| 1985–1988 World Cup | |
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| Number of teams | 5 |
| Winner | Australia (6th title) |
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| Matches played | 18 |
| Attendance | 218,246 (12,125 per match) |
| Points scored | 769 (42.72 per match) |
| Top scorer | Michael O'Connor (74) |
| Top try scorer | Michael O'Connor (6) |
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< 1977
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The ninth Rugby League World Cup saw yet another change of format. The competition was stretched to cover almost three years (1985 to 1988), with teams playing each other on a home and away basis. These matches were fitted into the normal international programme of three-match test series between the nations, with a pre-designated match from each series counting as the world cup fixture.
The competition was further altered by the addition of a new nation, Papua New Guinea.[1] The Kumuls performed creditably, particularly when playing in the front of their fiercely patriotic home crowd. Conversely, France were unable to fulfil their 1987 tour of Australasia due to financial difficulties, and had to forfeit away fixtures against Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea.
At the end of four years, Australia finished top of the table, and, through a victory over Great Britain in Christchurch, the Kiwis qualified to host the final. Unfortunately for them, home advantage was not enough for New Zealand, who went down 12-25 to the seemingly invincible Australians.
Contents |
| 7 July |
New Zealand | 18–0 | Australia | Carlaw Park, Auckland Attendance: 15,327 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 November |
Great Britain | 6–6 | New Zealand | Headingley, Leeds Attendance: 22,209 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 December |
France | 0–22 | New Zealand | Stade Gilbert Brutus, Perpignan Attendance: 5,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 February |
France | 10–10 | Great Britain | Parc des Sports, Avignon Attendance: 4,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 July |
Australia | 32–12 | New Zealand | Lang Park, Brisbane Attendance: 22,811 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986-08-17 |
Papua New Guinea | 24–22 | New Zealand | Lloyd Robson Oval, Port Moresby Attendance: 15,000 |
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| 1986-10-04 |
Papua New Guinea | 12–62 | Australia | Lloyd Robson Oval, Port Moresby Attendance: 17,000 |
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| 1986-11-22 |
Great Britain | 15–24 | Australia | Central Park, Wigan Attendance: 20,169 Referee: J. Rascagneres |
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| 1986-12-13 |
France | 0–52 | Australia | Stade d'Albert Domec, Carcassonne Attendance: 5,000 |
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| 1987-01-14 |
Great Britain | 52–4 | France | Headingley, Leeds Attendance: 6,567 |
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| 1987-10-24 |
Great Britain | 42–0 | Papua New Guinea | Central Park, Wigan Attendance: 9,121 |
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| 1987-11-15 |
France | 21–4 | Papua New Guinea | Stade d'Albert Domec, Carcassonne Attendance: 5,000 |
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| 1988-05-22 |
Papua New Guinea | 22–42 | Great Britain | Lloyd Robson Oval, Port Moresby Attendance: 12,107 |
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Great Britain were expected to be beaten missing the likes of Shaun Edwards, Kevin Beardmore, Steve Hampson, Andy Platt, Garry Schofield, Joe Lydon, Lee Crooks and Andy Goodway for one reason or another, with some players taking to the field not fully fit. It was the debut of Paul Hulme and Hugh Waddell in the front row.[2] The match was broadcast by the Nine network with commentary from Darryl Eastlake and Jack Gibson.
| Saturday, 9 July | Australia | 12 - 26 | Great Britain | Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney Attendance: 15,944 Referee/s: Francis Desplas Man of the Match: Andy Gregory |
| Tries: Lewis, Backo Goals: O'Connor (2/2) |
Tries: Gill (2), Offiah, Ford, M Gregory Goals: Loughlin (3/5) |
| Australia | Position | Great Britain |
|---|---|---|
| Garry Jack | 1. FB | Phil Ford |
| Andrew Ettingshausen | 2. WG | Henderson Gill |
| Michael O'Connor | 3. CE | David Stephenson |
| Peter Jackson | 4. CE | Paul Loughlin |
| Tony Currie | 5. WG | Martin Offiah |
| Wally Lewis (c) | 6. FE | David Hulme |
| Peter Sterling | 7. HB | Andy Gregory |
| Martin Bella | 8. PR | Kevin Ward |
| Greg Conescu | 9. HK | Paul Hulme |
| Sam Backo | 10. PR | Hugh Waddell |
| Wally Fullerton Smith | 11. SR | Mike Gregory |
| Paul Vautin | 12. SR | Roy Powell |
| Wayne Pearce | 13. LF | Ellery Hanley (c) |
| Gary Belcher | 14. Res. | Brian Case |
| Bob Lindner | 15. Res. | Darren Wright |
| Don Furner | Coach | Malcolm Reilly |
Early in the match Great Britain were disallowed a try when Henderson Gill dived onto an Andy Gregory bomb which was not secured by the Australian fullback.[3] The Kangaroos then had chances to score at the other end of the field, but the British defence held strong. The first try of the match would go to the visitors when, playing the ball inside Australia's twenty-two, they strung some passes together, getting the ball out to Martin Offiah who doved over the line on the right wing. The conversion attempt was missed so the score was 0 - 4 with over three quarters of the match still to be played. A few minutes later Great Britain were again on the attack in Australia's territory and keeping the ball alive, their scrum half back Andy Gregory darting about elusively before passing it to Ford who stepped and weaved his way amongst the defenders to dash through and score near the uprights. The conversion was successful, giving Great Britain a 0-10 lead. No more points were scored in the first half, so this was the score at the break.
