Let’s be honest, it’s going to take something pretty crazy for two of these teams not to make the final. Both England and New Zealand look a lot better on paper this time around, while Australia are blessed with an amazing amount of consistency. In my books, Australia are the favourites thanks to the wealth of hugely experience players at their disposal. This is matched by a few youngsters who will be keen to make an impression. England and New Zealand will provide stiff competition however and could very easily beat the Aussies in either the semi final or final. Hopefully people around the world get to see these three teams in action as they are the pinnacle of rugby league.

England

The Basics -  England once again have a strong line up, possibly their strongest squad ever. Bolstered by veterans like Kevin Sinfield and Sean O'Loughlin, the Poms will field an extremely tough forward pack with James Roby handling the dummy half duties. Roby will anchor a play making spine which will feature Rangi Chase, Gareth Widdop and Sam Tomkins ... not too shabby huh?

Star Power - Three of the Burgess quartet will be on show at this World Cup and rest assured that on home turf, they'll be out to dominate. Sam Burgess will lead and be his usual physical, skillful self but I can't wait to see George and Tom come up against big forward packs. In the past, England have lacked this class in their pack. With the Burgess brothers they have it in spades.

X-Factor -  Obviously much will be made of Sam Tomkins, but I think Gareth Widdop will be the focal point of much of England's attack. The Storm were a much better team when Widdop came back from injury and his all round game could trouble the Kiwis and Kangaroos. He and Tomkins together will make England a very entertaining team to watch.

Sly Dogs -  Keep an eye out for the performances of outside back Tom Briscoe and prop James Graham. Both will play very important roles for England and Graham especially will have to put in big minutes and ensure that the middle of the field is all his.

New Zealand

The Basics -  The Kiwis have also assembled a very fine squad, one that is probably better than the Champions of 2008. The halves are now the strength of the Kiwis with Kieran Foran and Shaun Johnson complementing each other along with Isaac Luke and Thomas Leuluai who will hold down dummy half and allow for rest and rotation. I'm a bit unsure about the centres but could easily be convinced while in the forwards there is a great mix of toughness and skill.

Star Power -  SBW and Jared Waerea-Hargreaves. Both could be considered the best forwards of 2013 and will provide the Kiwi forward pack with plenty of size, aggression and skill. A stable of successful Kiwi teams has been a hard nut who isn't afraid of anyone and can mix it up with anyone. This is where Waerea-Hargreaves will feature. He won't be out for blood, but he'll provide plenty of oomph and inspiration.

X-Factor - The Uso's Sam Kasiano and Frank Pritchard. Kasiano is a beast and gives the Kiwis metres out of their own half as well as being near impossible to stop close to the line. Pritchard has the ability to do almost anything and will give the Kiwis a freaky range of options with SBW on an edge as well. The only thing is they are hit or miss. Let's hope they don't play silly buggers and give opposition night mares.

Sly Dogs -  Think of these names; Simon Mannering, Alex Glenn, Elijah Taylor, Greg Eastwood, Jesse Bromwich, Sam Moa. They'll be the glue of the Kiwis. They'll be doing all the dirty work for the rest of the team to flourish. Tough metres, decoy running and plenty of tackles for little or no fanfare.

Australia

The Basics -  Aaah, Australia. We know what to expect. There isn't much to say really! Their back line has been the same for 5 years or so. Their forwards have a great mix of serious hard nuts but as we have seen in the past, they love to use the likes of Paul Gallen as a bit of a play maker, encouraging offloads and distribution. Don't worry about Greg Inglis playing in centre, the man's a beast and will do just fine. 

Star Power -  I've got to pick someone, so I'm going to go with Andrew Fifita. In the past the Australian forwards have been a bit predictable, they haven't had to do too much other than get metres for their backs to play. Fifita offers something different. Extremely athletic for a big man and willing to do a bit of play making, Fifita will thrive in the Australian environment.

X-Factor -  In the big games, I think Michael Jennings will get the nod over Brent Tate thanks to his ability to make something out of nothing. Jennings is pure pace and power and will be difficult to handle. Think of Jennings, then picture him playing outside Cooper Cronk and Jonathan Thurston. Umm yeah.

Sly Dogs -  How will Jarryd Hayne be used? He won't play fullback, that's for sure so expect to see him on the wing. We all remember how great he has been on the big stage as a winger so I think, after a pretty shit season, the Hayne Plane will be ready to fly.