1975 Rugby League World Cup

None May 2014 April 2026 1975 World Cup 1975wcsr.png 170px 5 Australia France New Zealand United Kingdom Australia 4 21 204476 661 AUS Mick Cronin (76) ENG Keith Fielding (7) AUS Ian Schubert (7) Rugby League World Cup 1972 1977 The 1975 Rugby League World Cup (officially known as the 1975 Rugby League World Championship Clarkson Alan Fulton battles injury The Sydney Morning Herald Australia 10 June 1974 https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=QBcRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ROcDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2840,2165402&dq=alex-murphy&hl=en 11 February 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20160730130558/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=QBcRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ROcDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2840,2165402&dq=alex-murphy&hl=en 30 July 2016 dead ) was the seventh World Cup for men’s rugby league national teams and ran from 2 March to 12 November. Australia were the winners for a fourth time after topping the group table.Paddy McAteer (22 December 2010) "Whole World in their Hands" https://web.archive.org/web/20121005172123/http://www.nwemail.co.uk/sport/whole-world-in-their-hands-1.793415?referrerPath=sport%2F 5 October 2012 North West Evening Mail Unlike previous World Cups, there was no one host country, with the five participating nations hosting matches over eight months. Each team had to play the others on a 'home and away' basis. For the first time Great Britain did not compete and instead England and Wales entered to participate for the first time, taking advantage of a glut of Welsh talent in the British game at the time. Teams 1975 Rugby League World Cup squads 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. AUS Sydney FRA Marseille AUS Brisbane ENG Bradford ENG 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 200px 200px 200px 200px 200px FRA Toulouse ENG Leeds FRA Bordeaux NZL Auckland ENG Salford Stadium Municipal Headingley Stade du Parc Lescure Carlaw Park The Willows Capacity: 35,000 Capacity: 32,000 Capacity: 30,000 Capacity: 20,000 Capacity: 17,000 200px 200px 200px 200px 200px WAL Swansea NZL Christchurch ENG Warrington FRA 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 200px 200px 200px 200px Warm-up games The teams arranged a number of warm-up games against local opposition during the World Championship, detailed below. England Date Opponents Score Venue AttendanceEngland World Cup Tour 1975 https://www.rugbyleagueproject.org/competitions/england-world-cup-tour-1975/summary.html Rugby League Project 5 August 2025 1 June Western Australia style="text-align: center;" Won 40–2Easy win in WA https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/110640427/12744320 The Canberra Times 2 June 1975 14 Trove Perth 6,000 7 June Toowoomba style="text-align: center;" Won 25–16Fiery league match expected https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/110641590 The Canberra Times 10 June 1975 1 Trove Toowoomba 3,000 15 June Southern Division (NSW) style="text-align: center;" Won 19–8Sporting Details https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/110642350 The Canberra Times 16 June 1975 9 Trove Gosforth 3,000 18 June North Island (NZ) style="text-align: center;" Won 42–4Big wins for touring England and Wales https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19750619.2.223 The Press 33873 19 June 1975 Christchurch 30 Papers Past Huntly 2,490 29 June Illawarra style="text-align: center;" Lost 12–15England beaten https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/110644270 The Canberra Times 30 June 1975 14 Trove Wollongong 4,000 2 July Brisbane style="text-align: center;" Lost 10–21England loses https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/110644921 The Canberra Times 3 July 1975 22 Trove Brisbane 9,000 6 July Papua New Guinea style="text-align: center;" Won 40–12Commendable Effort By Our Players