Category: Rugby League

• New Zealand 34-10 Tonga

• Kiwis come from behind and will face Australia or Samoa

What had been billed as one of the most intriguing Rugby League World Cup semi-finals in history was, in the end, a brutal exposé of the standards the world’s chasing nations must rise to in order to match Australia and New Zealand.

Few nations have as close a connection to the rise of international rugby league quite like the Kiwis and Tonga. After all, it was Jason Taumalolo’s decision to switch his international allegiance from New Zealand to the Mate Ma’a in 2017 which lit the touchpaper for the rise of nations such as Samoa and Tonga, leading to a plethora of the world’s best players following suit.

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• Kiwi Ferns defeat Fetu Samoa 32-0 in semi-final

• Centre Waaka scores three of Kiwi Ferns’ seven tries

A Stacey Waaka hat-trick has helped secure New Zealand their place in the Women’s Rugby League World Cup final.

The Kiwi Ferns were rarely threatened in their 32-0 victory over an inexperienced Fetu Samoa in Newcastle, running away with it late with four tries in the final 12 minutes on Saturday afternoon. The dual international Waaka made the most of her opportunities, setting up New Zealand’s early first try, before securing three of her own. With her hat-trick, Waaka drew level with Australia winger Jaime Chapman atop the tournament’s try-scoring tally with nine.

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• Veteran full-back named on bench for Kangaroos’ clash with Samoa

• Kayln Ponga in New Zealand’s extended squad to face Tonga

Reece Walsh and Kayln Ponga are on track to resume their compelling rivalry after two huge coach calls ahead of the Rugby League World Cup semi-finals.

Walsh on Tuesday retained the Australian No 1 jumper ahead of James Tedesco for the Kangaroos’ semi-final against Samoa in Sydney on Sunday.

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English rugby league needs systemic change and national side must be a higher priority after early exit

“England have gone backwards over the last eight to 10 years.” Damning words about the state of English rugby league, from an Australia head coach, no less. But what should be most troubling for anyone with any sort of power within the sport is that these comments are not recent: they were made by the then Kangaroos coach Ricky Stuart, almost two decades ago.

Stuart was speaking after England’s men were beaten in the semi-finals of the 2008 Rugby League World Cup but, as the national team head home from the tournament once again, his stance still holds weight today. England have failed to make it to the last four for the first time, having failed to qualify from a farcical group-stage format.

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• Match report: Records tumble as merciless Jillaroos destroy Wales in Rugby League World Cup

And the two teams are out in the glorious spring sunshine. Smiles all round as Australia prepare to fill their boots and Wales soak up the occasion.

The Jillaroos are wearing gold jerseys this afternoon, with green chevrons and shorts. Wales are in red with white and dark green accents.

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• Kangaroos shake off a slow start to defeat Cook Islands in Townsville

• Australia cruise into the semi-finals on top of Pool A

The Kangaroos will be wearing their familiar dark green uniform with gold accents. Plenty of green in the Cook Islands outfit as well, but it is the secondary colour to a majority white base.

Tonight’s referee is NRL veteran Ashley Klein.

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• Pool B + C: England 34-12 Papua New Guinea

• Women’s side crash out after defeat by Samoa

Game over. Two ultimately straightforward victories from three group games would ordinarily be enough to secure qualification in the Rugby League World Cup, but the format means that, barring a rugby league miracle from Tonga on Sunday, England are heading home early.

That format – 10 teams in lopsided groups and England in a unique position of being effectively out after defeat on the opening weekend – has been a point of discussion since that defeat by the Tongans a fortnight ago. But at some stage, the attention has to turn internally and the tough, uncompromising questions have to be asked of English rugby league.

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• England need 68-point swing in final group games

• McDermott: ‘It’s a difficult situation to negotiate’

The England head coach, Brian McDermott, has urged his side to keep their nerve as they attempt to hold up their end of the bargain on Friday and secure what would be a remarkable qualification for the semi-finals of the Rugby League World Cup.

Defeat by Tonga in their opening group game a fortnight ago appeared to all but consign England to an early exit, owing in no small part to a complex and shortened format, with the tournament reduced to 10 teams. However, the margin of their 82-0 win against France last Saturday means qualification is still possible, albeit unlikely.

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• Tom Trbojevic scores hat-trick for Kangaroos at Suncorp Stadium

• James Tedesco inspires in otherwise underwhelming Australia outing

Tonight’s referee is NRL veteran Gerard Sutton.

A quick reminder about the 2026 men’s Rugby League World Cup format.

The 2026 men’s RLWC features ten teams. Eight of these qualified via their performances at the last world cup, back in 2022. That is: Australia, New Zealand, England, Samoa, Tonga, Fiji, PNG, and Lebanon. The first seven countries in that list also happen to be the top seven on the IRL rankings; Lebanon are a lowly 23rd.

The remaining qualifiers, France and Cook Islands, won regional playoffs. Cook Islands are ranked eighth in the world, by the way, France recently held that position but have slipped to 11th. In other words, the cream of the crop will be on display.

The tournament will be played under NRL rules, including six players on the interchange bench with up to four to be used.

The ten teams have been distributed into three pools.

Pool A contains Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, and Cook Islands. The top two from this group qualify for the semi-finals.

The teams in Pool B (England, Samoa, Lebanon) play the teams in Pool C (Tonga, PNG, France) with the top two on a combined group table qualifying for the semi-finals.

The winner of Pool A takes on the runner-up from Pool B&C in Sydney.

The winner of Pool B&C takes on the runner-up from Pool A in Newcastle.

The world cup final is in Brisbane on 15 November.

The group phase will take place over three weekends.

The fourth weekend will feature the semi-finals, with the final wrapping up proceedings the following Sunday.

10 locations will host matches. Eight of these are in Australia: Sydney (Allianz Arena), Sydney (Commbank Arena), Brisbane, Newcastle, Gold Coast, Townsville, Wollongong, and Perth; while Port Moresby will host two Papua New Guinea matches, and Christchurch will stage one New Zealand fixture.

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• Pool B + C: England 82-0 France

• Herbie Farnworth and Dom Young grab hat-tricks

England will only really know next weekend whether this record-breaking result means anything, but on an afternoon when not only a win but a convincing victory would keep their hopes of reaching the World Cup semi-finals alive, this was a case of job done for Brian McDermott and his side.

With the shortened and controversial group stage format meaning just one defeat is near-ruinous, even the head coach broke ranks this week and admitted England’s chances of qualification are slim at best after the 30-12 loss to Tonga on the opening weekend. Samoa’s big 64-6 win against Papua New Guinea earlier on Saturday meant the permutations became simple but daunting. Samoa beat France 78-4 last week, giving them a plus-132 points differential; England, now have a plus-64 points differential.

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• Big wins and help from Tonga needed to reach semi-finals

• ‘You’ve got to hit the ground running, which we didn’t do.

Brian McDermott has conceded England’s hopes of reaching the Rugby League World Cup semi-finals may already be over, the head coach ­blaming the tournament’s format and their opening loss to Tonga.

The World Cup has been reduced to 10 teams, down from 16 four years ago. That is largely due to financial reasons when the hosts, Australia, stepped in after France’s withdrawal. That has led to a unique format, with different levels of jeopardy for ­different countries based on their group.

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