Australia national rugby league team

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Australia women's national rugby league team.

"Australian Kangaroos" redirects here. For the marsupial, see kangaroo.

The Australia national rugby league team, the Kangaroos, have represented Australia in senior men's rugby league football competition since the establishment of the game in Australia in 1908. Administered by the Australian Rugby League Commission, the Kangaroos are ranked first in the IRL Men's World Rankings. The team is the most successful in Rugby League World Cup history, having won the competition 12 times, and contested 15 of the 16 finals, only failing to reach the final in the 1954 inaugural tournament. Only five nations (along with NZ Maori) have beaten Australia in test matches, and Australia has an overall win percentage of 69%.

Australia

Team information
Nickname	The Kangaroos
Governing body	Australian Rugby League Commission
Region	Asia-Pacific
Head coach	Mal Meninga
Captain	James Tedesco
Most caps	Darren Lockyer (59)
Top try-scorer	Darren Lockyer (35)
Top point-scorer	Johnathan Thurston (382)
IRL ranking	1st
Uniforms
First colours Second colours Third colours
Team results
First international
New Zealand 11–10 Australia  (Agricultural Oval, Sydney, Australia; 9 May 1908)
Biggest win
Russia 4–110 Australia  (The Boulevard, Kingston upon Hull, England; 4 November 2000)
Biggest defeat
New Zealand 30–0 Australia  (Waikato Stadium, Hamilton, New Zealand; 4 November 2023)
World Cup
Appearances	16 (first time in 1954)
Best result	Champions (1957; 1968; 1970; 1975; 1977; 1988; 1992; 1995; 2000; 2013; 2017; 2021)

Dating back to 1908, Australia is the fourth oldest national side after England, New Zealand and Wales. The team was first assembled in 1908 for a tour of Great Britain.^[1] The majority of the Kangaroos' games since then have been played against Great Britain and New Zealand. In the first half of the 20th century, Australia's international competition came from alternating tours to Great Britain and New Zealand. Australia played host to these teams in non-tour years. Great Britain dominated in the early years, and Australia did not win a Test against the Lions until 11 November 1911 under captain Chris McKivat. Australia did not win a series at home against Great Britain until 1920 or abroad until 1958.

Since 1908, the team has been nicknamed the Kangaroos. Initially only used when touring Great Britain, and later France, this has been the official nickname of the team since 7 July 1994. In 1997 Australia was also represented by a Super League Australia team, drawing on players from that year's Super League competition.

History

IRL Men's World Rankings v t e
Official rankings as of 21 December 2023
Rank	Change	Team	Pts %
1		Australia	100.00
2		New Zealand	91.00
3	1	England	74.00
4	1	Samoa	70.00
5		Tonga	54.00
6		Papua New Guinea	50.00
7		Fiji	49.00
8	1	France	24.00
9	1	Lebanon	24.00
10	3	Cook Islands	22.00
11	1	Serbia	19.00
12	6	Netherlands	17.00
13	1	Italy	15.00
14	5	Malta	15.00
15	1	Greece	14.00
16	4	Ireland	14.00
17	6	Wales	13.00
18	3	Jamaica	10.00
19	2	Scotland	9.00
20	8	Ukraine	7.00
21	6	Czech Republic	7.00
22	1	Germany	6.00
23	10	Philippines	6.00
24	5	Poland	6.00
25	1	South Africa	5.00
26	4	Chile	5.00
27	4	Kenya	0.00
28	6	Norway	4.00
29	6	Nigeria	4.00
30	6	Ghana	4.00
31	6	Brazil	4.00
32	12	Turkey	3.00
33	4	United States	3.00
34	1	Bulgaria	3.00
35	5	Cameroon	2.00
36	2	Montenegro	2.00
37	5	Spain	2.00
38	6	Japan	1.00
39		Albania	1.00
40	4	Colombia	1.00
41	6	El Salvador	1.00
42		North Macedonia	1.00
43	1	Morocco	1.00
44	3	Sweden	0.00
45		Bosnia and Herzegovina	0.00
46	3	Canada	0.00
47		Niue	0.00
48	9	Solomon Islands	0.00
49	1	Belgium	0.00
50	10	Hungary	0.00
51	5	Vanuatu	0.00
52	3	Argentina	0.00
53	3	Denmark	0.00
54	3	Latvia	0.00
55		Estonia	0.00
Complete rankings at INTRL.SPORT

See also: History of rugby league

Rugby football has been played in Australia since the 1860s. In 1863 Sydney University became the first rugby club to be formed in Sydney, and played games amongst themselves or against the crews of visiting British ships. The Sydney Football Club (1865) and the Wallaroos (1870) followed, and inter-club competition commenced. By 1880, there were 100 clubs across the country, and rugby quickly became the dominant winter sport for Sydney.

In 1888 an English team visited Australasia, playing rugby rules in Queensland, New South Wales and New Zealand, and Australian rules football in Victoria and South Australia. In 1899, an Australian team was formed using players from Queensland and New South Wales for the first time. They played a series of Tests against a British team.

1900s

By 1907, Sydney club rugby games were attracting up to 20,000 people, with all profits going to the Southern Rugby Football Union, as the sport was officially an amateur one. This caused discontent among players, and in 1908 the New South Wales Rugby Football League and Queensland Rugby League were formed.

An Australian national rugby league team was first formed during the first season of rugby league in Australia, the 1908 NSWRFL Premiership season. The team, which was made of players from the NSWRFL with a few Queensland rugby rebels added, first played against the "professional All Blacks" on the return leg of their tour of Australia and Great Britain.

Later that year the Australian team arranged to go on a tour of its own. The first Kangaroos arrived in England on 27 September 1908 and played their first-ever test against the Northern Union in December in London. It finished 22 all in front of a crowd of 2,000. The second test in Newcastle in January 1909 attracted a crowd of 22,000, and the Northern Union won 15–5. The third test was played at Villa Park, Birmingham, the Northern Union winning again 6–5 before a crowd of 9,000. The Australians suggested that the series be named 'The Ashes' after the cricket series of the same name.

In 1909, when the new "Northern Union" code was still in its infancy in Australia, a match between the Kangaroos and the Wallabies was played before a crowd of around 20,000, with the Rugby League side winning 29–26.^[2]

1910s

The first British tour of the Southern Hemisphere began on 4 June 1910, when the Northern Union played New South Wales in front of 33,000 spectators in Sydney, losing 28–14. But they won the first test in Sydney against Australia 27–20 in front of 42,000. They then won the second test in Brisbane 22–17. In Auckland, on 30 July, they defeated New Zealand 52–20. The 1910 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand was the first-ever, and Australia were beaten for the Ashes in two tests, faring slightly better as "Australasia" with two Kiwis added to their squad. The 1911–12 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain was undertaken by an 'Australasian' squad which included four New Zealanders. They won the Ashes for the first time and for the next half a century no other touring team did do so on British soil.

The 1914 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand was the second time the British toured down under. The Australians, captained by Sid Deane for all three tests,^[3] got one victory but lost the series in the famous decider, the "Rorke's Drift Test".^[4] Australia also went on a tour of New Zealand in 1919.

1920s

The 1920 Great Britain Lions tour saw Australia win the Ashes for the first time on home soil. Crowds were massive including nearly 70,000 at the first Tour match versus Sydney. The 1921–22 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain also included a New Zealander and was ostensibly an Australasian side. In January 1922, an "England" side defeated Australia 6–0 at The Willows, Salford, to win back the Ashes that had been lost in 1920. They did not lose again until 1950.

The Australian national team first wore green and gold in a hooped design, on Saturday 23 June 1928, when they met Great Britain in the first Test at the Brisbane Exhibition Ground. Britain led 10–2 after 25 minutes, 13–7 at half time and, after a nervous second half, eventually claimed the Test 15–12. The England team won both the 1928 series in Australia and New Zealand by two tests to one. They were presented with the Ashes Trophy by the Australians, which the two countries have competed for ever since.

The 1929–30 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain was the fourth Kangaroo tour, and took the Australian team all around England and also into Wales. The tour also featured the ninth Ashes series which comprised four Test matches and was won by Great Britain.

1930s

The first test of the 1932 Ashes series between Australia and Great Britain drew a world record international rugby league attendance of 70,204 to the Sydney Cricket Ground. This attendance stood as the world record until the 1992 World Cup final played at Wembley Stadium, and as of 2013 remains the record attendance for a rugby league test played in Australia. The Jim Sullivan led Lions triumphed over the Herb Steinohrt led Australians 8–6.

On the 1933–34 tour New South Wales winger Dave Brown played in 32 matches, including all 3 Tests, scoring 285 points, at the time the greatest number ever attained by an Australian player on tour.^[5]

An exhibition match between Australia and Great Britain at Paris' Stade Pershing in December 1933 inspired the beginnings of rugby league in France.^[6]

1940s

Albert Johnston was a national selector in 1946 and coach of the national side for the 1946 first post-WWII Anglo-Australian series. Australia's 1948-49 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France was their seventh tour to the UK. They played the Ashes series against a side officially called Great Britain.