https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/250388939 Papua New Guinea Post-Courier 7 July 1975 16 Trove Port Moresby 12,000 Wales Date Opponents Score Venue AttendanceDragons World Cup Tour 1975 https://www.rugbyleagueproject.org/competitions/dragons-world-cup-tour-1975/summary.html Rugby League Project 5 August 2025 5 June Ipswich style="text-align: center;" Won 35–13Win for Wales https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/110641063 The Canberra Times 6 June 1975 1 Trove Ipswich 4,000 18 June Wellington style="text-align: center;" Won 52–8 Wellington 2,000 22 June West Coast (NZ) style="text-align: center;" Won 35–5Welsh league team beats a depleted West Coast side, 35-5 https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19750623.2.20 The Press 33876 23 June 1975 Christchurch 3 Papers Past Greymouth 2,000 24 June Canterbury style="text-align: center;" Won 25–18Canterbury side holds robust Welsh to 25-18 https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19750625.2.179 The Press 33878 25 June 1975 30 Papers Past Christchurch 2,500 1 July Auckland style="text-align: center;" Lost 5–31Wales loses again https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19750702.2.179 The Press 33884 2 July 1975 Christchurch 28 Papers Past Auckland 12,000 3 July New Zealand Māori style="text-align: center;" Won 18–12Revival rocks Maoris https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19750704.2.159 The Press 33886 4 July 1975 Christchurch 20 Papers Past Rotorua 2,500 France Date Opponents Score Venue AttendanceLes Chanticleers World Cup Tour 1975 https://www.rugbyleagueproject.org/competitions/les-chanticleers-world-cup-tour-1975/summary.html Rugby League Project 5 August 2025 12 June Auckland style="text-align: center;" Lost 3–9 Auckland 10,000 22 June Wide Bay style="text-align: center;" Won 36–10 Bundaberg 4,000 25 June Lithgow-Oberon style="text-align: center;" Won 24–17 Lithgow 1,360 27 June NSW Group 6 style="text-align: center;" Lost 0–2 Campbelltown 2,600 29 June Monaro style="text-align: center;" Lost 0–26 Queanbeyan 5,700 Australia Date Opponents Score Venue AttendanceKangaroos World Cup Tour 1975 https://www.rugbyleagueproject.org/competitions/kangaroos-world-cup-tour-1975/summary.html Rugby League Project 5 August 2025 30 September Auckland style="text-align: center;" Won 17–6 Auckland 7,251 10 October Salford style="text-align: center;" Won 44–6Rhodes sparkles in league win https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/110662417 The Canberra Times 13 October 1975 12 Trove Salford 5,357 12 October St Helens style="text-align: center;" Won 32–7Eadie tops in 32-7 win https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/110662605 The Canberra Times 14 October 1975 20 Trove St Helens 10,170 23 October Rouergue XIII style="text-align: center;" Won 35–4 Albi 2,000 4 November Oldham style="text-align: center;" Won 20–10Stand-in lock impresses https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/102184072 The Canberra Times 6 November 1975 24 Trove Oldham 3,575 9 November York style="text-align: center;" Won 45–4Australian masters give a rugby lesson https://www.newspapers.com/image/1049966958 The Northern Echo 10 November 1975 5 Newspapers.com subscription York 4,082 New Zealand Date Opponents Score Venue AttendanceKiwis World Cup Tour 1975 https://www.rugbyleagueproject.org/competitions/kiwis-world-cup-tour-1975/summary.html Rugby League Project 5 August 2025 15 May North Queensland Firsts style="text-align: center;" Lost 16–20 Townsville 18 May Central Queensland style="text-align: center;" Won 57–11 Rockhampton 21 May Northern Division style="text-align: center;" Won 37–19 Tamworth 24 May NSW Country Firsts style="text-align: center;" Won 33–26 Newcastle 6,000 27 May North Coast style="text-align: center;" Lost 3–12 Tweed Heads 1 November South West France style="text-align: center;" Won 39–4 4 November Barrow style="text-align: center;" Won 24–0Youngsters shine in Kiwis' 24-0 league