RL World Cup 2026 Women's Groups

This will be the 7th Women's WC to be held, the original going back to 2000. NZ won the fisrt three and Australia the next three. Ten sides competed last time and the hope was to expand that number, but it has been reduced to eight. 

The two groups are to the right. Even with the reduced number, there will be blow out scores. The quickly improving Southern Hemisphere standard will ensure that. 

Four qualifiers came through the previous tournament placings. Two each from qualifying in their respective hemispheres. I recall Brazil and Canada were two women's sides that performed well last time.

For the men's coverage, simply click here.

For the wheelchair coverage, simply click here.

RL WC Trivia (Women's)

 Here's my top ten for the women's game:

1) Of the six tournaments, NZ and Australia have each won three trophies. NZ the first three, the Jillaroos the last three.

2) The Kiwi Ferns won the first eighteen games they played at World Cups. Australia has now won its last eleven.

3) Six nations have been to only one World Cup. Three have been to all six.

4) New Zealand is the only country to appear in all six finals.

5) In the last four tournaments, the winning sides have been scoring between 88 and 90% of the points. 

6) Most games were played at the rather convoluted 2003 event (25). 

7) There have been two teams that didn't represent an individual country. A New Zealand Maori side in 2003 and a combined Pacific in 2008.

8) Tonga has not won any of its ten WC games. 

9) France has won only one of its twelve matches. Its only win was against Tonga. 

10) The biggest grand final winning margin was NZ defeating NZ Maori 58-0 in 2003.

Women's RL WC History 2013-21

In part two of the women's World Cup history, we look at three more tournaments. You may want to look at 2000-08 edition first, which can be viewed by clicking here.

2013: Host - England. Winner Australia

After two larger tournaments, the format went to just four sides. NZ had won the first three titles but this time not so.

Each side played each other once in the group stage, with NZ coming out on top. The two sides propping up the table played off for 3rd and 4th. while the top two went into the final. Australia upset the Kiwi Ferns, the latter losing their first ever World Cup contest. 

2017: Host - Australia. Winner Australia

There were six sides in the 2017 edition, France was not here but the Cook Is, Canada and PNG were added. 

Group Stage: Australia easily won its group, with England progressing on a superior points differential. New Zealand were even more convincing in their group with the Ravens and Orchids. 

Semi Final/Final: England was no match for the Kiwi side and the same was true for Canada against Australia. The Final was close but Australia won their second World Cup.

2021: Host - England. Winner Australia

An additional two nations were included, with France making a return and Brazil in their first WC. Brazil had only played one international before, their qualifying victory over Argentina. Would a Pacific nation been a more sound choice?

Group Stage: England won its undeniably weaker group, with only PNG giving it any sort of challenge. Brazil showed how much it progressed through the tournament with a narrow, last minute loss to Canada. 

Australia got through top of its group, courtesy of a two point victory over arch rivals the Kiwi Ferns. The Cook Islands and France no match for the two strongest teams. 

Semi Final/Final: With short turn arounds between games another issue to be managed carefully. The finalists would have to address that as best they could. PNG are a solid side but were completely outplayed by the reigning champions. NZ had the tougher assignment but overcame a plucky Lionesses side. 

The depth Australia had in its squad and less strenuous semi allowed them to rotate the players more so had the Jillaroos hitting the final with freshness. The Kiwi Ferns had played their best side to get past England so they looked tired from the outset of the final. After a narrow 10-8 margin between the sides, a 54-4 drubbing in the final was not anticipated. 

For a round by round summary of the 2021 tournament, simply click the following labels: 

round 1; round 2, round 3, semifinals/final.

Women's RL WC History 2000-08

It may surprise many that there have been six women's tournaments, going back to the year 2000. It's had many formats and teams have come and gone but is settling down as it progresses. Let's look at the history. We start with the first three tournaments. 

2000: Host Country - England. Winners New Zealand

Only three nations competed, Australia, GB (England) and NZ. In the first stage of the event, each team played each other once with NZ winning both matches, GB a win and a loss, Australia two losses. 

They then had playoff matches, with NZ and GB both defeating Australia and going into a final. NZ overcame England 26-4 in that encounter.  

2003: Host Country - New Zealand. Winner New Zealand 

Eight nations and the NZ Maori made up an impressive nine team competition. They were divided into three pools. There were two phases and a finals series, making up 25 games. 

