Australia’s women’s rugby league team secured a record fourth consecutive World Cup title after overwhelming New Zealand 34-10 in Brisbane. A dominant six-try display in the opening half created a 34-6 interval lead, effectively deciding the final within the opening stages.
Dominant First-Half Performance
Facing high temperatures that required mandatory drinks breaks in both halves alongside an extended halftime interval, Australia gained early control of the match. Jaime Chapman opened the scoring after just 125 seconds, driving through three defenders on the left wing. Shaylee Bent soon broke through the line from close range for Australia’s second try, before Chapman completed a flying finish in the corner following an offload.
Jess Sergis added a fourth try after a full-length run down the pitch, despite a potential forward pass during the buildup. New Zealand responded when Shannon Mato scored following successive penalties conceded by the hosts. However, Chapman quickly added her third try after avoiding multiple tackles on a 60-metre break. Before the break, slick passing along the right wing allowed Abbi Church to set up Tamika Upton for a score under the posts. Stand-off Jesse Southwell, selected ahead of Jocelyn Kelleher by head coach Jess Skinner, successfully converted five of her six kick attempts.
Second-Half Battle and Tournament Stats
Chapman was named player of the match after recording 151 metres, three line-breaks, seven tackle-busts, and a key defensive try-saver. Her display followed a recovery from several recent injury challenges, including a spinal fracture in February 2025.
Australian captain Isabelle Kelly commended the winger’s finishing ability under pressure.
“She’s so young – it’s quite scary,” Kelly said. “As a centre, your job is to provide for your winger. Every single time she’s there, she executes and finishes to such a high standard.”
“The fact she was able to get that down with three girls on her is incredible. Once you get her strides going, she’s very hard to stop,” Kelly added. “She’s had a lot of stuff going on the last few years and she’s really stepped up and owned that position.”
Australia did not score in the second period, with Tarryn Aiken denied by a goal-line tackle from Georgia Hale. New Zealand preserved their record of not conceding any second-half points throughout the tournament, though handling errors and poor set completions hampered their attacking execution. Mackenzie Wiki provided a late try for the Kiwi Ferns in the 70th minute.
New Zealand head coach Ricky Henry noted that early momentum shifted the game out of reach.
“Mixed emotions – we obviously came with high hopes of playing really well,” Henry said. “It was a game of two halves and that’s the frustrating part for us. We were able to get it back together in the second half but it was too little, too late.”
“We didn’t handle the speed of the game at the start. They got on top and from there, we couldn’t regroup and get our rhythm,” Henry added.
The result extends Australia’s unbeaten World Cup run to 16 matches, dating back to July 2013. Apart from a brief period in the semi-final against Fiji—who became the first team in 13 years to score first against Australia in a World Cup fixture—the champions finished the tournament with 306 points scored and 30 conceded.
