The St Helens full back, who is suffering from an ankle ligament injury, will know his fate either today (Wednesday) or at the latest tomorrow (Thursday).

It would be a bitter blow to the England camp if they lost Wellens after he picked up his injury late in the first half of Saturday's 36-24 defeat at the hands of the Kiwis in their final group match.

Coach Tony Smith, who will be desperately keen to restore morale after two successive confidence-sapping defeats, said on Monday: "Paul was unable to play a full part in our first training session today, but if he is OK and fully fit in the next few days his name will go into the hat for selection.

"If not, he won't be considered so it is a question of whether he can prove himself fit by the deadline set."

Saints' team-mate Jon Wilkin is expected to return following a facial injury and so, too, is Leon Pryce who trained on Monday and showed no ill-effects from a rib problem which ruled him out of the final group fixture.

Pryce could be a contender for the full back berth if Wellens is absent along with Leeds' Lee Smith who did a fantastic job in the no.1 jersey last month, inspiring the Rhinos to a second successive Old Trafford Grand Final victory over Saints.

Smith said: "I have still not decided who would take over at full back if Wellens fails a fitness test and will leave it until the latest possible moment."

James Roby, who has been in outstanding form Down Under and must be among the contenders for the man of the series title, will return after being rested last week and his influence and impact is likely to have a massive bearing on the final outcome.

The St Helens hooker said yesterday: "It's going to be a physical battle but we need to cut down on the number of small defensive errors we committed against the Kiwis last time out when they scored four of their tries wide out.

"We have players with a great deal of experience in semi-finals and finals, and I firmly believe we have sufficient quality to win the tie.

"However, once the whistle goes it will be a case of two side going head-to-head and whoever performs better over 80 minutes will be a step closer to the greatest prize in the sport."

Roby added: "It is not often you get a chance to reach a World Cup Final and it goes without saying that there will be a great deal of enthusiasm and emotion on the pitch.

"We have been frustrated by the fact that we have not shown the kind of form of which we are capable in the series so far but there is no better time to put that right than in this semi-final."

Club colleague Ade Gardner, who also missed the first meeting of the two countries, is also expected to return in the right wing berth, but Maurie Fa'asavalu's World Cup is over.

The Samoan-born powerhouse forward broke a finger in the game against Australia and will take no further part in the tournament, even though he will remain with the squad.