Lions make perfect start

John Peacock was all smiles after England thrashed hosts Bosnia 5-0 on Friday afternoon.

A brace from Rhys Murphy and further strikes from Henri Lansbury, Michael Woods and Danny Rose completed the demolition job.

"I can't complain," said Peacock. "If you had offered me 5-0 before the game then we would have been delighted.

"We did a professional job. The conditions were difficult and we had to overcome a sticky first ten minutes, but from then on we played really well."

England made a perfect start by taking the lead in the 16th minute, Murphy converting from the spot after Rose was hauled down.

The visitors went 2-0 up three minutes later courtesy of Lansbury's close-range header before Woods got in on the act, slotting home into the bottom corner from the edge of the box.

The contest was over a minute before the break when Murphy calmly beat the keeper after Rose's clever dummy had set him up.

"That killed the game," said Peacock. "Being 4-0 up at half-time gave me the chance to rest a couple of players, so I substituted Rhys Murphy and Henri Lansbury.

"I told the boys that it might come down to goal difference, so it was important they played the second half in the same vein."

Rose scored England's fifth when the action resumed to complete the result which put the young Lions top of the group on goal difference after Serbia & Montenegro beat Azerbaijan 5-1.

"Bosnia was always going to be a tough game," insisted Peacock. "They were the home side and everybody wants to beat England."

England face Azerbaijan on Sunday.

"That won't be easy, but it all depends on our attitude," added the Head Coach. "If we have the same professional attitude we had today, then we should be OK."

England: Amos, Mattock, Lansbury (Welbeck 41), Spence, Smith, Rose, Porritt (Taiwo 69), Woods, Gosling, Murphy (Plummer 41), Franks.
Subs not used: Ofori-Twumasi, Plummer, Moses, Steele.

Goals: Murphy 16 (pen), 39 Lansbury 19, Woods 25, Rose 75