A Haumole Olakau'atu double has inspired Tonga to a historic victory over England in a major World Cup warning to the game's traditional powers.

The win is the Pacific nation's first over England in their history and helps avenge a two-point loss in the 2017 IRL Rugby League World Cup semi-final.

The triumph was built on a defensive foundation, with Kristian Woolf's men repelling multiple waves of England attack before scoring twice in three minutes to turn a 10-6 lead into a 22-6 advantage midway through the second half.

England fought back through Dom Young before Haumole Olakau'atu's second try with 10 minutes to play put the game to bed and secured a hard-fought 30-12 victory.

The result puts Tonga in pole position to progress to the semi-final and proves they are a genuine World Cup contender.

With head-to-head result the primary tiebreaker, England must defeat France and Papua New Guinea and hope Tonga beats Samoa when the two Pacific nations face off at a sold-out CommBank Stadium in the final game of the group stage on November 1.

Saturday's clash in front of 18,302 vocal fans at HBF Park was a high-quality affair, with both teams throwing plenty at their opponents.

There was one sour note for Tonga, Latu Fainu leaving the field after 17 minutes with a pectoral strain. Early reports suggest medical staff are optimistic the injury is not serious.

Tonga struck first through Stefano Utoikamanu, however it was an outlier in a first half dominated by the English.

New coach Brian McDermott has stressed the importance of unlocking the attacking shackles throughout the tournament and the early signs were positive in the opening 40 minutes.

Led by five-eighth George Williams, England threw the ball around and generated plenty of attacking opportunities.

They came close to breaking through on multiple occasions however couldn't get past Tonga's desperate scrambling defence.

Kristian Woolf's men somehow managed to keep a clean sheet in the first half and two Isaiya Katoa penalty goals made it 10-0 at the break.

England were finally rewarded for their effort in the 46th minute when Williams put Hugo Savala through a hole. The centre linked up with fullback AJ Brimson, who cut the deficit to four.

At this point the English were in control and a second try appeared imminent before a penalty for a high shot on Tongan winger Dallin Watene-Zelezniak swung the momentum.

Tonga capitalised on the opening, Olakau'atu and Tolu Koula crossing for tries in successive sets to put their nation in control.

England didn't die wondering and cut the deficit to 12 through Young before Olakau'atu pounced on an Isaiya Katoa grubber in the dying minutes to put the game to bed.