Phase One: GB, Australia and NZ were the group winners. Samoa, NZ Maori and the Cook Is were the second placed sides, and they joined the top three in Phase Two. Tonga, Niue and Tokelau were eliminated but played off for Bowl and Plate titles. 

Phase Two: The top two from each group would progress to the semi finals and the third side eliminated. NZ Maori won Group 1 with GB second on points differential. NZ and Australia progressed as did Niue and Tokelau in Group 3.

Plate/Bowl: The lower ranked Bowl title went to Tokelau and the Plate was won by Samoa at the expense of the Cook Is. 

Semi Finals/Final: NZ easily defeated GB and the NZ Maori defeated Australia, setting up an all NZ final showdown. The NZ team turned it on and ran away with the final 58-0.

2008: Host Country - Australia. Winner New Zealand

A more conventional format was used in the 2008 edition. Seven nations took part with a Pacific regional side included. France and Russia made their first appearance at a WC. 

Group Stage: In Group 1, Australia and England progressed with Russia and France eliminated. For Group 2, NZ and the Pacific went through with Samoa and Tonga going no further.

Semi Finals/Final: NZ got past GB and Australia likewise the Pacific region. The final was easily won by NZ for their third title in three attempts. 

The Kiwis had were undefeated in the fifteen WC matches they had played over three tournaments. They were the benchmark. The question was could they maintain that? The next in the series reveals all and can be accessed by clicking here. 

2021 WC Attendance Figures: Women's

The women's game starting to take off and some players are now getting paid to do so. The attendance numbers are growing, a sign that interest in this side of the code is on the up. That will translate into more women getting financial rewards for their effort. 

The below attendances were good compared to what would have been expected even a few years ago. The grand final figure was for a double header with the men's version. It's impossible to say how many were there for the women's event so with all doubled up games, the number of tickets sold is credited evenly to both matches. That's got to be world record for women's RL, albeit achieved in the circumstances mentioned.

World Cup 2021 : Semi Finals/Final (Women's)

Australia 82-0 PNG

The conditions were very foggy and typical of North England in autumn. The Jillaroos were expected to win this and after ten minutes lead 6-0. The ineffective PNG kicking game was nullifying the hard work they were putting in. Then the floodgates started to open. Some of the mistakes that were creeping into the PNG game would have made under six players blush. 40-0 at the break was the result.

In the second half, PNG tackling became less effective as they tired and presumably became disspirited. The Orchids had some good performances against less experienced sides but against the Jillaroos, they went missing in action. They got back into it toward the end of the game but their attack was firing blanks so no danger there. 

New Zealand 20-6 England (Picture above; rlwc2021)

The game started with a Kiwi mistake and a Lioness try. The Kiwis started having success in outmuscling their opponents and had opportunities probing with their right side attack. NZ got to an 8-6 lead after 30 minutes but England was holding up well and happy to keep the deficit to two points. Some of the passing and handling was clunky from both sides. 

In the second half, England attack proved to be sterile and while the Kiwis weren't great either, they had enough firepower to turn some opportunities into points. The standard between the Southern and Northern Hemispheres was starkly exposed. The Lionesses were galant but it's execution that wins games and they were poor in that department. The result was no surprise.   

Grand Final: Australia 54-4 New Zealand 

With gaps between games short, Australia had the deeper squad and rested players which was helpful to keep the players fresh. NZ used the same players more often and that had the Kiwi side looking sluggish from the outset. Within five the sharper Jillaroos were ahead. Kiwi attacks were being dealt with but not the other way around. 20-0 at the turn around.

The second half was the Jillaroo show and it was 38-0 with a quarter to go. Just when it looked like the Kiwis wouldn't score they manufactured a fine try. Then Australia came back with more tries, one off a forward pass but why give a well beaten side a break? 

World Cup 2021 : Round Three (Women's)

Canada 22-16 Brazil

It was a scrappy game throughout but the effort and closeness of the score kept it interesting. Canada was expected to be too good but it was Brazil who scored an early try. Canada finally got a try after 25 minutes which settled them but they could only manage a 10-6 lead at the break. 

When Brazil got an intercept try to take it to 10-10 and with a few minutes to go 16-16, it was proving far closer than pundits had thought. A last gasp try to Canada got them home. It was a relief for the Ravens and their only win. For Brazil, no win but morale boosting effort which should do something for the game back home. 