1950s

During the 1951 French rugby league tour of Australia and New Zealand, Australia lost the three-Test series to the powerful French team inspired by their freakish goal kicking fullback Puig Aubert.

The 1954 Rugby League World Cup was the first tournament held in either rugby code. Australia failed to reach the final.

For the 1956–57 Kangaroo tour a record eleven Queenslanders were selected in the touring squad. Great Britain defeated Australia 19–0 at Station Road, Swinton, to take the Ashes series 2–1.

Australia hosted and won the 1957 World Cup.

For the 1959–60 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain, the home nation retained the Ashes by winning the Test series 2–1 by the following results.

• First Test – Great Britain 14–22 Australia at Station Road, Swinton.
• Second Test – Great Britain 11–10 Australia at Headingley, Leeds.
• Third Test – Great Britain 18–12 Australia at Central Park, Wigan.

This was the last British Ashes win on home soil.

1960s

For the 1960 World Cup no final was held. Still, the last game, which was between the previously undefeated Great Britain and Australia sides, made it the tournament decider. Great Britain won 10–3.

Harry Bath was selected manager, coach and as the sole selector for the Australian national team's 1962 Ashes series.

After ten previous tours of Britain, the 1963–64 Kangaroo tour saw Australia's first ever Ashes victory on British soil. The Arthur Summons coached Kangaroos won the first test at Wembley Stadium before rampaging to a famous 50–12 win in the second test at Station Road in Swinton. Although they lost the third test at Headingley, legendary winger Ken Irvine became the first Australian player to score a try in each test of an Ashes series. The Kangaroos have not lost a series in Britain since.^[7]

Harry Bath coached the national side to World Cup glory in the 1968 World Cup. He also coached the team on a tour of New Zealand in 1969.

1970s

The last time that Great Britain won the Ashes was in 1970. They won the series 2–1 in Australia. Out of 24 games played Great Britain won 22, drew one and lost one – making them the most successful British tourists so far. The 1970 Lions contained a galaxy of stars including captain Frank Myler, Roger Millward, Cliff Watson and Mal Reilly. Future Kangaroo Tour captain and later coach Bob Fulton made his test debut in the 1970 Ashes series (Fulton had actually played 3 games for Australia in the 1968 World Cup but at the time tests and World Cup games were classed differently). Harry Bath again coached Australia to victory in the 1970 World Cup final in a brutal game that became known as the "Battle of Headingley". Bath also coached the team on a tour of New Zealand in 1971. On that tour Geoff Starling became the youngest player to ever represent Australia. He was 18 years and 181 days old when playing a tour match against a New Zealand XIII at Huntly.^[8]

Australia lost the 1972 World Cup Final to Great Britain in controversial circumstances. Australian captain Graeme Langlands was denied what seemed a fair try by being ruled offside by the French referee after catching a kick put up by halfback Dennis Ward. Television footage of the try showed Langlands was approximately a metre behind Ward when he kicked the ball. The French referee Georges Jameau's alleged reason for not awarding the try was that he did not believe anyone could have scored it from an onside position. The World Cup final was tied at 10–10 after full-time and was still locked after extra time. Great Britain were awarded the victory due to a higher points table placing after the pool rounds of the competition. The Final was also highlighted by an 80-metre try to Lions captain, winger Clive Sullivan.^[9]

On the 1978 Kangaroo tour, Great Britain defeated Australia in the second test at Bradford, 18–14, before a crowd of 26,447. It took ten years, and fifteen consecutive test defeats before Britain could defeat the Kangaroos again, starting with Australia's 3–0 whitewash of the Lions during their 1979 Australasian tour. The Kangaroos had already won the first test 15–9 at Wigan and wrapped up the series with a 23–6 win in the third test at Headingley. However, the Australians were defeated by the French team in both tests played at the end of the 1978 tour. This was the last defeat of the Kangaroos in a series until 2005.

1980s

The 1980s was the decade in which Australia began to truly dominate world rugby league. Along with the emergence of State of Origin football came a new crop of superstar players who led Australia throughout the 1980s. Players such as Peter Sterling, Mal Meninga, Wayne Pearce, Brett Kenny, Eric Grothe and Wally Lewis came to prominence on the 1982 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France. Australia's performance was taken into a new dimension by the tourists, also known as 'the Invincibles', when they became the first team to win every game of the tour (fifteen games) including the first test by 40–4 at Hull in front of 26,771 spectators. After the extremely poor showing during their 1979 Australasian tour, the Kangaroos rammed home just how far behind British football had fallen at Boothferry Park. The score was only 10–4 at half time, but after the break Australia's superior fitness showed and ran in six unanswered tries to leave the crowd and British football stunned.

In 1983, Arthur Beetson became the first Aboriginal to coach the Australian team after Frank Stanton had stood down following the Kangaroo Tour. Although Australia won the first test against New Zealand at Carlaw Park in Auckland, the Kiwis shocked by winning the return match 19–12 at Lang Park.

When the Lions toured in 1984, The Kangaroos again swept The Ashes series 3–0 under new team captain Wally Lewis, the first Queenslander to captain Australia since Arthur Beetson in 1974. Beetson was replaced as coach in 1984 by a returning Frank Stanton.

In 1985, Australia made a six-match tour of New Zealand under the coaching of Terry Fearnley who before the tour had coached NSW to its first ever Origin series win over Qld (the tour actually took place between games 2 and 3 of the Origin series). The Kangaroos won five of those matches, and the Test series 2–1. Australia won the first Test in Brisbane 26–20. On Sunday 30 June 1985, Australia met New Zealand in the second Test at Carlaw Park, Auckland. The Test was a 20,000 sell-out, with all tickets accounted for weeks before the match. The Kiwis dominated long periods of the game but ninety seconds from time the Kiwis lost possession close to half way. John Ribot scored a try and Australia won 10–6. The tour ended in acrimony as tensions between coach Fearley and the Qld players, led by team captain Wally Lewis, reached boiling point with Lewis publicly stating that he had caught Fearnley and team vice-captain Wayne Pearce going over team selections in Fearnley's hotel room. However, both Fearnley and Pearce denied the allegations. After the second test win Fearnley made 4 changes to the test team for the third and final test at Carlaw Park with all four players were omitted being Queenslanders. The changes proved disastrous and NZ ran out easy 18–0 winners.

Following the tour, the Australian Rugby League decided that from then on the Kangaroos coach could not also double as the incumbent coach of either NSW or Qld.

Former Kangaroo Don Furner became Australian coach in 1986 and immediately formed a good working relationship with Wally Lewis and the players. The now harmonious Australians swept New Zealand 3–0 in a mid-season test series played in Australia.

During the 1986 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France a then record northern hemisphere crowd of 50,383 attended the first test of the Ashes series at Old Trafford with the Walle Lewis led Australians winning 38–16. On 16 December 1986 the Kangaroos set a new record for largest-ever winning margin in a Test match at 52–0 against France. In their two Tests against France, the Australians ran in 96 points^[10] and conceded just a single penalty goal. After suffering such heavy losses, France decided to call off their proposed 1987 tour of Australia. This became the second consecutive tour of Europe in which Australia had won all their games. By the end of the tour, Terry Lamb had become the first player to appear in every match on a Kangaroo Tour. For this tour Wally Lewis, Greg Dowling, Bob Lindner, Gene Miles (Wynnum Manly) and Bryan Neibling (Redcliffe) became the last players selected to tour from the Brisbane Rugby League competition. By being named as tour captain, Wally Lewis became the first Queenslander to captain a Kangaroo Tour since Tom Gorman in 1929/30.

Australia crashed to a defeat on Tuesday 21 July 1987, when the Kangaroo dominance of the international game suffered a setback. New Zealand were their opponents in a match at Lang Park which had been arranged to fill the gap created by the non-appearance of France. New Zealand won the game 13–6. The next four internationals between Australia and New Zealand were all staged in New Zealand, and all were won by the Kangaroos.^[11]

During the 1988 Great Britain Lions tour the Ashes were successfully retained by Australia by winning the first two Tests, however Great Britain won the third test 26–12 at the Sydney Football Stadium, ending a 15-game winning streak between the two teams that stretched back to the third Ashes test of 1978. Later that month, Australia's 62-point win over Papua New Guinea in the NSW country town of Wagga Wagga set a new record for largest winning margin in international rugby league. Australian dual international winger Michael O'Connor also set a new record for most points scored by an individual in international rugby league (30 points – 4 tries, 7 goals).^[12] Also in 1988, as part of the bicentenary celebrations, Australia played a one-off test match against Rest Of The World at the Sydney Football Stadium, winning the one-off test 22–10. The 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup culminated in the World Cup final against New Zealand at Auckland's Eden Park ground (the home of NZ rugby union). Australia won a brutal World Cup final 25–12 in front of 47,363. Captain Wally Lewis broke his arm during the game.^[13]

In 1989 the Kangaroos toured New Zealand, taking a record-breaking twelve Queenslanders in the 20 man squad after Queensland's second straight 3-0 State of Origin series win over New South Wales.^[14] Don Furner had retired from coaching after the 1988 World Cup final with Manly-Warringah 1987 Sydney Rugby League premiership winning coach and 1978 Kangaroo tour captain Bob Fulton taking over from 1989. Fulton's first series in charge of the Australian team saw them sweep New Zealand 3–0 during their 1989 tour.

