If it had been curling, they would have shook hands at the half. Had it been boxing, the referee would have called the fight.
"We're not particularly proud of our performance but it's a stepping stone," said Morgan Williams of Cole Harbour, Nfld.
"We showed heart. Unfortunately there were times when we let ourselves down."
Canadian coach David Clark didn't hide his disappointment.
"It's pretty difficult to see the scoreboard at 59-20," said Clark. "They got away from us in the first half and it took a little while for us to get our structure back.
"We did put some points on the board which was very pleasing."
England, ranked No. 3 in the world, smothered the 11th-ranked Canadians like a wave, swamping them with talent when Canada wasn't drowning in its own errors.
English coach Clive Woodward was "absolutely delighted" after the victory, which gave his team a two-game sweep of the Canadians.
"It's not the winning, it's the way we played," said Woodward, who beamed like a father who had watched his son hit his first home run.
"There were some wonderful performances. That was a huge result for us."
Simon Shaw, a huge six-foot-eight lock who plays with the London Wasps, and David Walder, a shifty flyhalf who plays for Newcastle, led the English with two tries each. Joe Worsley, Martyn Wood and Jamie Noon also scored as England struck for three tries in a four-minute span of the second half.
England also was awarded a penalty try in the first half.
Walder kicked five coverts and three penalties.
Dan Baugh of Edmonton, who plays professionally for Cardiff, Wales, and Calgary's Sean Fauth scored Canada's lone tries in the second half when the game's outcome was no longer in doubt. Victoria's Bob Ross added the converts and a pair of penalty kicks.
Canada, playing before a vocal, capacity crowd of more than 8,000, kept the game close during the early stages. The Canadians trailed 5-3 when England was awarded a penalty try after Scott Stewart of Vancouver, who plays for Bedford in England, was penalized for interfering with Newcastle's Michael Stephenson.
After Walder kicked the convert England led 15-3 and the rout was on.
Canada couldn't get their offensive game going, making turnovers and mental errors.
From the opening it was a brutal game with each side dealing out devastating hits. Tempers flared when Baugh began exchanging punches with England's Julian White near the end of the first half. Later Williams was sent off for 10 minutes after being called for an intentional foul.
The game was played in cool temperatures and under dark, threatening skies at Swangard Stadium in this Vancouver suburb.
England began its two-game swing through Canada with a 22-10 win over Canada at Markham, Ont. In nine games against Canada, England has lost only once and has outscored the Canadians 269-97.
Canada's previous worst loss to England was a 60-19 whipping on Dec. 10, 1994, at London.
England is missing 18 of its top players who are with the all-star British Lions for a tour of Australia.