win https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19751106.2.209 The Press 33993 6 November 1975 Christchurch 30 Papers Past Barrow-in-Furness 9 November Keighley style="text-align: center;" Won 20–8Kiwis end with win https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19751111.2.241 The Press 33997 11 November 1975 Christchurch 40 Papers Past Keighley Results 2 March France 14 – 7 Wales Stade Municipal, Toulouse 7,563 Fred Lindop ENG 16 March ENG 20 – 2 FRA Headingley, Leeds 10,842 Keith Page AUS (Harry Hunt ENG) 1 June AUS 36 – 8 NZL Lang Park, Brisbane 12,000 Francois Escande FRA 10 June ENG 7 – 12 WAL Lang Park, Brisbane 6,000 Don Lancashire AUS 14 June AUS 30 – 13 WAL Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney 25,386 Francois Escande FRA In this match Mick Cronin kicked nine goals. 15 June NZL 27 – 0 FRA Addington Showground, Christchurch 2,500 Laurie Bruyeres AUS 21 June NZL 17 – 17 ENG Carlaw Park, Auckland 12,000 Laurie Bruyeres AUS 22 June AUS 26 – 6 FRA Lang Park, Brisbane 9,000 John Percival NZL 28 June AUS 10 – 10 ENG Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney 33,858 John Percival NZL 28 June NZL 13 – 8 WAL Carlaw Park, Auckland 9,368 Laurie Bruyeres AUS 20 September WAL 16 – 22 ENG Wilderspool Stadium, Warrington 5,034 Marcel Caillol FRA 27 September NZL 8 – 24 AUS Carlaw Park, Auckland 18,000 Fred Lindop ENG 11 October FRA 2 – 48 ENG Stade du Parc Lescure, Bordeaux 1,581 John Percival NZL England winger Keith Fielding created a new record by scoring four tries against a hapless French team at Bordeaux. 17 October FRA 12 – 12 NZL Stade Vélodrome, Marseille 10,000 Billy Thompson ENG 19 October WAL 6 – 18 AUS St. Helen's Rugby Ground, Swansea 11,112 John Percival NZL Kangaroo wing prodigy Ian Schubert also scored a hat-trick of tries. 25 October ENG 27 – 12 NZL Odsal Stadium, Bradford 5,507 Andre Lacaze FRA English stand-off Ken Gill ran in three tries. 26 October FRA 2 – 41 AUS Stade Gilbert Brutus, Perpignan 10,440 Billy Thompson ENG 1 November ENG 16 – 13 AUS Central Park, Wigan 9,353 John Percival NZL 2 November WAL 25 – 24 NZL St. Helen's Rugby Ground, Swansea 2,645 Georges Jameau FRA 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. 6 November WAL 23 – 2 FRA The Willows, Salford 2,247 Fred Lindop ENG Final standings main WDL n points 2 AUS AUS ENG ENG WAL WAL NZL NZL FRA FRA 6 1 1 198 69 5 2 1 167 84 3 0 5 110 130 2 2 4 121 149 1 1 6 40 204 C gold complete Final challenge match As Australia had not beaten England to win the World Cup (a draw and a loss), a one off challenge match was arranged, although this was not officially classed as a Final as Australia had already been crowned Champions after topping the group. 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. England had shown little interest in playing the game. 12 November ENG 0 – 25 AUS Headingley, Leeds 7,680 Fred Lindop ENG Try scorers 7 22em AUS Ian Schubert ENG Keith Fielding 5 22em AUS Mick Cronin 4 22em AUS Bob Fulton ENG Ken Gill ENG John Holmes WAL Bill Francis 3 22em AUS Mark Harris AUS Graeme Langlands AUS John Peard AUS Terry Randall ENG Ged Dunn ENG Eric Hughes NZL Bob Jarvis NZL Phillip Orchard 2 22em AUS Ray Higgs AUS John Lang AUS Lew Platz AUS Tommy Raudonikis AUS Steve Rogers FRA Patrick Chauvet ENG George Fairbairn NZL Tony Gordon NZL Ken Stirling NZL Dennis Williams WAL Peter Banner WAL John Bevan WAL David Willicombe 1 22em AUS Ray Branighan AUS Graham Eadie AUS Tim Pickup AUS John Quayle AUS Johnny Rhodes ENG John Atkinson ENG Colin Forsyth ENG Jeff Grayshon ENG Brian Hogan ENG Thomas Martyn ENG Roger Millward ENG Mick Morgan ENG Steve Norton ENG Stuart Wright FRA Bernard Curt FRA René Terrats NZL Tony Coll NZL Tom Conroy NZL Murray Eade NZL John Greengrass NZL Lyndsay Proctor NZL John Smith NZL John Whittaker WAL Kel Coslett WAL Tony Fisher WAL Brian Gregory WAL John Mantle WAL Jim Mills WAL Clive Sullivan WAL David Treasure WAL Frank Wilson References 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