1990s

The Bob Fulton coached Kangaroos played two mid-season tests in 1990. They defeated France 34–2 on a cold night in Parkes with Mal Meninga taking over the captaincy from Wally Lewis who was unavailable with a broken arm.^[15] They then played a single test against New Zealand in Wellington, winning 24–6.

With Wally Lewis controversially ruled unfit for the 1990 Kangaroo tour, his Queensland teammate Mal Meninga, making his 3rd Kangaroo Tour, retained the Australian captaincy. The Ashes got off to a bad start for the Kangaroos when Great Britain shocked Australia to win the first test 19–12 at Wembley Stadium in front of a new record home crowd of 54,567. The second test at Old Trafford in Manchester was a tight, thrilling affair that saw two of the most famous tries scored in test match football. Debutante 5/8 Cliff Lyons second half try came after the Kangaroos kept the ball alive through 13 sets of hands before winger Andrew Ettingshausen raced down the wing and centre kicked for Lyons to score. With the scores tied at 10-all going into injury time and the Kangaroos pinned just 15 metres from their line, Ricky Stuart set off on a 75-metre run before passing to Meninga winning try only seconds from full-time to give Australia a 14–10 win.^[16] The Kangaroos then wrapped up The Ashes with a comprehensive 14–0 win in the third test at Elland Road in Leeds. Meninga as captain became just the third Australian (after Ken Irvine in 1962 and 1963–64, and Sam Backo in 1988) to score a try in each test of an Ashes series.

Australia faced New Zealand in a three-game mid-season Test series in 1991. The first test, played at the Olympic Park Stadium in Melbourne (the first rugby league test played in Australia outside of NSW or Qld) saw the Kiwis again defeat Australia after a successful Kangaroo tour. NZ won the first test 24–8 in Melbourne in front of 26,900 fans, however a new look Australian side came back to win the second test 44–0 in Sydney and the third test 40–12 in Brisbane.^[17] At the end of the 1991 NSWRL season, the Kangaroos embarked on their first (and as of 2017 only) tour of Papua New Guinea, winning all five games on tour including easily both tests against the Papua New Guinea Kumuls.^[18]

During the 1992 Great Britain Lions tour of Australasia, the British lost the first test 22–6 in Sydney before stunning the Australians when they easily won the 2nd Ashes test 33–10 at Princes Park in Melbourne, but lost the 3rd test 16–10 in Brisbane. The 1992 Rugby League World Cup final at Wembley Stadium set a then international attendance record for a rugby league international of 73,631. The Bob Fulton coached, Mal Meninga captained Australians defeat Great Britain 10–6 to win their 7th Rugby League World Cup title. The WCF was a tight game with the Lions leading 6–4 with less than 20 minutes remaining before an on debut Steve Renouf crossed for the only try of the game and along with Meninga's sideline conversion gave the Kangaroos a famous victory.^[19]

Australia again played a mid-season test series against New Zealand in 1993. The first test at the Mt Smart Stadium in Auckland ended in a 14-all draw thanks to a late Laurie Daley field goal. Daley had captained Australia for the first time in the match following a two-game suspension to Mal Meninga. The Kangaroos then won the second test 16–8 at the very wet Palmerston North Showgrounds before wrapping up the series with a 16–4 win at Lang Park in Brisbane.

On 4 July 1994, Australia defeated France 58–0 at the Parramatta Stadium in Sydney, their only test on home soil for the year.^[20] The 1994 Kangaroo Tour was the last time the Australian national team played matches against British provincial teams, in addition to the Tests. Australia continued its dominance, winning both Test series against Great Britain and France, suffering only one loss (again, against Great Britain in the First Test at Wembley), and remained undefeated against British club outfits in a streak stretching back to 1978. Australia adopted the name 'Kangaroos' for the July test against France, since then the team has been officially known by this name. The 1994 Kangaroo tour was also the first (and only) time that the traditional Australian test kit was only worn during test matches. For the tour games, including the friendly against Wales in Cardiff (the first time Australia had played Wales in 12 years), the Kangaroos wore jumpers that had increasing thickness gold hoops underneath the twin gold chevrons.

The Australian team that contested and won the 1995 Rugby League World Cup consisted only of players from clubs that remained loyal to the Australian Rugby League during the Super League war. This meant several Super League-aligned clubs that were already well-established internationals were not selected for the World Cup squad. During 1995, the Kangaroos defeated New Zealand 3–0 in the Trans-Tasman Test series played in Australia. As they were for the World Cup, only ARL loyal players were selected for Australia which saw several players, including Steve Menzies, Mark Coyne, Terry Hill, Gary Larson, Trevor Gillmeister and Jason Smith make their test debuts during the New Zealand series. Despite having what many described as a second string side without players such as Laurie Daley, Allan Langer, Andrew Ettingshausen, Brett Mullins, Glenn Lazarus, Bradley Clyde, Ian Roberts, Ricky Stuart and Steve Walters, Bob Fulton's Kangaroos won their 8th World Cup (and 5th in a row) when they defeated England 16–8 in the World Cup final in front of 66,540 fans at Wembley. The star of the day for Australia was halfback/hooker Andrew Johns.

In 1997 also, due to the Super League war, Australian rugby league was split down the middle by two competitions: the ARL's Optus Cup and Super League's Telstra Cup. As a result, that season there were also two Australian sides:^[21]

Australian Rugby League   Australia v   Rest of the World 11 July 1997 Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane Fullback: Tim Brasher Wingers: Mark Coyne, Robbie O'Davis Centres: Paul McGregor, Terry Hill Five-eighth: Brad Fittler (c) Halfback: Geoff Toovey Props: Paul Harragon, Mark Carroll Hooker: Andrew Johns Second-rowers: Steve Menzies, Gary Larson Lock: Billy Moore Reserves: Matt Sing, John Simon, Nik Kosef, Dean Pay Coach: Bob Fulton

Super League   Australia v   Great Britain (1st SL Test) 1 November 1997 Wembley Stadium, London Fullback: Darren Lockyer Wingers: Brett Mullins, Wendell Sailor Centres: Andrew Ettingshausen, Ryan Girdler Five-eighth: Laurie Daley (c) Halfback: Craig Gower Props: Jason Stevens, Brad Thorn Hooker: Steve Walters Second-rowers: Matt Adamson, Gorden Tallis Lock: Darren Smith Reserves: Robbie Kearns, Craig Greenhill, Ken Nagas, Brett Kimmorley Coach: John Lang

Great Britain played a home three-Test series against the Australian Super League Test team in 1997 and lost 2–1. The three matches played have been given test status by the UK's Rugby Football League.^[22] The Australian Rugby League has decided not to recognise the matches of its rival as tests since the Super League war ended and does not consider the series to be a genuine Ashes contest.^[23] Super League's Anzac Test concept, which is an early season one-off test match against New Zealand was retained and has been played annual ever since.

The 1998 Kangaroo Tour was cancelled because of the Super League war. With the Super League war finally over in 1998, Great Britain travelled to the Southern Hemisphere for the first Rugby League Tri-Nations tournament with Australia and New Zealand in 1999.

Chris Anderson took over from Wayne Bennett as coach of the team in March 1999.^[24]

2000s

The new millennium started with the 2000 World Cup which Australia won.

In 2001 the Australians arrived in Britain for the first Ashes series since 1994. Great Britain surprised everyone by winning the first test, but lost the next two.

In July 2002, Australia handed Great Britain their worst ever test defeat by defeating them 64–10 in a Sydney test match.

In 2003 the New Zealand Rugby League counted its 100th international match against Australia, because they take World Cup matches and Super League tests into account.^[25]

In November 2003, Great Britain lost an Ashes series 0–3 on home soil. The margin was extremely small in each game, 22–18 in game 1, 23–20 in game 2 and 18–12 in game 3 and it was known as Brett Kimmorley's greatest series as he orchestrated Australia's last minute victories. However, the dominance of the Australian team over the last generation has begun to slip since 2003.