England 42-4 PNG

PNG came out very physically and got an early try to boot. PNG's aggression seemed to tire them, England weathered it and gradually started to control proceedings. Vicky Whitfield was outstanding in the England pack. 14-4 at the turn around.

England dominated PNG through the forward drives and the points followed. A tough encounter both sides needed. PNG needs more quality and not just reliant on hard hits. England needs to convert more of the chances they work hard to set up. 

Cook Is 26-18 France

The game started cautiously with neither side impressing. At the quarter mark, the Moana led 6-0 from a barge over try. Several minutes later, France replied with a try of their own, the first in the tournament. The Cooks replied immediately under the posts. France was struggling to contain the big Moana forwards. 12-4 to the Cooks at half time. 

Almost straight off the leaders extended their lead but a long range response from France had the score at 16-10. A couple more tries and the Cooks prevailed. The size of the victors was telling but France was gutsy. 

Australia v New Zealand (picture above)

Both sides excelled in defence and it took 20 minutes before the deadlock was broken, the Jillaroos the beneficiaries. It took another ten minutes for the Kiwi Ferns to reply and become the first team to score against the Jillaroos in the tournament. It would have been tied but a kick in front of the posts was a bridge too far! For two top sides, too many mistakes. Score after the first forty 6-4. 

The second half continued with sloppy play. Finally the Kiwis got ahead for the first time after 55 minutes, 8-6. Then the Jillaroos hit back just after 60 minutes to lead 10-8. That's how it stayed, two tries apiece so nothing in it. It was error strewn though, both sides guilty. 

World Cup 2021 : Round Two (Women's)

Round two is completed so here are the match summaries.

England 54-4 Canada. (picture above)

The Ravens had plenty of possession early on but struggled to make the most of it. Unfortunately for then, when England got near their line points were conceded too easily. 30-0 the score at the turn around. Canada did manage a nice try but there was only one outcome. I would say from what I've seen so far, England will not win the WC.

PNG 70-0 Brazil.

Brazil had a mountain to climb against a much more experienced PNG Orchids. The wet weather wasn't respected so there was some scrappy play. There was strong defence from both sides too, but the difference was PNG were playing at the right end of the field and regularly turned chances into points. It was 18-0 to the Orchids at half time.

Frankly, I skipped through the second half as Brazil was too inexperienced to be here and a hard watch. I hope they learned something and it does give the game a lift in Brazil. 

Australia 92-0 France. 

I could not believe what I was seeing. Within a few minutes the two following incidents. An Australian player kicked on the 5th tackle into a French player at point blank range and somehow it was ruled played at. Then a Jillaroo player held the jersey of the tackler so she can't get up and ruled six again. Both led to tries. It was always going to be one result but the early officiating was a farce.

Needless to say, I don't watch rubbish so for the first time at the world cup I bypassed it. Get your act together WC officiating. You don't give a clearly better side pathetically unfair calls. 

New Zealand 34-4 Cook Is. 

The Kiwi Ferns were hot favourites over the Moana but wet conditions made handling tricky. Whenever they got near the Cooks line, points usually ensued. That said, just 14-0 when the teams changed ends. The Moana got one try which a small victory for them. Overall, the gap between the sides was obvious when it came to attacking play.

World Cup 2021 : Round One (Women's)

The women's side of RL is part of a wider tournament. The first round featured four games and the summary follows.

England 72-4 Brazil. (Pic above)

Brazil was playing just its third international match so little was expected in terms of a win but huge step up and a learning curve. It was 34-0 at the turn around and the second half was a continuatuion of the first. 

Unsurprisingly, England were too good but Brazil managed to score a try, which was nice for them. England will have to be a lot better if they want to win the tournament. They fell into the trap of taking shortcuts rather than doing the basics and building off the back of that. 

PNG 34-12 Canada.

PNG were favoured with experience in the NRLW in Australia. The first 25 minutes were tight but too many fumbles and wayward passes kept the score to zero. Finally, PNG got some field possession and made it count. Then Canada came back and the Ravens lead 6-4. The orchids then got another one to lead 8-6 at the break.

A minute into the second period and PNG was in again. Canada was tiring and PNG's conditioning started to count. Canada battled bravely on defence but the Orchids were slicker out wide and ran away with it at the end. The scoreline didn't reflect the efforts but it did the quality.

