Australia advanced to the Rugby League World Cup final with a 44-12 victory over Toa Samoa at Sydney’s Allianz Stadium. The resurgent Kangaroos delivered a dominant semi-final performance, highlighted by a hat-trick from Reece Walsh, to set up a title clash against New Zealand next weekend.
Match Dominated by Walsh and Kangaroos
The match was expected to be a fierce challenge for Australia following a series of unconvincing performances in the tournament. Instead, Samoa struggled with errors and ill-discipline, allowing the Kangaroos to control the one-sided contest with a completion rate of nearly 90% and holding their opponents to just one line break. Tom Dearden opened the scoring after stepping through the defensive line from a scrum, followed by a try from Jacob Preston after Keaon Koloamatangi broke through the middle and offloaded. Tom Trbojevic added another try shortly after following a turnover forced by replacement Pat Carrigan on Spencer Leniu. Walsh scored his first try just minutes after a video referee ruling went against Samoa’s Stephen Crichton, celebrating with barrel-roll acrobatics. Right before half-time, Cameron Murray created space for Bradman Best to score in the left corner, while Leniu was sent to the sin-bin for an outburst at referee Adam Gee in front of a crowd of 41,529.
Intense Pre-Match Ritual and Second-Half Action
The match began with a fiery pre-match Siva Tau from Samoa that brought both teams face to face, featuring a forehead clash between Samoa’s Brian To’o and Australia’s Tino Fa’asuamaleaui. Early exchanges saw Australia penalized two minutes in, though momentum shifted when Crichton was initially denied. Early in the second half, Walsh dropped a Ronald Volkman kick to allow Crichton to score a four-pointer for Samoa. However, Walsh quickly responded by spinning through the defensive line from a pass by Harry Grant. Walsh completed his hat-trick with a flowing try set up by Cam Munster, finishing with a half-swan dive despite coach Kevin Walters’ earlier instructions on the broadcast to avoid acrobatics. A second-half effort by Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow was disallowed by the video referee, but Australia maintained control to secure the win.
Next weekend’s finals day features a trans-Tasman double-header at Lang Park after the Jillaroos and Kiwi Ferns reached the women’s decider. The men’s final will be a rematch of the tournament’s opening game against New Zealand.