In 2003 and 2005 New Zealand won the Bill Kelly Memorial Trophy from Australia. Australia won the first two Rugby League Tri-Nations competitions in 1999 and 2004, before being defeated by New Zealand in the final of the 2005 competition on 26 November 2005.^[26] Before that defeat Australia had not lost a Test series since December 1978, when they were defeated by France in both Test matches. On 4 November 2006, Australia lost to Great Britain 23–12 [1]. It was a huge upset, and the first time since 1988 that the Kangaroos had been beaten by Great Britain in Sydney. The match was Australia's 3rd match of the 2006 Tri-Nations series, having already secured a place in the final with two wins against New Zealand earlier in the tournament 30–18 and 20–15. The Australian side reclaimed the title of Tri-Nations champions on 25 November with a victory over the New Zealand side in the final by 16–12 with a try in the second period of extra time by captain Darren Lockyer.^[27]

In 2007 Australia played two test matches, both against New Zealand and both emphatic victories. The first 30–6 and the second 58–0.^[28]

 

The Australian Kangaroos line up to face the New Zealand haka at the 2008 Rugby League World Cup

Australia hosted the 2008 World Cup and did not have to qualify. They did not lose a match until the final, which they lost to New Zealand 34–20, who became world champions for the first time. Following this loss, Ricky Stuart was replaced as coach by Tim Sheens, then the most experienced NRL coach.

Tim Sheens' first match as Australian coach was against New Zealand 2009 Anzac Test. In this match Sheen's side included a record-equalling ten Queensland representatives, including an all maroon backline and front row,^[29] reflecting the state's dominance in the annual State of Origin series. All of the points were also scored by Queenslanders in the 38–10 victory. Later that year Australia traveled up to play in the inaugural Four Nations tournament. The Kangaroos advanced to the final after a draw against New Zealand, and wins over co-hosts England and France. Australia took on the English in the final and despite at one point trailing 14–16, a dominant last quarter of the game saw Australia win the inaugural Four Nations tournament. Captain Darren Lockyer also reached a milestone in this match after becoming the first Australian to make 50 appearances for his country.^[30]

2010s

Australia began 2010 with a 4-point win in the Anzac Test that symbolised the opening of the new stadium in Melbourne: AAMI Park. After the 2010 domestic season the major international tournament was the 2010 Four Nations held in Australia and New Zealand. In Australia's opening match against Papua New Guinea, captain Darren Lockyer surpassed Ken Irvine's record for most test tries for Australia, scoring his 34th. Australia won all of their matches comfortably to advance to the final to have a 2008 World Cup final re-match against New Zealand at Suncorp Stadium. The Kiwis won the game 16–12, and 2010 Four Nations title, after a try in the final seconds of the match.

Australia gained revenge over the Kiwis after another Anzac Test win, retaining the Bill Kelly Memorial Trophy in the process with a 10-point win on the Gold Coast. Later in that year Australia played a test-match against New Zealand, 12 days before the 2011 Four Nations kicked off, at the newly reconstructed Ausgrid Stadium in Newcastle. Australia thrashed the Kiwis by 36 points in front of a record crowd. Darren Lockyer became the most capped International player of all-time after surpassing New Zealand international Ruben Wiki's record of 55 appearances for his country. Australia took on New Zealand again in the opening game of the Four Nations, held in England and Wales. The Australians yet again beat their trans-tasman rivals. They then went on to beat England at Wembley and were surprised in their final round-robin fixture after Wales were leading 8–0 after 13 minutes and were behind Australia by only 10 points at the break. But Sheens' men thrashed the Welsh to easily advance to another final meeting with England. After being tied with the English at one point in the second half, Australia went on to win the game by 22 points.^[31]

In 2012, the Anzac Test was held in New Zealand for the first time since 1998, which was the Kiwis last win in the fixture. Home advantage made no difference for the Kiwis as Sheens' Kangaroos won the match by eight points. The Kangaroos took on the Kiwis one more time later in the year, this time in Townsville. In front of a sold-out crowd, the Kangaroos won the test-match with another eight point victory. There was no tournament this year because there was a World Cup next year for the teams to prepare for.

Australia began the 2013 International season by retaining the Bill Kelly Memorial Trophy after another Anzac Test win. At the end of the year, Australia traveled up to play in the 2013 World Cup co-hosted by England and Wales. In their opening game against England, the Kangaroos faced a 0–10 scoreline after twenty minutes. But Australia went on to regain the control and go on to win the match by eight points. The England match was Australia's only 'scare' in the tournament as the Kangaroos went on to win and dominate all of their remaining matches, recording a 244–4 total aggregate score. They went on to earn revenge for their defeat to New Zealand five years ago in the World Cup final to beat them this time around at the same stage. The final was watched in front of a record International rugby league attendance of 74,468. In the match, five-eighth, Johnathan Thurston broke Mick Cronin's 31-year record of top point scorer after a conversion took him past the previous record of 309 points. This was the Kangaroos' tenth World Cup title.^[32] After the England game, Australia recorded five successive games without conceding a try in the tournament. This feat was one game off equaling the 1981–82 Australian team's record.^[33]

Australia could not equal that feat despite another Anzac Test win in 2014. Later that year, Australia co-hosted the 2014 Four Nations with New Zealand. They took on the Kiwis in the second of the double-header clashes at Suncorp Stadium. However Australia's record against the Kiwis at the venue continued to be a negative one after another defeat made it three defeats in the past four meetings at the 'Cauldron'. This meant Australia were facing England in a must win game at AAMI Park in Melbourne. With many regulars missing, Sheens had to make decisions like naming an 18-year old in the team, who'd become the youngest player to play for Australia. Sione Mata'utia, aged 18 years and 129 days, eclipsed the previous record held by Israel Folau, since 2007, by 65 days when he played on debut for Australia against the 'Poms'. The match was headlined with controversy. In the last minute of the game, England put a grubber kick in the in-goal area, since they were desperate for a try as they were trailing by just four points. Australian fullback Greg Inglis had to force the ball dead due to incoming England attack but the video referees wanted to have another look and see whether or not it was Inglis or the incoming English winger Ryan Hall got the last touch on the ball. On the slow-motion replays it showed that Ryan Hall's right hand's little finger had put some downward pressure on the ball however in normal speed it was deemed 'inconclusive' by Australian officiating rules and therefore a NO TRY was given to the frustration of the English players and supporters but respect from Sheens and his Australian players. Had the try been awarded and England converted, it would have been Australia's first defeat to England since 1995, the first time they suffered back-to-back home defeats since 1970 and the first time they failed to qualify for a tournament final since 1954.^[34][35] In their final round-robin fixture they dominated proceedings against the Samoans, who had been causing trouble for England and New Zealand in the tournament, to advance to the final which was held in New Zealand. However they could not get revenge for their defeat earlier in the tournament as Australia lost 18–22.

The 2015 Anzac Test was held in Suncorp Stadium. The Australian team's horrible record in Brisbane against the Kiwis continued as they suffered another defeat and records continued to be made for the New Zealand team. This was the first time they beat Australia for three consecutive test-matches since 1953 and the first time they won the Anzac Test since 1998. Australia did not play another test-match that year.^[36][37] After the match Sheens was facing scrutiny from the media after many believed it was time for the old players he fielded to move on since the much younger Kiwis side had beaten them on the past three occasions. Australia also dropped down to number 2 on the RLIF World Rankings, which added further scrutiny. At the end of the year, Sheens was unable to cope with the pressure of the media, despite wanting to coach the team at the 2017 World Cup. He took up an advisory role with English domestic club Salford Red Devils and therefore resigned as coach of the Australian national team.

In December 2015, successful Queensland Maroons coach Mal Meninga announced he'd leave his role as the coach of the Queensland representative side to coach the Australian national team. Before his appointment Mal announced his ambitions that he wanted the International game to become the pinnacle of rugby league like it was in his playing days.^[38]

Mal Meninga's first game in charge as Australian coach was the 2016 Anzac Test. Before the test, Meninga stirred controversy around the rugby league world after selecting Fijian born player Semi Radradra, who is eligible due to living in Australia for three years, in his team over other 'homegrown' Australian players. Radradra, who represented Fiji at the 2013 World Cup, still had a Fijian passport at that time and this brought up the question of changing eligibility rules in International rugby league. Meninga's selection questioned the ambition he raised of wanting to make the International game the pinnacle of the sport. Australia won the test-match 16–0 and in the process ended their losing-run against the Kiwis. They also held New Zealand scoreless in a test-match for the first time since 2007. But despite the result Australia suffered criticism with commentator Phil Gould saying the Australian team is 'too old' and are 'kidding themselves if they think they'll win the World Cup next year'. He believes Australia should've put much more points on a 'weakened' New Zealand team missing many regular players through various reasons. Meninga hit back saying 'That was a real test-match. That's what test footy is. People who have never played it don't know what it is.'^[39] At the conclusion of the 2016 domestic season, Australia took on New Zealand in Perth in what was the first ever test-match in Western Australia. Meninga's men then began their 2016 Four Nations campaign with comfortable 42-point win over Scotland, in the first ever meeting between the two countries. After a tough encounter with New Zealand, and a convincing win over England, Australia met their Trans-Tasman rivals once again in the final. Meninga's Roos made the final tournament match look easy, as the Kangaroos dominated their opponents with a 26-point victory, claiming their third tournament title in the process.^[40]