Australia 72-0 Cook Is.

The Jillaroos were the favourites here and indeed for the tournament. They soon stamped their authority on proceedings and the Moana were struggling to get hold of the ball and apply any pressure on the opposition. They did manage some time on the Jillaroos line late in the half but it ended up 32-0 to Australia.

The second half started with the Cook Is missing a gilt edged chance to score. Normal transmission then resumed and the Jillaroos ran out comfortable winners. 

New Zealand 46-0 France.

The Kiwi Ferns were hot favourites but were clunky initially and the game was surprisingly even. NZ took the lead after 24 minutes with a try out wide. As the half progressed the Kiwis looked more likely while the few chances France worked hard for didn't threaten much. Half time score was 20-0.The second period was as expected although France toiled and kept the score somewhat respectable. 

RL Women's WC 2017 : Grand Final

The final was never going to be one sided, with both sides well matched. The Kiwi Ferns the slightly more robust side while the Jillaroos the have the edge in slickness. It was the Australians who took an early lead but the Kiwis came back to lead 10-6 with the half time hooter not far away. However, a try just before the break gave the hosts a 12-10 lead.

In the second half, the Jillaroos took control to lead 22-10 and with 10 minutes to go, looked home and hosed. The Kiwis came back with with a converted try and there was everything to play for. The locals hung on and even managed a one point field goal at the end.

Final score: Australia 23-16 New Zealand.

RL Women's WC 2017 : Semi Finals

The expectation then pool play highlighted two team far and away better than the others. Would the semi finals confirm that?

Game One: The Canada Ravens had to return to face the Australia Jillaroos after losing 88-0 just days earlier. The favourites were trying to go one better than last time and raced to a 42-0 half time lead. However, any hope of exceeding the last effort was stymied in the second period with a more even contest and Canada managing to score as well.

Final score: Australia 58-6 Canada.

Game two: The England Lionesses hadn't met the New Zealand Kiwi Ferns in this tournament. More had been expected of them but the gap has widened between hemispheres. 14-4 at the break was tight but not thereafter as the Kiwi Ferns ran away with the game.

Final score: New Zealand 52-4 England.

The final that was predicted by me and most others has materialised. Before the tournament I was thinking Australia would take it. Now I think it will come down to who plays better on the day.

For the Round One Summary, just click here.

RL Women's WC 2017 : 3rd Round Summary

The final round to determine who will be the four semi finalists. As it transpired, the qualifiers were already known. That didn't stop everyone giving it their all.

Game One: The Cook Islands had lost twice heavily and England had been more competitive so were clear favourites. The Moanas didn't read the script and went to a 16-0 half time lead over the Lionesses, who at this stage looked more like pussycats. The second half was different and the scores were tied 16-16 but a late score for the Cooks got them home.

Final score: Cook Islands 22-16 England.

The Cook Islands celebrate a win after heavy losses

Game Two: Canada got the short straw when its cross pool match was Australia. It was a mission impossible for the new nation in women's RL and so it proved. The 44-0 half time score was the same as the second half. A lesson in where the Ravens need to be and a chance to improve when they meet the Jillaroos in their semi final clash.

Final score: Australia 88-0 Canada.

Game Three: The Kiwi Ferns were hot favourites to overcome the PNG Orchids but got more of a battle than was expected, as the close 8-0 scoreline on the turn around confirms. They pulled a way to win in the end comfortably but a gallant effort form the PNG women.

Final score: New Zealand 38-0 PNG.

Semi finals: New Zealand play England and Australia against Canada. The Jillaroos and the Kiwi Ferns are set to resume their rivalry in the final.

For the Semi Final Summary: simply click here.
For the Round One Summary, just click here.

Photo source: BBC.

RL Women's WC 2017 : 2nd Round Summary

With Australia and New Zealand already firm favourites to reach the final, the focus was on how the rest would go trying to secure a semi finals berth.

Game One: Hosts and top seed Australia took on third seed England. The 24-0 half time scoreline to the Jillaroos was hardly surprising. The second half was more even but England were unable to cross their opponents line. I the end Australia scored eight tries.

Final score: Australia 38-0 England.

Six tries coming up

Game Two: New Zealand want their top ranking back and didn't hold back against the Cook Islands side. The first ten minutes were even but then the Kiwi Ferns took control and raced to a 38-0 half time lead. The second period was more of the same as NZ scored at nearly a point a minute. Winger H Hireme crossed for six of the team's 14 tries.

