England start the World Cup on Saturday on the back of a fractured build-up but with their siege mentality intact after coach Steve McNamara cut short his final press conference in Cardiff.

McNamara looked like a man under pressure when he faced reporters ahead of this afternoon’s opening match against Australia.

Fresh from a humiliating defeat by tournament minnows Italy, McNamara has had to deal with off-field distractions this week which culminated in the expulsion from his squad of second row forward Gareth Hock and the non-selection of prop James Graham for the clash with the Kangaroos.

Most of the questions remain unanswered after McNamara refused point blank to address the disciplinary issues during a tetchy media conference which he ended abruptly after only six minutes.

McNamara grew increasingly angry as he was questioned on the same theme and said: “I’m not going to answer any more questions on it. If you want to continue asking the questions, then we’ll wrap up now.”

When the same query was raised again, he responded: “I’ve just said if you want to carry on with that questioning, we’ll stop now. If you want to carry on asking questions, let’s continue. That’s the last chance now.”

McNamara briefly went on to talk about the match against Australia but ended the session abruptly when he was asked about Hock.

The coach rose from his chair and said: “I’ve got to go boys any way because the bus is going, cheers, see you tomorrow.”