England
 Lee Smith [WG] 12 Pts; 3t
Ade Gardner [WG] 8 Pts; 2t
Kevin Sinfield [LK] 8 Pts; 4/6g
Martin Gleeson [CT] 4 Pts; 1t
Papua New Guinea
John Wilshere [FB] 6 Pts; 3/4g
Paul Aiton [DH] 4 Pts; 1t
Jason Chan [BE] 4 Pts; 1t
Rod Griffin [LK] 4 Pts; 1t
George Kepa [WG] 4 Pts; 1t
Sun October 26, 2008
 Great night at Dairy Farmers Stadium in Townsville
2008 World Cup - Pool A What a great game of rugby league between England and Papua New Guinea to kick-start the 2008 Rugby League World Cup. 20:21
PNG light up World Cup
2008 World Cup - Pool A Papua New Guinea may have lost the game against England last night, but what they did was light up the 2008 World Cup and got close to producing a big upset in the opening match. 0:54
England edge past PNG
2008 World Cup - Pool A Winger Lee Smith scored a hat-trick on his debut as England survived a major scare from the Pool One minnows Papua New Guinea to get their World Cup campaign off to a winning start, 32-22, at the Dairy Farmers Stadium. 0:32
Thu October 23, 2008
England Team v PNG
World Cup England will not be phased by the tropical heat of Townsville according to coach Tony Smith and St Helens star Paul Wellens. 19:37
McNamara delighted with England's preparation
2008 World Cup - Pool A With just days to go before England's opening fixture against Papua New Guinea in the thirteenth Rugby League World Cup, England's assistant coach Steve McNamara has spoken of his delight at the team's build up so far. 8:49
Wed October 22, 2008
Speedy game plan World Cup
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Click the match link for full match details including teams, scoring details, articles and more
Sat October 25 2008, 7:00PM AEST GMT+10Sat Oct 25: England 32 d. Papua New Guinea 22 at
Dairy Farmers Stadium, Kirwan, Townsville (QLD)Crowd: 10,780
Sun October 26 2008, 8:00PM AEDT GMT+11Sun Oct 26: Australia Kangaroos 30 d. New Zealand Kiwis 6 at
Sydney Football Stadium, Driver Ave, Moore Park, Sydney (NSW)Crowd: 34,157
Sat November 1 2008, 7:00PM AEST GMT+10Sat Nov 1: New Zealand Kiwis 48 d. Papua New Guinea 6 at
Skilled Park, Robina, Gold Coast (QLD)Crowd: 11,278
Sun November 2 2008, 8:00PM AEDT GMT+11Sun Nov 2: Australia Kangaroos 52 d. England 4 at
Telstra Dome, Docklands, Melbourne (VIC)Crowd: 36,297
Sat November 8 2008, 8:00PM AEDT GMT+11Sat Nov 8: England 24 l. New Zealand Kiwis 36 at
Energy Australia Stadium, New Lambton, Newcastle (NSW)Crowd: 15,145
Sun November 9 2008, 7:00PM AEST GMT+10Sun Nov 9: Australia Kangaroos 46 d. Papua New Guinea 6 at
Dairy Farmers Stadium, Kirwan, Townsville (QLD)Crowd: 16,239
Sun October 26, 2008
What a great game of rugby league between England and Papua New Guinea to kick-start the 2008 Rugby League World Cup.
The players from both sides really put on a great show and I haven't spoken to anyone who didn't enjoy the game World Cup Officials must been very happy the way the 2008 World Cup has started.
Listening to Tony Smith the England coach at the press conference, you could feel that he was glad to come away with the win after the Kumuls gave them a big fright. But he's pretty confident they will improve a lot more and give this World Cup a big shake.
Adrian Lam was very disappointed with the result and a few things that didn't go their way, but you could tell how proud he was of the 17 players who put their bodies on the line and almost pulled off an upset win.
The crowd at Dairy Farmers Stadium in Townsville really got into the spirit and were singing, dancing and supporting both sides right to the end of the game. And both sides really did deserve the support they got from the rugby league mad North Queensland crowd for the great display they put on to start the World Cup.
After the game fans from both sides went next door to the rugby league club and were mixing with the local and were just having a great time.
I didn't want the evening to end as it would have to be one of the best night's I've had. The supporters from England, Papua New Guinea, Players, Officials and the locals all deserve a pat on the back for making it such a great night.
I thought there would have been a bigger crowd then the 10,780 but talking to the officials after the game they were very happy with the crowd that turned up.
Trying to buy Papua New Guinea merchandise after the game was impossible as they sold everything. The supporters buying everything they could get their hands on.
Well done Officials, supporters and players on a great night and I'm looking forward to the rest of the World Cup.
All the best to England and Papua New Guinea for the rest of the World Cup.
I'll be back to Dairy Farmers in two weeks to watch Papua New Guinea play Australia in a game I think will be sold out.
Sun October 26, 2008
Papua New Guinea may have lost the game against England last night, but what they did was light up the 2008 World Cup and got close to producing a big upset in the opening match.
A crowd solid of 10,780 turned up to Townsville's Dairy Farmers Stadium to watch the clash with many expecting England to win by a landslide margin. Instead PNG scored two tries on the stroke of half-time to lead 16-12 and it was only England's superior fitness and professionalism that prevailed in the final 40 minutes.
PNG showed that they are a nation on the rise and if their structures and level of coaching can improve they will continue to get closer to the top three nations. PNG coach Adrian Lam was spot on the money prior to the game when he said that the improvement in the PNG game had gone through the roof.
When it comes to passion and support for the game no nation comes close to PNG and the people there take their love of Rugby League to unseen levels.
The World Cup is all about a celebration of the various cultures in the ten nations competing and not neccessarily the standard of football - especially in these early stages of rebuilding the international game.
PNG played with great flair and enterprise and there's several players in their squad that could be finding their way to NRL or Super League sides if they continue their form against New Zealand and Australia in the next two weeks.
The World Cup has opened with an entertaining match and later today we see France take on Scotland at Canberra Stadium with kick off at 5:25pm and at 7:55pm Australia plays host to New Zealand at the Sydney Football Stadium. Both should be interesting games and the people of Canberra and Sydney should attend these games and appreciate the World Cup for the culture of it all and fans can play their small part in building the code to being a much stronger force domestically and internationally.
Congratuations to both sides on an entertaining opening game hopefully the two games today will build on the momentum that was started last night.
ENGLAND 32 v PAPUA NEW GUINEA 22Live Scores & StatsMatch ForumTeams, Reports & NewsFRANCE v SCOTLAND INFOMATIONOrder Tickets OnlineCanberra StadiumLive Scores & StatsMatch ForumTeams, Reports & NewsAUSTRALIA v NEW ZEALAND INFORMATIONOrder Tickets OnlineSydney Football StadiumLive Scores & StatsMatch ForumTeams, Reports & NewsWORLD CUP LINKSHome Page:
http://worldcup.rleague.comWallpaper:
http://wallpaper.rleague.comLive Scores & Stats:
http://live.rleague.comMatch Forums:
http://forums.rleague.com/forumdisplay.php?f=71Forum:
http://forums.rleague.com/forumdisplay.php?f=77Ticket Information:
http://www.rlwc08.com/scheduleTV Schedule:
http://www.rlwc08.com/Broadcast
Pool A
England 32 d. Papua New Guinea 22
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