Group A of the 2008 Rugby League World Cup was one of the three groups of teams that competed in the 2008 Rugby League World Cup. Group A was the largest of the tournament, consisting of four teams: Australia, New Zealand, England and Papua New Guinea. After all teams had played each other once, only Papua New Guinea did not advance to the knockout stage.
Standings All teams from group A (shaded in green) with the exception of the bottom qualifying team will progress to the semi-finals, the other two groups the top finisher will progress to a playoff match, in which the winner will qualify to the semi-finals. Australia were the only team in the tournament to play all their group stage matches with no losses.
Matches England vs Papua New Guinea The World Cup tournament opened with England facing Papua New Guinea at Townsville in tropical North Queensland. It was to be the first time the two nations had met at a World Cup and second time ever since 1975, the Kumuls having only played against Great Britain previously.
The first points of the tournament were scored in the twelfth minute of the game by English winger Ade Gardner who received a short ball from dummy half James Roby close to the try-line and dived over in the right corner. Kevin Sinfield's sideline conversion was successful and the score was 6 nil. PNG responded with a try of their own seven minutes later when Rod Griffin, running a good line, received the ball from dummy half Paul Aiton and crashed over near the uprights. John Wilshere kicked the extras and with a quarter of the match gone the score was level at 6 all. In the twenty-sixth minute PNG's Jessie Joe Parker was taken from the field and subsequently to hospital with a suspected fractured eye socket. Two minutes later England were on the attack and spread it out wide to the left this time for Lee Smith who crossed for a try in his World Cup debut. Sinfield was again successful with his sideline conversion, making the score 12–6 in favour of the English with ten minutes of the first half remaining. The Kumuls however were dominating possession, making their opposition do a mountain of defence, and just after the 35-minute mark, while raiding England's line again, PNG's five-eighth, Stanley Gene (playing in his third consecutive World Cup), threw a cut-out pass to Jason Chan that saw him cross untouched for Papua New Guinea's second try. Wilshere's conversion made the scores level once again. With a minute until the half-time siren Kumuls halfback Keith Peters sent a high kick across-field which England couldn't secure and it bounced up for winger George Kepa who put it down in the corner. The video referee ruled it was a try and Wilshere's attempt at goal from the sideline was missed so Papua New Guinea went into the half-time break leading 16–12.
Less than seven minutes into the second half Papua New Guinea crossed England's line again but the try was disallowed by Shane Hayne for a slightly forward pass. England were the first to score with Smith crossing from close range in the fifty-first minute to pick up his second try and level the scores again. Sinfield's conversion attempt was unsuccessful, leaving the score at 16 all. The English however, with the weight of possession, raided the Kumuls' line repeatedly and scored again in the 58th minute with halfback Rob Burrow dummying wide before passing back inside for Martin Gleeson to go over untouched from close range. This gave England the lead once more and Sinfield converted the try, pushing the margin out to six points with just over a quarter of the match remaining. With Papua New Guinea struggling to get out of their own half, England's Danny McGuire sent his winger Smith over the try-line once again, but the pass was ruled to have been forward. However, in the seventieth minute, England worked the ball to the other wing and Gardner crossed out wide for his second try off what appeared to be a forward pass from Leon Pryce. Sinfield's boot added the extras to give England the biggest lead of the match so far at 28–16. Three minutes later, now back on the other wing, England made a break and got the ball to Smith who crossed again. The video referee was required to check the grounding as PNG's fullback Wilshere had gotten his arm between the ground and the ball, but the try was awarded, giving Smith a hat-trick. Sinfield's conversion attempt was wide but England had scored twenty unanswered points in the second half and had a comfortable lead at 32–16 with only six minutes to play left. This would not be the final score however, as from the restart Papua New Guinea went for the short kick-off and successfully re-gathered, going on the attack. On the last tackle Peters sent a grubber through and Aiton dived on it for the Kumuls' fourth try. Wilshere's conversion put the final score at 32–22.
FB 1Paul WellensRW 2Ade GardnerRC 3Martin GleesonLC 4Keith SeniorLW 5Lee SmithSO 6Leon PryceSH 7Rob BurrowPR 8Jamie Peacock (c)HK 9James RobyPR 10James GrahamSR 11Gareth HockSR 12Gareth EllisLF 13Kevin SinfieldSubstitutions:IC 14Danny McGuireIC 15Maurie Fa'asavaluIC 16Adrian MorleyIC 17Jon WilkinCoach: Tony Smith FB 1John Wilshere (c)RW 2David MeadRC 3Tu'u MaoriLC 4Jessie Joe ParkerLW 5George KeppaFE 6Stanley GeneHB 7Keith PetersPR 8Makali AizueHK 9Paul AitonPR 10Trevor ExtonSR 11Neville CostiganSR 12James NightingaleLK 13Rod GriffinSubstitutions:IC 14Rodney PoraIC 15George MoniIC 16Jason ChanIC 17Charlie WaboCoach: Adrian Lam
Australia vs New Zealand Although this was actually the second World Cup match to be played, it featured the tournament's opening ceremony as it was the first game featuring hosts Australia and was played in Sydney.