In the last ever scheduled Anzac Test, captain Cameron Smith became just the second player to play 50 tests for Australia, behind former captain, and record cap holder, Darren Lockyer. He became the first Australian to wear the gold chevron on his shoulder after a new initiative created by Meninga last year. Other players are also honoured, with players that have earned 20+ caps wearing a white chevron, 30+ wearing a bronze chevron, and 40+ wearing a silver chevron on their shoulder. If a player beats Lockyer's record for the most appearances, they will wear a 'special purple' commemorative jersey.^[41] Australia won the final Anzac test-match by a convincing scoreline of 30–12. Later in the year, countries were preparing for the grandest stage in the international game, the World Cup. However, the biggest talking point wasn't about whether Australia would defend their title. It was around Tonga, after many players of Tongan heritage, had quit the opportunity to represent the New Zealand squad in order to play for Tonga. Regular Australian prop forward, Andrew Fifita, also followed suit, after initially being announced in Meninga's squad, to the disapproval of Australian halfback Cooper Cronk.^[42] Meninga, however, also voiced his opinion saying he had no issue with Fifita's decision, as it was great for Tonga, and the international game. After conceding early, Australia went on to grit out a tough victory over England. The Kangaroos then went on to beat a spirited French team, in a game which saw Wade Graham became the seventh player to equal the record of four tries in a World Cup game, and only the second Australian forward to score four tries in a single game, since Gorden Tallis in 2000.^[43] Australia finished off their pool stage games, with a comprehensive victory over a gallant Lebanese outfit. Australia then advanced past Samoa to the semi-finals with ease, thanks to a record-breaking five tries in a single World Cup match from Valentine Holmes. Holmes then remarkably beat his own record a week later, in the semi-finals against Fiji. With the six tries, he surpassed former Kangaroo, Wendell Sailor's, record for most tries in a single World Cup tournament, held since 2000.^[44] In the final, Australia took on England for the first time in 22 years, after facing New Zealand for three consecutive editions. The Kangaroos went on to retain the World Cup at Lang Park, the venue, at which they lost the World Cup final, when the tournament was last held in Australia. Australia also became the first team to win 11 World Cup crowns. The final score of 6–0, made this the lowest scoring World Cup final in the history of the tournament. This was also the first time that a country had won the competition on home soil in 40 years.^[45]

On 20 October 2018, for the first time in history, Australia played a Test match against Tonga. In front of a sold-out crowd at Mt. Smart Stadium in Auckland, the Kangaroos withstood a spirited challenge from the Mate Ma'a to win 34–16.^[46]

On 2 November 2019 in front of 25,257, Tonga beat Australia for the first time in their history, which marked the first time Australia had lost to a Tier 2 side since the system came in and the first time they'd lost to a team which wasn't New Zealand, Great Britain or England since 1978.^[47]

2020s

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 Rugby League World Cup was delayed until the end of 2022.^[48] Throughout 2022, several NRL players with international heritage opting to play for their home nation during the World Cup, including Jarome Luai, Brian To'o and Joseph Sua’ali’i for Samoa, Felise Kafusi for Tonga, and Viliame Kikau, Apisai Koroisau, and Maika Sivo for Fiji.^{[49][50][51][52]} Mal Meninga named his 24-man squad on the 5th October, with James Tedesco named as captain after previously playing for Italy in the 2017 World Cup.^[53]

The campaign kicked off against Fiji at Emerald Headingley Stadium, winning 42–8, with debutants Jeremiah Nanai, Angus Crichton, and Harry Grant crossing for tries, Josh Addo-Carr getting a double, and Cameron Munster winning man of the match. The Kangaroos then crushed a hapless Scotland side 84–0 at Coventry Building Society Arena, with Addo-Carr scoring four tries, including a last-minute try off a no-look between the legs flick from Addo-Carr's Bulldogs teammate Matt Burton.^{[citation needed]} Burton, Nathan Cleary, Isaah Yeo and Campbell Graham all scored tries on debut, with Addo-Carr also receiving man of the match.^[54][55] Meninga named his squad for Australia on the 27th October, pairing together Cleary and Daly-Cherry Evans in the halves.^[56] The two had been in contention to be Meninga's first-choice halfback.^[57] Australia then went on to beat Italy 66–6 at Totally Wicked Stadium, with Tedesco scoring a try against his former team and Campbell Graham scoring a double.^[58] Australia won their 12th World Cup title, defeating Samoa 30–10 in the final.^[59]

Coaches

See also: List of Australia national rugby league team coaches

The current coach of the Australian team is former team captain and Immortal Mal Meninga, who was appointed coach in late 2015 after the resignation of Tim Sheens who coached the team from 2009 to 2015.

Bob Fulton has coached the most matches with 40 starting in 1989 and finishing in 1998. Jack Gibson, despite never having coached at international level, was named coach of the Australian rugby league team of the century (1908–2008).

• Albert Johnston 1946
• Col Maxwell 1948–1949
• Len Smith 1949
• Keith Froome 1949
• Vic Hey 1950–1951, 1954–1955
• Clive Churchill 1952–1953, 1959–60, 1963
• Ken Kearney 1956–1957
• Herbert Poole 1957
• Norm Robinson 1958
• Keith Barnes 1960
• Brian Carlson 1961
• Harry Bath 1962, 1968–1972
• Arthur Summons 1963–1964, 1970
• Reg Gasnier 1964, 1967–1968
• Ian Walsh 1965–1966
• Graeme Langlands 1973–1975
• Terry Fearnley 1977, 1985
• Frank Stanton 1978–1982, 1984
• Arthur Beetson 1983
• Don Furner 1986–1988
• Bob Fulton 1989–1998
• John Lang 1997 (Super League)
• Wayne Bennett 1998, 2004–2005
• Chris Anderson 1999–2003
• Ricky Stuart 2006–2008
• Tim Sheens 2009–2015
• Mal Meninga 2016–

Players

Main article: List of Australia national rugby league team players

Current squad

The Australian Kangaroos squad for the 2023 Pacific Championships. The squad was announced on 3 October with updates on 4 October and 6 October 2023.^[60][61][62]
Statistics in this table are compiled from the website, Rugby League Project and are up to 5 November 2023, including the Final of the 2023 Pacific Championships. Jersey numbers are those used in that Final.

J#	Player	Age	Position(s)	Kangaroos						Club	NRL		Other Reps
				Dbt	M	T	G	F	P		CM	TM
1	James Tedesco	30	Fullback	2018	13	9	0	0	36	Sydney Roosters	136	226	22   6   1   2
2	Dylan Edwards	27	Wing, Fullback	2023	3	1	0	0	4	Penrith Panthers	131	131
3	Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow	22	Centre, Fullback	2023	3	2	0	0	8	Dolphins (NRL)	20	70	4   1   1
4	Kotoni Staggs	25	Centre	2023	3	1	5	0	14	Brisbane Broncos	100	100	1   1   3
5	Valentine Holmes	28	Wing	2016	21	20	22	0	124	North Queensland Cowboys	74	179	16
6	Cameron Munster	29	Five-eighth	2017	12	4	0	0	16	Melbourne Storm	195	195	18
7	Daly Cherry-Evans	34	Halfback	2011	21	5	3	0	26	Manly Warringah Sea Eagles	305	305	22   2
8	Payne Haas	23	Prop	2019	4	1	0	0	4	Brisbane Broncos	104	104	11   1
9	Ben Hunt	33	Hooker, Halfback	2014	15	4	0	0	16	St. George Illawarra Dragons	125	312	17   4
10	Tino Fa'asuamaleaui	23	Prop	2022	7	1	0	0	4	Gold Coast Titans	63	90	12   1   3
17	Reuben Cotter	24	Second-row, Prop	2022	5	0	0	0	0	North Queensland Cowboys	59	59	4   2   1
12	Liam Martin	26	Second-row	2022	7	3	0	0	12	Penrith Panthers	104	104	9
13	Isaah Yeo	28	Lock	2022	8	2	0	0	8	Penrith Panthers	220	220	11   1
14	Harry Grant	25	Hooker	2022	8	1	0	0	4	Melbourne Storm	62	77	8
15	Lindsay Collins	27	Prop	2022	6	3	0	0	12	Sydney Roosters	90	90	9
16	Patrick Carrigan	25	Lock	2022	8	0	0	0	0	Brisbane Broncos	83	83	6
18	Nicho Hynes	27	Halfback, Fullback	2023	2	0	0	0	0	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	46	82	1   3   1
19	Thomas Flegler	24	Prop	2023	1	0	0	0	0	Brisbane Broncos	96	96	3   2
11	Cameron Murray	25	Second-row, Lock	2019	8	7	0	0	28	South Sydney Rabbitohs	147	147	13   1
20	Selwyn Cobbo	21	Wing	2023	1	0	0	0	0	Brisbane Broncos	49	49	4   3   1
21	Jake Trbojevic	29	Prop, Lock	2016	13	2	0	0	8	Manly Warringah Sea Eagles	200	200	16   4

Records

Main article: List of Australia national rugby league team records

• Bold- denotes that the player is still active.

