Players do not need to be born in the country they represent but they do need to build those international bonds over timeBy Gavin Willacy for No Helmets RequiredThe World Cup has shown rugby league fans there are a few things we need to stop worrying …
Run to semi-finals beset with passport, visa and payment issuesKevin Naiqama calls for board to be oustedFiji captain Kevin Naiqama has called for the Fiji National Rugby League board to be voted out and re-iterated the players will boycott until they …
It has been a rollercoaster year across the codes but women’s sport has gone from strength to strength‘This moment is for you’: how women’s sport rocked 2017Australian sports quiz of the year 2017In the 43rd minute of the Matildas’ 30 July match agains…
The organisers of the 2021 World Cup should maximise TV audiences, appoint neutral referees, give players more rest and rethink scheduling and qualificationBy Gavin Willacy for No Helmets Required, part of the Guardian Sport NetworkWatching the final a…
The organisers of the 2021 World Cup should maximise TV audiences, appoint neutral referees, give players more rest and rethink scheduling and qualificationBy Gavin Willacy for No Helmets Required, part of the Guardian Sport NetworkWatching the final a…
The era of Cronk, Smith and Slater may be over, but Australia’s past and current talent spells trouble for England and NSWAnd then there were two. Perhaps the biggest news coming out of the epic 2017 tournament – which saw Australia edge out an incredi…
The national side needs to play more often if it is to become a force comparable to Australia when the tournament takes place on home soil in four yearsHistorically in English rugby league, there are no shortage of instances of chest?beating and confid…
England coach Wayne Bennett says he is proud of his side after their narrow loss to Australia in the final of the Rugby League World Cup on Saturday. The Kangaroos prevailed by a scoreline of 6-0 in a thrilling and tense meeting in Brisbane. ‘It’s a pi…
Pushing Australia so hard in the World Cup final shows the progress made under Wayne Bennett and should inspire great confidence for the futureIt’s the hope that kills you. If there is one overriding image which will remain with England fans for at lea…
Australia 6-0 EnglandBoyd Cordner’s first-half try proves decisiveEngland’s rugby league World Cup dream has ended in heartbreak on a warm Brisbane night as Australia edged to a tense 6-0 victory in the closest final the sport has seen in decades.Engla…
Updates from the title decider at Suncorp Stadium in BrisbaneGet in touch with Paul on email or via Twitter @PFConnolly 9.27am GMT And the pressure tells, Cordner crashing over down the left channel after a fine short ball from Morgan. Widdop did his b…
Australia 23-16 New ZealandCo-captains Steph Hancock and Renae Kunst farewelledTears of joy have flowed with the Jillaroos farewelling co-captains Steph Hancock and Renae Kunst in style, defending their Rugby League World Cup title with a 23-16 win ove…
Australia will be well aware that the 28-year-old enjoys nothing more than a challenge and has supreme track record in the biggest gamesThere is nothing, you suspect, that Sam Burgess enjoys more than a challenge. After all, this is a man who stun…
Australia can boast the incomparable Cameron Smith, but England wing Jermaine McGillvary is in the form to cause the Kangaroos real problemsCameron Smith Winner of the 2017 Golden Boot award, the NRL’s Dally M award this year and with the second most T…
• Josh Hodgson also misses final against Australia with major knee injury• ‘We lose two senior boys who are great players but we gain James Roby’Sam Burgess insists nothing will change as he prepares to lead England in Saturday’s Rugby League World Cup…
England may have lost 12 straight matches against Australia but they have enough quality to upset the Kangaroos in Brisbane on SaturdayBy Gavin Willacy for No Helmets Required, part of the Guardian Sport NetworkThe Kangaroos have won all their prelimin…
Twenty-two years on from Australia’s Wembley win, those beaten narrowly that day such as Karl Harrison, Phil Clarke and Mick Cassidy have their fingers crossed for Saturday’s finalWhen England take to the field in Brisbane on Saturday for their first R…
The fleet-footed winger has made Rugby League World Cup history with five and six-try hauls, but things haven’t always been so easy“It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s Super Val Holmes tearing down the left flank for the Kangaroos!” For those uninitiated i…
Ahead of the Jillaroos-Kiwi Ferns contest the demand for a national competition in Australia has never been greater Some 10 years ago, the National Rugby League (NRL) launched its inaugural Women in League round, largely paying homage to the unsung fem…
• ‘He’s doing everything possible,’ Chris Hill says of England captain• O’Loughlin picked up a quad injury in 20-18 semi-final defeat of TongaSean O’Loughlin is on the mend for Saturday’s World Cup final against Australia but the England forward Chris …
