New Zealand benefited from a controversial penalty en route to a 24-18 defeat of Fiji after rallying to avoid a repeat of their quarter-final exit to the Bati at the previous Rugby League World Cup.
The Kiwis booked a mammoth last-four meeting with defending champions Australia but only after staring down another shock loss to Fiji in Hull.
The sole previous meeting between the sides had also come in the quarters five years ago, with New Zealand on the end of a 4-2 upset.
It quickly became clear this would not be another low-scoring affair, albeit only because Fiji raced into a 12-0 lead with a pair of superb tries from Maika Sivo and Kevin Naiqama.
Even when Ronaldo Mulitalo got the world's top-ranked side on the board, Naiqama ran in again after half-time to restore the underdogs' advantage.
But the Bati could not hold out, with Briton Nikora's response followed by a levelling try from Joseph Manu with 18 minutes to play.
Manu was involved again in the game's decisive moment as Fiji were harshly punished for a supposed strip that allowed Jordan Rapana to kick a penalty, putting New Zealand in front for the first time before the same man added a try at the death.
Jamaica's Women's Rugby League team secures sponsors ahead of Naples 9's tourney
On the eve of preparations to compete in the Naples 9s Tournament on Saturday, May 20, in Florida, the National Women’s rugby league team has received a boost from two corporate entities to assist in their participation in the tournament.
Local company Mailpac Group Ltd. has come on board to assist the team. The arrangement will see the Women Reggae Warriors jersey display the company logo on the front of the playing shirt.
The Reggae Warriors will feature players from the Jamaican domestic league, Canada, and the US. The tournament will be the second representative opportunity for the women’s team since they participated in the Americas 9s in Toronto in 2019.
“It is an exciting time for women’s rugby league in Jamaica. We are determined to provide adequate representative opportunities for our ladies and in this instance, Mailpac’s support is warmly welcomed and will impact our national female athletes in a positive way,” said Mike Williams, the team’s manager.
Meanwhile, the management of Mailpac Group Ltd wished the team the best of luck for the tournament.
“The management of Mailpac Group Limited wishes to extend best wishes for success to the team as they compete in Naples!”, it said in a statement.
The team has also garnered support from Florida based company, On The Spot Loans LLC. The company’s logo will feature prominently on the team’s off-field wear for the tournament.
“We are happy to have the assistance of On The Spot Loans LLC, we are looking forward to building the relationship, especially for when we compete in tournaments and games in the USA,” Williams said.
Meldiana Parker of On The Spot Loans LLC said, “We are proud sponsors of the Women Reggae Warriors 9s team. We wish the team all the best, and we will be there in person to show our support.”
The women’s bracket will feature four teams - Jamaica Reggae Warriors, Carolina Blues, New York Roots and Carolina Storm.
The men’s draw features eight teams in two groups. Group One features Jamaica Exodus, New York Roots, Southwest Florida Copperheads and Cleveland Rockers. Group Two features Carolina Storm, Jamaica Hurricanes, San Diego Barracudas and Miami Speed.
Jamaica Women Reggae Warriors
Angel Griffiths, Brenda Doctor, Carole Kelly, Crystal Groves, Daina Fearon, Debisha Scarlett, Janelle Cole, Johneeka Smith, Kamoya Forrest, Kimberly Coombs, Lokara Walker, Moesha Bogle, Naomi Dodd, Shanae Gordon, Shanique Smith, Shawna-Kay Douglas, Sherine Johnson, Trishana Wilson.
Qatar emerges as surprise contender to host 2025 Rugby League World Cup
Qatar has emerged as a surprise contender to host the 2025 Rugby League World Cup after France relinquished hosting rights earlier this week.
The Gulf nation, which does not have a team or a world ranking, and has never played an international match, is one of four countries to express an interest in staging the event, along with New Zealand, Fiji and South Africa.
The International Rugby League is scrambling to preserve the tournament, which could still be delayed or scrapped alogether, after French organisers admitted they were unable to meet financial guarantees demanded by the French government.
IRL chairman Troy Grant confirmed: “We have received expressions of interest from New Zealand, Fiji, South Africa and Qatar already.
“We are yet to make any assessments in regarded to their viability, I’m just being honest about who has reached out.
“It gives me comfort that there is interest in our sport and our World Cup. How real or viable any or all of those options are, we’re yet to make any of those assessments.”
The Qatari interest, which Grant said comprises two approaches combining state and public funding, continues the nation’s interest in muscling in on the global sporting landscape following a successful football World Cup last year.
And although unlikely, its offer may fit the expansionist policies of a sport that broke new ground when Toronto Wolfpack were accepted as the first transatlantic members of the English rugby league set-up in 2017.
New Zealand remain the obvious front-runners to step in to stage the tournament, but Grant acknowledged that tough decisions may need to be made given the limited time-frame for establishing new hosts.
They include postponement to a later date or outright cancellation, while there are also concerns about whether the current unique format, which comprised men’s, women’s and wheelchair tournaments, will remain viable at short notice.
“We understand that we need to move quickly,” added Grant. “It will certainly have a big bearing on where the tournament is in 2025, if it proceeds.
“There is a potential option to move out of this cycle and create a new cycle, and that will also be a discussion point for the board in June and July.
“We are not wedded to anything, to be honest. The experience of England last year was that the uniqueness of our offering, with the three World Cups being run at the same time, was a massive point of difference.
“It is a massive selling point so to abandon that strategy would be disappointing, but we have to be practical in any decisions we make going forward.
“It gets us to rethink how we do everything going forward. There’s a unique opportunity that this adversity presents, and I think we should take that opportunity.”
BB Coke High School wins National U16 9's Rugby League title for the first time
BB Coke High School won its first-ever U16 rugby league title after defeating Campion College 12-4 in the National U16 9s tournament at The Cedar Grove Academy in Portmore, St Catherine on Friday, May 7.
The win means BB Cokes ended the tournament on six points after also beating Spanish Town 24-8. However, they lost to Cedar Grove Academy 16-20. Spanish Town also ended on six points had an inferior points difference.
“The boys promised to bring the 9s title back home after they lost the 13s semi-finals to eventual champions Campion College. The win was built on getting the ball to our speedsters on the wings and strong defense in the middle of the park,” said winning coach Kamar Findlay.
“I was a bit surprised when we lost to Cedar Grove in our second match, but it served as a wake-up call for the team because they came out well against Spanish Town and got the win needed to top the tournament.
“We are extremely happy. This is our first title at the Under 16 level and the school and the entire community of Junction is celebrating with us.”
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