Most capped players

#	Name	Career	Caps
1	Darren Lockyer	1998–2011	59
2	Cameron Smith	2006–2017	56
3	Mal Meninga	1982–1994	46
4	Graeme Langlands	1963–1975	45
	Petero Civoniceva	2001–2011	45
6	Brad Fittler	1991–1995, 1998–2001	40
7	Reg Gasnier	1959–1967	39
	Johnny Raper	1959–1968	39
	Greg Inglis	2006–2016	39
10	Johnathan Thurston	2006–2009, 2011–2017	38
	Cooper Cronk	2007, 2009–2017	38

Top try scorers

#	Name	Career	Tries
1	Darren Lockyer	1998–2011	35
2	Ken Irvine	1959–1967	33
3	Greg Inglis	2006–2016	31
4	Reg Gasnier	1959–1967	28
5	Billy Slater	2008–2014, 2017	27
6	Bob Fulton	1968–1975, 1978	25
7	Brett Morris	2009–2014	23
8	Mal Meninga	1982–1994	21
9	Graeme Langlands	1963–1975	20
	Valentine Holmes	2016-2023	20

Top points scorers

#	Name	Career	Points	Tries	Goals	Field Goals
1	Johnathan Thurston	2006–2017	382	13	165	0
2	Mick Cronin	1973–1982	308	10	139	0
3	Mal Meninga	1982–1994	278	21	99	0
4	Andrew Johns	1995, 1998–2006	226	12	89	0
5	Graeme Langlands	1963–1975	206	20	73	0
6	Darren Lockyer	1998–2011	204	35	31	2
7	Michael O'Connor	1986–1990	198	17	65	0
8	Cameron Smith	2006–2017	170	9	67	0
9	Mat Rogers	1998–2000	168	9	66	0

Team records

• Biggest win:

110–4 v.   Russia (at The Boulevard, 4 November 2000)

• Biggest loss:

30–0 v.   New Zealand (at FMG Stadium Waikato, 4 November 2023)

• Highest all–time attendance:

74,468 v.   New Zealand (at Old Trafford, 30 November 2013)

Individual

• Most tries in a match:

• 6:

Valentine Holmes v.   Fiji (24 November 2017)

• Most points in a match:

• 46:

Ryan Girdler v.   Russia (at The Boulevard, 4 November 2000)

• Youngest player:

• 18 years 129 days:

Sione Mata'utia v.   England (2 November 2014)

Team of the Century (1908–2008)

Main article: Australian rugby league team of the century

As Australian rugby league celebrated its first centenary in 2008, an Australian team of the century was named which comprises one player for each of the thirteen positions plus four interchange players:^[63] Winger Brian Bevan is the only player in the team who never represented Australia in a test match, while coach Jack Gibson never coached the Australian test team.

No. Position Player 1 Clive Churchill – FB 2 Brian Bevan – WG 3 Reg Gasnier – CE 4 Mal Meninga – CE 5 Ken Irvine – WG 6 Wally Lewis – FE 7 Andrew Johns – HB 8 Arthur Beetson – PR 9 Noel Kelly – HK

No. Position Player 10 Duncan Hall – PR 11 Norm Provan – SR 12 Ron Coote – SR 13 Johnny Raper – LK 14 Graeme Langlands – positions 15 Dally Messenger – positions 16 Bob Fulton – positions 17 Frank Burge – positions CO Jack Gibson – positions

Captains

• Arthur Hennessy (1908)
• Denis Lutge (1908)
• Alex Burdon (1909)
• Dally Messenger (1908–1910)
• Larry O'Malley (1909)
• Robert Graves (1909)
• Bill Heidke (1910)
• Chris McKivat (1910–1912)
• Sid Deane(1914)
• Arthur Halloway (1919)
• Albert "Rick" Johnston (1919–1920)
• Herb Gilbert (1920)
• Charles "Chook" Fraser (1921–1922)
• Jim Craig (1924)
• Tom Gorman (1928–1930)
• Herb Steinohrt (1932)
• Frank McMillan (1933)
• Peter "Mick" Madsen (1933)
• Dave Brown (1935–1936)
• Wally Prigg (1937–1938)
• Joe Jorgenson (1946)
• Ron Bailey (1946)
• Len Smith (1948)
• Col Maxwell (1948)
• Wally O'Connell(1948)
• Bill Tyquin (1949)
• Keith Froome (1949)
• Clive Churchill (1950–1954)
• Ken Kearney (1956–1957)
• Dick Poole (1957)
• Brian Davies (1958)
• Brian Carlson (1959–1961)
• Keith Barnes (1959–1962)
• Barry Muir (1960–1961)
• Reg Gasnier (1962–1967)
• Arthur Summons (1962–1964)
• Billy Wilson (1963)
• Ian Walsh (1963–1966)
• Peter Gallagher (1967)
• Johnny Raper (1967–1968)
• John Sattler (1969–1970)
• Graeme Langlands (1970–1975)
• Phil Hawthorne (1970)
• Ron Coote (1970)
• Billy Smith (1970)
• Bob McCarthy (1973)
• Tommy Raudonikis (1973)
• Arthur Beetson (1973–1977)
• John Brass (1975)
• Greg Veivers (1977)
• Greg Pierce (1978)
• Bob Fulton (1978)
• George Peponis (1979–1980)
• Steve Rogers (1981)
• Max Krilich (1982–1983)
• Wally Lewis (1984–1989)
• Mal Meninga (1990–1994)
• Laurie Daley (1993–1998)
• Brad Fittler (1995–2001)
• Paul Harragon (1995)
• Geoff Toovey (1996)
• Allan Langer (1998)
• Gorden Tallis (2000–2002)
• Andrew Johns (2002–2003)
• Darren Lockyer (2003–2011)
• Danny Buderus (2004–2005)
• Craig Gower (2005–2007)
• Cameron Smith (2007–2017)
• Boyd Cordner (2018–2019)
• James Tedesco (2022-)

note* during 2020-2021 there were no international games

Competitive records

Main article: List of results of the Australian national rugby league team

Overall record

Below is the table of the official representative rugby league matches played by Australia at test level up until 5 November 2023:^[64][65]

Opponent	Played	Won	Lost	Drawn	Last Meeting	Win%	For	Aga	Diff
England	25	16	7	2	2017	64%	558	281	+277
Fiji	8	8	0	0	2022	100.00%	462	38	+424
France	61	45	14	2	2017	73.77%	1476	547	+929
Great Britain*	139	73	61	5	2006	52.52%	2352	1745	+607
Ireland	1	1	0	0	2013	100.00%	50	0	+50
Italy	3	3	0	0	2022	100.00%	170	43	+127
Lebanon	2	2	0	0	2022	100.00%	82	4	+78
New Zealand*	145	107	35	3	2023	73.79%	3299	1934	+1365
Māori	9	6	2	1	1980	66.67%	166	107	+59
Papua New Guinea	11	11	0	0	2010	100.00%	580	68	+512
Rest of the World	3	3	0	0	1997	100.00%	70	29	+41
Russia	1	1	0	0	2000	100.00%	110	4	+106
Samoa	5	5	0	0	2023	100.00%	224	50	+174
Scotland	2	2	0	0	2022	100.00%	138	12	+126
South Africa	3	3	0	0	1995	100.00%	174	33	+141
Tonga†	2	1	1	0	2019	50.00%	46	32	+14
United States	2	2	0	0	2013	100.00%	98	24	+74
Wales	13	13	0	0	2011	100.00%	455	143	+312
Total	435	302	120	13	2023	69.43%	10,510	5,094	+5,416
*Includes five matches in 1997 as Australia (SL).^[66]
†Includes matches played against Tonga Invitational XIII.^[67]

World Cup

Further information: Australia at the Rugby League World Cup

A red box around the year indicates tournaments played within Australia

World Cup Record
Host/s	Year/s	Round	Position	Pld	Win	Draw	Loss
France	1954	Group	3rd out of 4	3	1	0	2
Australia	1957	Winners	1st out of 4	3	3	0	0
England	1960	Group	2nd out of 4	3	2	0	1
Australia   New Zealand	1968	Winners	1st out of 4	4	4	0	0
England	1970	Winners	1st out of 4	4	2	0	2
France	1972	Final	2nd out of 4	4	2	0	2
Worldwide	1975	Winners	1st out of 5	9	7	1	1
Australia   New Zealand	1977	Winners	1st out of 4	4	4	0	4
Worldwide	1985–88	Winners	1st out of 5	8	6	0	2
Worldwide	1989–92	Winners	1st out of 5	9	9	0	0
England	1995	Winners	1st out of 10	5	4	0	1
England   France   Ireland   Scotland   Wales	2000	Winners	1st out of 16	6	6	0	0
Australia	2008	Final	2nd out of 10	5	4	0	1
England   Wales	2013	Winners	1st out of 14	6	6	0	0
Australia   New Zealand   Papua New Guinea	2017	Winners	1st out of 14	6	6	0	0
England	2021	Winners	1st out of 16	6	6	0	0
	2026	Qualified

