Rugby League World Cup 2017 - Round 1

Rugby League World Cup 2017 - Round 1

Australia, Tonga, Papua New Guinea and Fiji lead their pools after the opening round of Rugby League World Cup 2017 matches.

The first weekend of RLWC2017 matches concluded on Sunday, with Ireland, Lebanon and Tonga joining the Kangaroos, New Zealand, Kumuls and Bati as Round 1 winners.

The Wolfhounds shocked an Italy team featuring the likes of James Tedesco, Mark Minichiello and Paul Vaughan in the first match of a double-header at Barlow Park while the Mate Ma’a proved too strong for a brave Scotland in the second game.

A thriller in Canberra finished with Lebanon snatching a late win over France after the scores had been locked at 18-18 in the 74th minute.

The matches followed Australia’s 18-4 win over England in Friday night's World Cup opener and three games on Saturday in which Papua New Guinea beat Wales 50-6 in Port Moresby, the Kiwis overcame an emotion-charged Samoa 38-8 in Auckland and Fiji defeated a spirited USA 58-12 in Townsville.

RLWC2017 has provided the following rights free match reports for use by news outlets. To access these rights free match reports only, click on the links below.

All other editorial content on the rlwc2017.com website is unavailable for use elsewhere without permission or unless advised otherwise.

Ireland v Italy

An impressive Ireland have upset Italy at Barlow Park in Cairns, claiming a surprising 36-12 victory and throwing the pre-tournament predictions out the window

France v Lebanon

A Mitchell Moses masterclass has secured Lebanon their first ever World Cup victory as they defeated France 29-18 at Canberra Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

Scotland v Tonga

Tonga’s opening forty minutes in their 50-4 win over Scotland at Barlow Park in Cairns will leave the Tier-One nations with another foe to fear after they lived up to their hype and delivered a brilliant display to conclude the opening round of RLWC2017 action.

Below are the full tables after Round 1 of RLWC2017 Pool Matches. The RLWC2017 action resumes on Friday, with Australia meeting France at Canberra Stadium ahead of a full weekend of Round 2 Pool Matches on Saturday and Sunday in Christchurch, Hamilton, Port Moresby, Sydney and Townsville.

Pool A Won Lost Draw For Against Diff Points
Australia 1 0 0 18 4 +14 2
Lebanon 1 0 0 29 18 +11 2
France 0 1 0 18 29 -11 0
England 0 1 0 4 18 -14 0

Pool B Won Lost Draw For Against Diff Points
Tonga 1 0 0 50 4 +46 2
NZ 1 0 0 38 8 +30 2
Samoa 0 1 0 8 38 -30 0
Scotland 0 1 0 4 50 -46 0

Pool C Won Lost Draw For Against Diff Points
PNG 1 0 0 50 6 +44 2
Ireland 1 0 0 36 12 +24 2
Wales 0 1 0 6 50 -44 0

Pool D Won Lost Draw For Against Diff Points
Fiji 1 0 0 58 12 +46 2
Italy 0 1 0 12 36 -24 0
USA 0 1 0 12 58 -46 0

Teams in Group C and D play one crossover game against a team in the other pool.

The following match reports from earlier games are also available rights free:

Papua New Guinea v Wales

PNG captain David Mead and backrower Rhys Martin set new try scoring and points scoring marks to spearhead the Kumuls to their biggest win ever in a World Cup match, beating Wales 50-6 in Port Moresby.

New Zealand v Samoa

New Zealand scored five unanswered second half tries to blow Samoa off the park in a physical opening round World Cup clash in Auckland, but the win was soured by the loss of centre Gerard Beale with a leg injury.

Fiji v USA

Jarryd Hayne equaled the Rugby League World Cup all-time try-scoring record as he inspired Fiji to a resounding 58-12 victory over the USA in Townsville on Saturday night.

Australia v England

England may have to qualify for the Rugby League World Cup final for Sam Burgess to play again in the tournament, while Australian lock Jake Trbojevic has been ruled out after suffering a torn pectoral muscle.

ENDS

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