1975 Rugby League World Cup
| 1975 World Cup | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Number of teams | 5 |
| Winner |
 Australia (4th title) |
|
| |
| Matches played | 21 |
| Attendance | 204,476 (9,737 per match) |
| Points scored | 661 (31.48 per match) |
| Top scorer |
Mick Cronin (76) |
| Top try scorers |
 Keith Fielding (7) Ian Schubert (7) |
The 1975 Rugby League World Championship (also referred to as the World Series[1]) was the seventh ever tournament for the Rugby League World Cup. The format differed radically from that employed in previous competitions; no one country hosted the matches, which were spread out in a 'world series' hosted by each of the five participating nations over a period of just over eight months. Each team had to play the others on a 'home and away' basis. Great Britain were split up into separate England and Wales teams, taking advantage of a glut of Welsh talent in the British game at the time.
No final was held, with Australia being deemed the champions by virtue of finishing on top of the table[2] with England coming in second.[3]
Teams
Australia
The Australian squad was captain-coached by Graeme Langlands. The Eastern Suburbs club, being current NSWRFL premiers were the most heavily represented team.
England
England were coached by Bill Oxley and Alex Murphy, and captained by Roger Millward.[4]
New Zealand
The New Zealand team was coached by George Menzies (West Coast) and managed by Des Jenkinson (Auckland) and Brian Watson (Auckland).
Wales
Coach: Les Pearce[5]
(5/8) indicates the number of games played in the 1975 World Cup. |
Venues
14 venues across the five competing countries hosted games of the 1975 Rugby League World Cup. Wales used their own home venue at Swansea, but also played home games in England in both Salford and Warrington. England also played a 'home' game against Wales at Lang Park in Brisbane, Australia.
| Sydney |
 Marseille |
Brisbane |
Bradford |
Wigan |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney Cricket Ground | Stade Vélodrome | Lang Park | Odsal Stadium | Central Park |
| Capacity: 70,000 | Capacity: 49,000 | Capacity: 40,000 | Capacity: 40,000 | Capacity: 40,000 |
.jpg) |
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 |
 |
 |
| Toulouse |
Bordeaux |
Leeds |
 Auckland |
Salford |
| Stadium Municipal | Stade du Parc Lescure | Headingley | Carlaw Park | The Willows |
| Capacity: 35,000 | Capacity: 30,000 | Capacity: 30,000 | Capacity: 20,000 | Capacity: 17,000 |
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 |
_001.JPG) |
 |
 |
 Swansea |
Christchurch |
Warrington |
Perpignan | |
| St Helen's Rugby Ground | Addington Showgrounds | Wilderspool Stadium | Stade Gilbert Brutus | |
| Capacity: 15,000 | Capacity: 15,000 | Capacity: 15,000 | Capacity: 13,000 | |
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 |
 |
Results
In this match Mick Cronin kicked nine goals.
England winger Keith Fielding created a new record by scoring four tries against a hapless French team at Bordeaux.
Kangaroo wing prodigy Ian Schubert also scored a hat-trick tries.
English stand-off Ken Gill ran in three tries.
In this match Jim Mills, the Wales prop, was banned for the rest of the season after an altercation. The ban was eventually lifted on 2 January 1976.
Final standings
| Team | Played | Won | Drew | Lost | For | Against | Difference | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 198 | 69 | +129 | 13 |
| England | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 167 | 84 | +83 | 12 |
| Wales | 8 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 110 | 130 | −20 | 6 |
| New Zealand | 8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 121 | 149 | −28 | 6 |
| France | 8 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 40 | 204 | −164 | 3 |
Final challenge match
As Australia had not beaten England to win the cup, a final challenge was hastily arranged. The Kangaroos showed they were worthy World Champions with a comprehensive 25–0 win at Headingley in front of a disappointing crowd of 7,680 which was over 11,000 less than had attended the 1970 World Cup Final between Great Britain and Australia at the same venue.
References
- ↑ Clarkson, Alan (10 June 1974). "Fulton battles injury". The Sydney Morning Herald. Australia. Retrieved 11 February 2010.
- ↑ Paddy McAteer (22 December 2010) "Whole World in their Hands" Archived 5 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine. North West Evening Mail
- ↑ "World Cup 1975" at 188-rugby-league.co.uk Archived 7 August 2009 at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ Raymond Fletcher; David Howes (1995). Rothmans Rugby League Yearbook 1995–1996. London: Headline Book Publishing. pp. 429–430. ISBN 0-7472-7817-2.
- ↑ Clarkson, Alan (10 June 1974). "We'll take them apart". The Sydney Morning Herald. Australia. Retrieved 11 February 2010.
External links
- 1975 World Cup at rlhalloffame.org.uk
- 1975 World Cup at rlwc2008.com
- 1975 World Cup at rugbyleagueproject.com
- 1975 World Cup data at hunterlink.net.au