World Cup 9's

World Cup 9's Record
Host/s	Year	Round	Position	Pld	Win	Draw	Loss
Australia	2019	Winners	1st out of 12	5	5	0	0

Tri/Four Nations

Tri/ Four Nations Record
Host/s	Year	Round	Position	Pld	Win	Draw	Loss
Australia   New Zealand	1999	Winners	1st out of 3	3	2	0	1
England	2004	Winners	1st out of 3	5	3	1	1
England	2005	Runners up	2nd out of 3	5	4	0	1
Australia   New Zealand	2006	Winners	1st out of 3	5	4	0	1
England   France	2009	Winners	1st out of 4	4	3	1	0
Australia   New Zealand	2010	Final	2nd out of 4	4	3	0	1
England   Wales	2011	Winners	1st out of 4	4	4	0	0
Australia   New Zealand	2014	Final	2nd out of 4	4	2	0	2
England	2016	Winners	1st out of 4	4	4	0	0

Rugby League Pacific Championship

Rugby League Pacific Championship record
Year	Round	Position	GP	W	L	D
2019	Champions	1/3	2	1	1	0
2023	Second place	2/3	3	2	1	0
Total	1 Titles	2/2	5	3	2	0

Kangaroo Tour Test matches

Further information: Kangaroo Tour

Year	To	Result	Score
1908–09	Great Britain	Loss	0–2
1911–12	Great Britain   Wales	Won Won	2–0 1–0
1919	New Zealand	Won	3–1
1921–22	Great Britain   Wales	Loss Won	1–3 1–0
1929–30	Great Britain   Wales	Loss Won	1–2 1–0
1933–34	Great Britain   Wales	Loss Won	0–3 1–0
1935	New Zealand	Won	2–1
1937–38	Great Britain   France	Loss Won	1–2 2–0
1948–49	Great Britain   Wales   France	Loss Won Won	0–3 1–0 2–0
1949	New Zealand	Draw	1–1
1952–53	Great Britain   France	Loss Loss	1–2 1–2
1953	New Zealand	Loss	1–2
1956–57	Great Britain   France	Loss Won	1–2 3–0
1959–60	Great Britain   France   Italy	Loss Won Won	1–2 3–0 2–0
1961	New Zealand	Draw	1–1
1963–64	Great Britain   France	Won Won	2–1 2–1
1965	New Zealand	Draw	1–1
1967–68	Great Britain   France	Won Loss	2–1 0–2
1969	New Zealand	Draw	1–1
1971	New Zealand	Loss	0–1
1973	Great Britain   France	Won Won	2–1 2–0
1978	Great Britain   Wales   France	Won Won Loss	2–1 1–0 0–2
1980	New Zealand	Won	2–0
1982	Great Britain   Wales   France	Won Won Won	3–0 1–0 2–0
1985	New Zealand	Won	2–1
1986	Great Britain   France	Won Won	3–0 2–0
1989	New Zealand	Won	3–0
1990	Great Britain   France	Won Won	2–1 2–0
1991	Papua New Guinea	Won	2–0
1993	New Zealand	Won	2–0
1994	Great Britain   Wales   France	Won Won Won	2–1 1–0 1–0
2001	Great Britain	Won	2–1
2003	Great Britain	Won	3–0

Honours

• World Cup: 1957, 1968, 1970, 1975, 1977, 1988, 1992, 1995, 2000, 2013, 2017, 2021
• Tri-Nations/Four Nations: 1999, 2004, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2016
• Pacific Championship: 2019
• Anzac Test: 1997, 1999, 2000, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2019
• The Ashes: 1911, 1920, 1950, 1954, 1964, 1966, 1968, 1973, 1974, 1978, 1979, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 2001, 2003