The first points of the match came from a penalty kick by Johnathan Thurston (playing despite the murder of his uncle the previous day in a Brisbane park) after New Zealand's Simon Mannering held Brett Stewart down for too long in a tackle at the 9-minute mark. Three minutes later the Kiwis were again penalised in their own territory when Steve Matai's swinging arm struck Paul Gallen in the head, the incident being placed on report. Australia opted to attack New Zealand's line and the first try of the match went to Greg Inglis who beat his opposite number Matai to dive over. Thurston's successful conversion gave the Kangaroos an 8 nil lead. Later as the Kiwis were on the attack, second-rower Sika Manu, playing his debut match for New Zealand, ran an inside line onto a Benji Marshall short ball and found a way through the middle of Australia's defence to touch down near the uprights just on 27 minutes. Matai's conversion brought the margin back to two points. Shortly after however, Australia struck back through debutant winger Joel Monaghan whose try was awarded by the on-field referee after the video official referred the decision back to him. Thurston's conversion gave the Kangaroos a 14–6 lead going into the half-time break.
Australia were again the first to score in the second half, this time on the right side, with Israel Folau's arm reaching out over one of his tacklers at the goal-line to plant the ball down in the 48th minute. Thurston missed his first kick of the night so the score was 18–6. Ten minutes later Brent Tate was being taken from the field with a neck injury just before the Australian halfback Thurston made a break mid-field and, as he was being brought to the ground by a defender, threw the ball back for Billy Slater to regather and score. Thurston then kicked the extras, pushing Australia's lead out to three converted tries with just under a quarter of the match remaining. With less than three minutes of game time left the Kiwis looked to have scored a consolation try when Jerome Ropati crashed over out wide, the decision being put to the video referee. The replay however showed that the Australian fullback, Slater, had slid across in desperation feet-first, knocking the ball from Ropati's grasp with his boot just before he could touch it to the ground. In the final seconds of the match Australia scored one more try when quick hands from Slater flicked the ball out wide for Folau who dived over for his second. Cameron Smith was assigned the conversion from the side-line and was successful, giving the Kangaroos a 30–6 victory.
FB 1Billy SlaterRW 2Joel MonaghanRC 3Greg InglisLC 4Israel FolauLW 5Brent TateFE 6Darren Lockyer (c)HB 7Johnathan ThurstonPR 8Steve PriceHK 9Cameron SmithPR 10Petero CivonicevaSR 11Anthony LaffranchiSR 12Glenn StewartLK 13Paul GallenSubstitutions:IC 14Kurt GidleyIC 15Brent KiteIC 16Anthony TupouIC 17Josh PerryCoach: Ricky Stuart FB 1Lance HohaiaRW 2Sam PerrettRC 3Steve MataiLC 4Jerome RopatiLW 5Manu VatuveiFE 6Benji MarshallHB 7Thomas LeuluaiPR 8Nathan Cayless (c)HK 9Nathan FienPR 10Adam BlairSR 11Simon ManneringSR 12Sika ManuLK 13Jeremy SmithSubstitutions:IC 14Dene HalatauIC 15Greg EastwoodIC 16Setaimata SaIC 17Sam RapiraCoach: Stephen Kearney
New Zealand vs Papua New Guinea In the second week of the tournament, Group A's New Zealand and Papua New Guinea faced off at Queensland's Gold Coast. It was the first time the two countries had met since the Kiwis had a 64-0 win over the Kumuls at Palmerston North in 1996. Papua New Guinea made no changes to their side from the previous match, while New Zealand were without Steve Matai who was serving a suspension due to his high tackle on Australia's Paul Gallen in their previous match. This meant Krisnan Inu got his chance to play, and Sika Manu and Dene Halatau were also replaced by Isaac Luke and David Fa'alogo.
The first points came in the ninth minute when New Zealand, from fifteen metres out, moved the ball through the hands from the right side of the field out to the left, catching PNG's defence outnumbered so Jermoe Ropati could crossed untouched. Krisnan Inu's conversion attempt missed, leaving the score at 4 nil. Less than four minutes later it was Ropati again who fell over PNG's line, but was held up in goal. In the sixteenth minute the Kiwis again moved the ball out wide through the hands, this time to the right side where Simon Mannering was able to pass untouched between the thinly stretched defence to score. Inu kicked the extras and New Zealand were leading 10 nil. Mannering scored his second try eight minutes later, again on the right side of the field, after taking on the defensive line and breaking through. Inu's conversion was successful, taking New Zealand's lead out to 16 nil with fourteen minutes of the first half remaining. New Zealand's defence then withstood a series of assaults on their line when Papua New Guinea got repeat sets. Back in the Kumuls' half though, the Kiwis scored in the thirty-fourth minute, again on the right wing, when Benji Marshall threw an enormous cut out pass over to Sam Perrett who jogged over unchallenged by PNG's severely outnumbered defence. Inu's conversion made it 22 unanswered points by New Zealand and this would remain the scoreline at the half time break.