford was born in Hull and is hoping his side can pull off an upset to stop Australia from winning again By David Coverdale For The Daily Mail Published: 22:30 GMT, 18 November 2022 | Updated: 22:30 GMT, 18 November 2022 Viewcomments There is one Englishman who could still win the World Cup at Old Trafford on Saturday night. Although the host nation will not contest the final, Hull-born Lee Radford will be there as the assistant coach of their semi-final conquerors Samoa. And the Castleford boss expects the 60,000-plus crowd to back the Pacific Islanders against Australia, who are looking to lift the trophy for the ninth time in 10 editions. Lee Radford wants to leave an English imprint on Samoa's fairytale World Cup campaign Samoa have already caused one shock this tournament, beating England in the semi-finals ‘We’re sick of seeing Australia win it,’ said Radford. ‘You’ll have lots of local support. Hopefully this little nation causes an upset.’ Whatever the outcome, this ‘tiny dot in the middle of the Pacific’ — to quote their head coach Matt Parish — have already made waves by becoming the first tier-two country to reach the final. Flags of Samoa, who have a population of just 200,000, have not just sold out in their own capital, Apia, but also in Sydney and Auckland, where there are large Samoan communities. ‘It’s gone global,’ said Stephen Crichton, who hit the winning drop goal in the semi-final. ‘Flags have sold out everywhere. It is crazy that it has gone worldwide.’ Australia are looking to upset the odds by beating Australia at Old Trafford on Saturday TV: LIVE BBC One from 3.30pm (Kick-off 4pm). Share or comment on this article: All rights reserved for this news site (dailymail) and under his responsibility