Final score: New Zealand 76-0 Cook Islands.

Game Three: The most intriguing clash of the triple header was between Canada and Papua New Guinea. The PNG Orchids took an early lead but the Canada Ravens got ahead in the 25th minute and led 10-4 at the break. Although PNG pulled it back to 8-10, the Ravens ran out the winners.

Final score: Canada 22-8 PNG.

Summary: The results mean that Canada and England should get the the semi finals along with Australia and New Zealand.

For the Round Three Summary, simply click here.
For the Round One Summary, just click here.

RL Women's WC 2017 : 1st Round Summary

Finally the women are part of the tournament, as the first round - a triple header - was played in Sydney, Australia. Australia are favourites and New Zealand the other possible winners but after that highly unlikely the other four teams have any hope of lifting the trophy come finals day. The first round confirmed that as a likely outcome. Still, WCs to me are not just about winning but competing.

Game One: First up a Pool B game between New Zealand and Canada. The Kiwi Ferns side is a tough one honed on matches with the old enemy Australia. They took on an unknown quantity of Rugby Union converts taking to RL, known as the Ravens.

In the first half it was quite close as the Kiwis Ferns tried to find their groove and the Ravens were giving it their all. They changed ends with score 16-4. In the second half the NZ team's size, power and experience started to tell and ran away with the game.

Final score: New Zealand 50-4 Canada.

Game Two: Then it was the turn of the Australian Jillaroos against the Cook Islands Moanas (definition: a body of open water). The Jillaroos (definition: young woman in training on a cattle or sheep farm) hit the ground running and led 36-0 at the break. It was more even in the second half but by that time the horse had well and truly bolted.

Final score: Australia 58-4 Cook Islands.

Game Three: The PNG Orchids were expected to give the England Lionesses a run for their money and led early in the contest. However, the Lionesses had clawed back the initiative to lead 18-8 when oranges were passed around. In the second period England took control, going on to win but with some injuries along the way.

Final score: England 38-8 PNG.

Attendance: 3,000.

For the Second Round Summary, simply click here.
To see my tournament predictions, please click here.
To see my tournament preview, just click here.

Women's WC : 2017 Predictions

I have to be up front and say that I am not that familiar about women's rugby league, but I'm happy to see it grow and prosper. Publicity and appreciating their contribution to RL is merited and I will do my small bit in that regard.

The matches kick off on the 19th of November in Sydney and the grand final is on the 2nd of December, played before the men's final. That's at Suncorp Staduim, capacity 52,500. Now that's giving the women's game some respect. I hope a lot of fans turn up earlier to watch that game, as I'm sure they will.

There are two pools with three teams in each. I see Pool A as straight forward and as how I picked them below. Pool B is harder as Canada is an unknown quantity to me. I've gone for PNG but not with any confidence with the decision.

Once into the knock out semi finals and I can only see two teams progressing. Then the Australians who have been improving more than the Kiwis in recent years will be too good.

			Pool A
			Australia	6		Semi Finals
			England	4
			Cook Is	0		Australia	W
						PNG
			Pool B
			New Zealand	6		New Zealand	W
			PNG	2		England
			Canada	0
			Grand Final
			Australia				W
			New Zealand

For the Round One Summary, just click here.
To see my tournament preview, just click here.

Women's WC : 2017 Preview

The fifth RLWC for women is being held this year. Some of the other WCs were unusual in terms of what teams were playing but at least for the 2017 edition, all participants will be nations. There will be six teams: Group One is Australia, Cook Is and England. Canada, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea make up Group Two. There are inter-group matches too. England v PNG, NZ v Cook Is and Australia v Canada.

Why France couldn't provide a side may have something to do with finances but I'm speculating there. They played two competitive games against England in June 2017. Pacific nations Samoa and Tonga were in a playoff with the Cook Is for the one spot and the Cooks got it. Why couldn't all three be there? I'm surprised Canada is there as the men haven't ever made a tournament, but their hard work has been recognised.

It commences on the 16th of November and concludes on the 2nd of December 2017. All games up to the final are at the Southern Cross Group Stadium, Sydney. The final at the Brisbane Stadium. There will be a total of 12 matches.

For the Round One Summary, just click here.
To see my tournament predictions, please click here.