Australia scored first in the second half after winning a scrum against the feed within Great Britain's twenty-two. Working the ball up close to the uprights, their captain Wally Lewis got it at first receiver and ran it into the defence, wrestling his way through to the tryline where he reached out and put it down beneath the black dot. The try was successfully converted, so the score was 6 - 10 in favour of the Lions. Great Britain then extended their lead after working the ball up into an attacking position where Andy Gregory chipped it ahead. In the rush of chasers from both sides trying to reach the ball it was knocked ahead into the in-goal area where Henderson Gill dived on it. The kick was successful so the British were leading 6-16. Again the Britons' failure to win a scrum in their own territory afforded Australia another opportunity, with forward Sam Backo crashing over the line shortly after from close range. The successful kick brought the Kangaroos back to within an unconverted try at 12-16. The Lions struck again from deep within their own half where centre Paul Loughlin got the ball at first receiver, ran through the defensive line and crossed half-way before passing to Henderson Gill in support on his outside to dive over on the right wing. The conversion attempt was missed, so the British lead was 12-20. Then they scored another long range try while working the ball away from their own line, Andy Gregory making a dart from dummy half, catching the markers napping and getting into open space. He then found Mike Gregory in support who ran about seventy metres to dive over under the posts. The easy kick meant a 26 - 12 lead for Great Britain and this is where the scoreboard remained at full time.
This was the end of a 15-match winning streak for the Australians,[4] and Great Britain's first Test victory over the Kangaroos since their 18-14 win at Odsal in 1978, as well as their first win in Australia for 18 years. It also put Great Britain on top of the World Cup points table.[5]
| 1988-07-10 |
New Zealand | 66–14 | Papua New Guinea | Carlaw Park, Auckland Attendance: 8,392 |
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| 1988-06-17 |
Australia | 70–8 | Papua New Guinea | Eric Weissel Oval, Wagga Wagga Attendance: 11,685 |
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The last group stage match had turned out to be a sudden death battle for a spot in the final, Britain needing only a draw.
| 1988-07-20 |
New Zealand | 12–10 | Great Britain | Addington Showground, Christchurch Attendance: 8,525 |
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The Kiwis victory meant they qualified to face Australia in the final at Eden Park, Auckland.
| Team | Played | Won | Drew | Lost | For | Against | Difference | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 252 | 91 | +161 | 121 |
| New Zealand | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 158 | 86 | +72 | 111 |
| Great Britain | 8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 203 | 90 | +113 | 10 |
| Papua New Guinea | 7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 84 | 325 | −241 | 41 |
| France | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 35 | 140 | −105 | 3 |
1Received two points for non-fulfilment of fixtures by France in 1987
| Sunday, 9 October 1988 | Australian Kangaroos | 25–12 | New Zealand Kiwis | Eden Park, Auckland Attendance: 47,363[6] Referee/s: Graham Ainui |
| Tries: Allan Langer (2) Gavin Miller Dale Shearer Goals: Michael O'Connor (4) Drop goals: Ben Elias |
Tries: Tony Iro Kevin Iro Goals: Peter Brown (2) |
| Australia | Position | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Garry Jack | 1. FB | Gary Mercer |
| Dale Shearer | 2. WG | Tony Iro |
| Andrew Farrar | 3. CE | Kevin Iro |
| Mark McGaw | 4. CE | Dean Bell (c) |
| Michael O'Connor | 5. WG | Mark Elia |
| Wally Lewis (c) | 6. FE | Gary Freeman |
| Allan Langer | 7. HB | Clayton Friend |
| Paul Dunn | 8. PR | Peter Brown |
| Ben Elias | 9. HK | Wayne Wallace |
| Steve Roach | 10. PR | Adrian Shelford |
| Paul Sironen | 11. SR | Mark Graham |
| Gavin Miller | 12. SR | Kurt Sorenson |
| Wayne Pearce | 13. LF | Mark Horo |
| David Gillespie | Res. | Shane Cooper |
| Terry Lamb | Res. | Sam Stewart |
| Don Furner | Coach | Tony Gordon |
Here, New Zealand met Australia in the World Cup final, the culmination of four years of competition. The Final was played at Eden Park, the first occasion that rugby league had used the ground since 1919. The final attracted one of the highest ever crowds for a rugby league match in New Zealand of 47,363.[7] Prior to kick-off Graham Brazier performed the New Zealand national anthem.
Due to the inexperience of the Australian team, the hosts went into the match as favourites in the eyes of many critics. However, the Wally Lewis-led Kangaroos - boasting the likes of Ben Elias, Allan Langer, Paul Sironen and David Gillespie among their 'inexperienced' - triumphed over the ill-disciplined Kiwis, who at least made sure the victorious Australians were bloodied and bruised for their victory lap. For the Kiwis, the Iro brothers, Dean Bell, Gary Freeman, Clayton Friend, Mark Graham, Adrian Shelford and Kurt Sorenson dished out the punishment.
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