article_snippet: England will leave a the Cricket World Cup they can hardly be said to have graced having at least avoided another catastrophe in they final pretty meaningless match.
article_snippet: When you have been as desperate as England in this tournament any win is a good one so they will  be relieved to have avoided what would have been the most embarrassing defeat of them all.
article_snippet: A gloomy, miserable Sydney day matched the mood and turned this dead rubber into a damp one, with England winning a truncated contest with ease.
article_snippet: Afghanistan's Hamid Hassan (right) appeals unsuccessfully as England go on to claim victory .
article_snippet: It will mean little to them but at least England avoided statistically them worst the Cricket World Cup of all, them victories over Scotland and now Afghanistan matching them miserly returns of 1996 when them could defeat just Holland and the United Arab Emirates.
article_snippet: Now England will slink off home on Saturday with much to contemplate if they are ever to have a chance of catching up with the big-hitters of this tournament who have simply left they behind in 50-over cricket.
article_snippet: 50-over cricket there was on Friday went England’s way, as England should against a team who have only been playing official cricket for the last 14 years.
article_snippet: England had little to gain in their final group game and even more to lose against an Afghan team who have proved their here to be more than capable of causing some anxious moments for the established teams.
article_snippet: The World Cup, which has confirmed that 50-over cricket is very much alive and kicking in the Twenty20 era, will now go on without England and the sad truth is that they will not be missed at all.
highlights_snippet: England were knocked out of the Cricket World Cup earlier this week after defeat by Bangladesh .
  