England will seek to block out a cacophony of passionate Tongan fans ahead of Saturday's Rugby League World Cup semi-final and knuckle down on improving their game, veteran hooker James Roby says.
While hundreds of Mate Ma'a fans congregated for Tuesday's semi-final fan day in central Auckland, barely a dozen English fans were present.
For the 33-cap Roby, that wasn't such an issue.
His Wayne Bennett-coached side would continue to quietly work away, as they make a play for their first World Cup final since 1995.
Should they qualify, they are almost certain to face hosts Australia, who defeated the English 18-4 in last month's Cup curtain-raiser in Melbourne.
Fresh off a 36-6 quarter-final win over Papua New Guinea, Roby said he and his teammates had embraced their tag as Cup dark horses.
"It's fine with us as a team, we're kind of just here to do our job, get on with the job without fuss - we're obviously a very competent team, we know what we're capable of and we've proven that so far," Roby said.
"But there's still a bit of improvement to us as a team and hopefully, if we can put in a good performance this week, we'll find ourselves in the final."
While Roby's England are certain to be outgunned in the tribunes, the northern hemisphere heavyweights head into Saturday's match as marginal favourites.
Despite Tonga's burly forwards, England's big-game experience - including Four Nations tilts and three successive Cup semi-finals - should give them an edge.
The 32-year-old Roby, a one-club man with Super League giants St Helens, expected to see sparks fly between the two sides' packs.
The likes of Jason Taumalolo, Andrew Fifita and Sika Manu will line up for Mate Ma'a, while Sam Burgess and James Graham will carry the can for England.
"The more high-pressure and high-profile games you've played in is better for you as a team - in saying that, we're in a World Cup semi-final, so I suppose you don't need any more motivation," Roby said.
"Both teams will be willing to go and put everything on the line."
