England rookie Sam Burgess is being tipped to become a big hit in Australia after earning rave reviews for his performance in the Four Nations final.

The 20-year-old forward ended on the losing side, as Australia finished with a flourish to triumph 46-16, but he earned the plaudits from friends and foes alike for his two-try display.

It was the Bradford player's final game in England for the foreseeable future as he prepares to join international team-mate Gareth Ellis in the NRL.

"He's a great player," said Kangaroos full-back Billy Slater, who fell for Burgess' dummy in the build-up to the game's first try.

"We all know the successful transition that Gareth Ellis enjoyed and Sam Burgess is going to be just as good if not better.

"He's a monster of a lad but he's got some good feet under him and some ball skills as well so he's not just a bash-it sort of guy.

"I'm sure South Sydney are really looking forward to him coming out there."

Australia hooker Cameron Smith said: "He's a really good player. He's only a young guy but he plays with the maturity of a 28-year-old.

"He's got really good skills. He runs the ball hard, he's got good feet and he hurt us a couple of times. He'll play well in the NRL."

South Sydney chief Shane Richardson expects Rabbitohs fans to snap up tickets for the club's opening pre-season trial in February after watching Burgess' starring role at Elland Road.

"There's not many players that would try to dummy around Billy Slater, one of the world's great full-backs, but that just shows you the confidence he has," he said.

Richardson, the former Gateshead and Hull chief executive, said Burgess had been offered time off until January but wanted to start training before Christmas and will arrive in Sydney on December 14.

After leaving Slater and Petero Civoniceva clutching at straws as he raced 40 metres for the first try, Burgess even won over Australian television pundit Phil Gould, usually an arch critic of anything English.

"His personality and his style of football reminds me so much of Gorden Tallis the first time I laid eyes on him," Gould told the Sydney Morning Herald.

"Gorden in those days could really run and had a bit of a step on him and Burgess' left-foot step on Civoniceva signified that he has got real class."

England prop James Graham is equally confident the youngster from Dewsbury will make a success of his switch to the NRL.

"He's making those breaks against the best defence in the world so I'm sure he'll be good to watch in the NRL," said the St Helens forward.

Burgess, who made a tryscoring debut for Great Britain as an 18-year-old, has signed a four-year contract with the Rabbitohs after being lured to Sydney by the club's joint owner Russell Crowe.

He admitted to having mixed emotions on his farewell appearance and said the defeat had taken the shine off his own performance.

"It was my last game in England for a couple of years, which is a bit gutting because my family is over here," he said.

"I've got to look forward now. I've taken a lot of confidence from this tournament.

"My sole goal for this game was to do my bit for the team and hopefully get the win. I played okay but we didn't get the result and that's what we're here for.

"We're bitterly disappointed. We worked hard for five weeks and had a lot of belief."