WARRINGTON Wolves forward Joe Philbin has offered wise words to his England Knights teammates as they arrive in Papua New Guinea for a whole new experience of life and rugby league.

Levels of fanaticism can be intimidating in Papua New Guinea, the only country in the world where rugby league is the national sport.

Knights assistant coach Paul Sculthorpe made his Test debut as a Wire player against the Kumuls in front of a baying 10,000 crowd in Lae on the 1996 Great Britain tour and has referred to being mobbed and taken out of his comfort zone in a ‘hostile’ environment.

Philbin got a taste of rugby league hysteria in the tropical climes last year when he played there with Ireland in the Rugby League World Cup, when matches hosted by Papua New Guinea were among the tournament highlights although Lae’s stadium with ‘caged’ terracing on Saturday will be a new venue to the 23-year-old.

“I know what it’s all about,” said Philbin, who lands in PNG today, Thursday, with Wire teammates Jack Hughes, Toby King, Tom Lineham, Dec Patton and Harvey Livett and the rest of the touring party following six days in camp in Brisbane, Australia.

“I think it’s the way you embrace it.

“If you look at it as intimidating then you probably won’t enjoy it, but I embraced it.

“They just love the rugby and they’re looking at you like an idol which is such a nice thing.

“I never thought I’d be an idol to someone. If someone’s going to be like that, I’m just going to take it with a smile on my face and embrace it.

“I’m just excited to see all the lads’ faces when they get there because the locals are so loving, so happy with smiles on faces when they see you. I’m very excited to do it again.

“The fans are so passionate, it’s deafening when you’re in the stadium.

“Big hits, big carries, and they just love it. They cheer everything. If you do something good they’ll cheer as well, they just love the game. It was such a good experience last time and it’s very exciting times to get to Papua New Guinea and play against the Kumuls again.

“They’re a quality side, a big side who like to run hard and tackle hard. They like the biff and bash, and that’s the way I Iike to play the game so I’m not going to take a backwards step and I’ll get stuck in. I’m excited to play against them.”

He is delighted to be sharing the PNG experience this time with five Wire teammates.

“I think it’s recognition,” he said.

“Everyone’s had a good year and we’ve got a young core at Warrington .

“I’m glad we’ve all got the opportunity to put our best foot forward on the international stage.

“We’ve been progressing together, most of us played in the under 19s together, and it’s good to see this is the next step for us now for our careers.

“It’s a confidence boost for all of us. That’ll only improve our game.”

England Knights, created in 2011 to bridge the gap between Super League and Test match football, are back in business after a five-year absence.

"I'm sure it's changed, like all places, in the last 22 years since I was there, but it's still very primitive," said Sculthorpe.

"It's the reason we picked PNG for this group of players, giving them that stepping stone between Super League and the senior internationals and taking them out of their comfort zone.

"We're throwing a challenge out there for the boys and it's going to be tough on the field. It's going to be physical, they're going to be tearing out of the line and trying to whack you.

"It will be 30-odd degrees and wet as well, it's 98 per cent humidity, they'll be gasping for oxygen no doubt at times. It's something different for them."