IRL Rankings

IRL Men's World Rankings v t e
Official rankings as of 21 December 2023
Rank	Change	Team	Pts %
1		Australia	100.00
2		New Zealand	91.00
3	1	England	74.00
4	1	Samoa	70.00
5		Tonga	54.00
6		Papua New Guinea	50.00
7		Fiji	49.00
8	1	France	24.00
9	1	Lebanon	24.00
10	3	Cook Islands	22.00
11	1	Serbia	19.00
12	6	Netherlands	17.00
13	1	Italy	15.00
14	5	Malta	15.00
15	1	Greece	14.00
16	4	Ireland	14.00
17	6	Wales	13.00
18	3	Jamaica	10.00
19	2	Scotland	9.00
20	8	Ukraine	7.00
21	6	Czech Republic	7.00
22	1	Germany	6.00
23	10	Philippines	6.00
24	5	Poland	6.00
25	1	South Africa	5.00
26	4	Chile	5.00
27	4	Kenya	0.00
28	6	Norway	4.00
29	6	Nigeria	4.00
30	6	Ghana	4.00
31	6	Brazil	4.00
32	12	Turkey	3.00
33	4	United States	3.00
34	1	Bulgaria	3.00
35	5	Cameroon	2.00
36	2	Montenegro	2.00
37	5	Spain	2.00
38	6	Japan	1.00
39		Albania	1.00
40	4	Colombia	1.00
41	6	El Salvador	1.00
42		North Macedonia	1.00
43	1	Morocco	1.00
44	3	Sweden	0.00
45		Bosnia and Herzegovina	0.00
46	3	Canada	0.00
47		February 16, 2024 Latest articles January 01, 1970 Crying The Neck January 01, 1970 Cryocoolers January 01, 1970 Cryogenic January 01, 1970 Cryogenic transmission electron microscopy January 01, 1970 Cryogenics January 01, 1970 Cryopreservation January 01, 1970 Cryo-TEM January 01, 1970 Crystal January 01, 1970 Crystal Airport (Minnesota) January 01, 1970 Crystal Beach, Florida Most Read January 01, 1970 Wohlrose January 01, 1970 Woimbey January 01, 1970 Wojciech Jerzy Has January 01, 1970 Wojciech Zabialowicz January 01, 1970 Wojnów, Masovian Voivodeship australia, national, rugby, league, team, this, article, about, team, women, team, australia, women, national, rugby, league, team, australian, kangaroos, redirects, here, marsupial, kangaroo, parts, this, article, those, related, australian, related, rugby, 2. This article is about the men s team For the women s team see Australia women s national rugby league team Australian Kangaroos redirects here For the marsupial see kangaroo Parts of this article those related to Australian related men rugby in the 2020s need to be updated Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information March 2023 The Australia national rugby league team the Kangaroos have represented Australia in senior men s rugby league football competition since the establishment of the game in Australia in 1908 Administered by the Australian Rugby League Commission the Kangaroos are ranked first in the IRL Men s World Rankings The team is the most successful in Rugby League World Cup history having won the competition 12 times and contested 15 of the 16 finals only failing to reach the final in the 1954 inaugural tournament Only five nations along with NZ Maori have beaten Australia in test matches and Australia has an overall win percentage of 69 AustraliaTeam informationNicknameThe KangaroosGoverning bodyAustralian Rugby League CommissionRegionAsia PacificHead coachMal MeningaCaptainJames TedescoMost capsDarren Lockyer 59 Top try scorerDarren Lockyer 35 Top point scorerJohnathan Thurston 382 IRL ranking1stUniformsFirst coloursSecond coloursThird coloursTeam resultsFirst international New Zealand 11 10 Australia Agricultural Oval Sydney Australia 9 May 1908 Biggest win Russia 4 110 Australia The Boulevard Kingston upon Hull England 4 November 2000 Biggest defeat New Zealand 30 0 Australia Waikato Stadium Hamilton New Zealand 4 November 2023 World CupAppearances16 first time in 1954 Best resultChampions 1957 1968 1970 1975 1977 1988 1992 1995 2000 2013 2017 2021 Dating back to 1908 Australia is the fourth oldest national side after England New Zealand and Wales The team was first assembled in 1908 for a tour of Great Britain 1 The majority of the Kangaroos games since then have been played against Great Britain and New Zealand In the first half of the 20th century Australia s international competition came from alternating tours to Great Britain and New Zealand Australia played host to these teams in non tour years Great Britain dominated in the early years and Australia did not win a Test against the Lions until 11 November 1911 under captain Chris McKivat Australia did not win a series at home against Great Britain until 1920 or abroad until 1958 Since 1908 the team has been nicknamed the Kangaroos Initially only used when touring Great Britain and later France this has been the official nickname of the team since 7 July 1994 In 1997 Australia was also represented by a Super League Australia team drawing on players from that year s Super League competition Contents 1 History 1 1 1900s 1 2 1910s 1 3 1920s 1 4 1930s 1 5 1940s 1 6 1950s 1 7 1960s 1 8 1970s 1 9 1980s 1 10 1990s 1 11 2000s 1 12 2010s 1 13 2020s 2 Coaches 3 Players 3 1 Current squad 4 Records 4 1 Most capped players 4 2 Top try scorers 4 3 Top points scorers 4 4 Team records 4 5 Individual 4 6 Team of the Century 1908 2008 4 7 Captains 5 Competitive records 5 1 Overall record 5 2 World Cup 5 3 World Cup 9 s 5 4 Tri Four Nations 5 5 Rugby League Pacific Championship 5 6 Kangaroo Tour Test matches 6 Honours 7 IRL Rankings 8 Culture 8 1 War cry 8 2 Supporters 9 See also 10 Sources 11 External linksHistory editIRL Men s World RankingsvteOfficial rankings as of 21 December 2023Rank Change Team Pts 1 nbsp nbsp Australia 100 002 nbsp nbsp New Zealand 91 003 nbsp 1 nbsp England 74 004 nbsp 1 nbsp Samoa 70 005 nbsp nbsp Tonga 54 006 nbsp nbsp Papua New Guinea 50 007 nbsp nbsp Fiji 49 008 nbsp 1 nbsp France 24 009 nbsp 1 nbsp Lebanon 24 0010 nbsp 3 nbsp Cook Islands 22 0011 nbsp 1 nbsp Serbia 19 0012 nbsp 6 nbsp Netherlands 17 0013 nbsp 1 nbsp Italy 15 0014 nbsp 5 nbsp Malta 15 0015 nbsp 1 nbsp Greece 14 0016 nbsp 4 nbsp Ireland 14 0017 nbsp 6 nbsp Wales 13 0018 nbsp 3 nbsp Jamaica 10 0019 nbsp 2 nbsp Scotland 9 0020 nbsp 8 nbsp Ukraine 7 0021 nbsp 6 nbsp Czech Republic 7 0022 nbsp 1 nbsp Germany 6 0023 nbsp 10 nbsp Philippines 6 0024 nbsp 5 nbsp Poland 6 0025 nbsp 1 nbsp South Africa 5 0026 nbsp 4 nbsp Chile 5 0027 nbsp 4 nbsp Kenya 0 0028 nbsp 6 nbsp Norway 4 0029 nbsp 6 nbsp Nigeria 4 0030 nbsp 6 nbsp Ghana 4 0031 nbsp 6 nbsp Brazil 4 0032 nbsp 12 nbsp Turkey 3 0033 nbsp 4 nbsp United States 3 0034 nbsp 1 nbsp Bulgaria 3 0035 nbsp 5 nbsp Cameroon 2 0036 nbsp 2 nbsp Montenegro 2 0037 nbsp 5 nbsp Spain 2 0038 nbsp 6 nbsp Japan 1 0039 nbsp nbsp Albania 1 0040 nbsp 4 nbsp Colombia 1 0041 nbsp 6 nbsp El Salvador 1 0042 nbsp nbsp North Macedonia 1 0043 nbsp 1 nbsp Morocco 1 0044 nbsp 3 nbsp Sweden 0 0045 nbsp nbsp Bosnia and Herzegovina 0 0046 nbsp 3 nbsp Canada 0 0047 nbsp nbsp Niue 0 0048 nbsp 9 nbsp Solomon Islands 0 0049 nbsp 1 nbsp Belgium 0 0050 nbsp 10 nbsp Hungary 0 0051 nbsp 5 nbsp Vanuatu 0 0052 nbsp 3 nbsp Argentina 0 0053 nbsp 3 nbsp Denmark 0 0054 nbsp 3 nbsp Latvia 0 0055 nbsp nbsp Estonia 0 00Complete rankings at INTRL SPORT See also History of rugby league Rugby football has been played in Australia since the 1860s In 1863 Sydney University became the first rugby club to be formed in Sydney and played games amongst themselves or against the crews of visiting British ships The Sydney Football Club 1865 and the Wallaroos 1870 followed and inter club competition commenced By 1880 there were 100 clubs across the country and rugby quickly became the dominant winter sport for Sydney In 1888 an English team visited Australasia playing rugby rules in Queensland New South Wales and New Zealand and Australian rules football in Victoria and South Australia In 1899 an Australian team was formed using players from Queensland and New South Wales for the first time They played a series of Tests against a British team 1900s edit By 1907 Sydney club rugby games were attracting up to 20 000 people with all profits going to the Southern Rugby Football Union as the sport was officially an amateur one This caused discontent among players and in 1908 the New South Wales Rugby Football League and Queensland Rugby League were formed An Australian national rugby league team was first formed during the first season of rugby league in Australia the 1908 NSWRFL Premiership season The team which was made of players from the NSWRFL with a few Queensland rugby rebels added first played against the professional All Blacks on the return leg of their tour of Australia and Great Britain Later that year the Australian team arranged to go on a tour of its own The first Kangaroos arrived in England on 27 September 1908 and played their first ever test against the Northern Union in December in London It finished 22 all in front of a crowd of 2 000 The second test in Newcastle in January 1909 attracted a crowd of 22 000 and the Northern Union won 15 5 The third test was played at Villa Park Birmingham the Northern Union winning again 6 5 before a crowd of 9 000 The Australians suggested that the series be named The Ashes after the cricket series of the same name In 1909 when the new Northern Union code was still in its infancy in Australia a match between the Kangaroos and the Wallabies was played before a crowd of around 20 000 with the Rugby League side winning 29 26 2 1910s edit The first British tour of the Southern Hemisphere began on 4 June 1910 when the Northern Union played New South Wales in front of 33 000 spectators in Sydney losing 28 14 But they won the first test in Sydney against Australia 27 20 in front of 42 000 They then won the second test in Brisbane 22 17 In Auckland on 30 July they defeated New Zealand 52 20 The 1910 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand was the first ever and Australia were beaten for the Ashes in two tests faring slightly better as Australasia with two Kiwis added to their squad The 1911 12 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain was undertaken by an Australasian squad which included four New Zealanders They won the Ashes for the first time and for the next half a century no other touring team did do so on British soil The 1914 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand was the second time the British toured down under The Australians captained by Sid Deane for all three tests 3 got one victory but lost the series in the famous decider the Rorke s Drift Test 4 Australia also went on a tour of New Zealand in 1919 1920s edit The 1920 Great Britain Lions tour saw Australia win the Ashes for the first time on home soil Crowds were massive including nearly 70 000 at the first Tour match versus Sydney The 1921 22 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain also included a New Zealander and was ostensibly an Australasian side In January 1922 an England side defeated Australia 6 0 at The Willows Salford to win back the Ashes that had been lost in 1920 They did not lose again until 1950 The Australian national team first wore green and gold in a hooped design on Saturday 23 June 1928 when they met Great Britain in the first Test at the Brisbane Exhibition Ground Britain led 10 2 after 25 minutes 13 7 at half time and after a nervous second half eventually claimed the Test 15 12 The England team won both the 1928 series in Australia and New Zealand by two tests to one They were presented with the Ashes Trophy by the Australians which the two countries have competed for ever since The 1929 30 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain was the fourth Kangaroo tour and took the Australian team all around England and also into Wales The tour also featured the ninth Ashes series which comprised four Test matches and was won by Great Britain 1930s edit The first test of the 1932 Ashes series between Australia and Great Britain drew a world record international rugby league attendance of 70 204 to the Sydney Cricket Ground This attendance stood as the world record until the 1992 World Cup final played at Wembley Stadium and as of 2013 remains the record attendance for a rugby league test played in Australia The Jim Sullivan led Lions triumphed over the Herb Steinohrt led Australians 8 6 On the 1933 34 tour New South Wales winger Dave Brown played in 32 matches including all 3 Tests scoring 285 points at the time the greatest number ever attained by an Australian player on tour 5 An exhibition match between Australia and Great Britain at Paris Stade Pershing in December 1933 inspired the beginnings of rugby league in France 6 1940s edit Albert Johnston was a national selector in 1946 and coach of the national side for the 1946 first post WWII Anglo Australian series Australia s 1948 49 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France was their seventh tour to the UK They played the Ashes series against a side officially called Great Britain 1950s edit During the 1951 French rugby league tour of Australia and New Zealand Australia lost the three Test series to the powerful French team inspired by their freakish goal kicking fullback Puig Aubert The 1954 Rugby League World Cup was the first tournament held in either rugby code Australia failed to reach the final For the 1956 57 Kangaroo tour a record eleven Queenslanders were selected in the touring squad Great Britain defeated Australia 19 0 at Station Road Swinton to take the Ashes series 2 1 Australia hosted and won the 1957 World Cup For the 1959 60 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain the home nation retained the Ashes by winning the Test series 2 1 by the following results First Test Great Britain 14 22 Australia at Station Road Swinton Second Test Great Britain 11 10 Australia at Headingley Leeds Third Test Great Britain 18 12 Australia at Central Park Wigan This was the last British Ashes win on home soil 1960s edit For the 1960 World Cup no final was held Still the last game which was between the previously undefeated Great Britain and Australia sides made it the tournament decider Great Britain won 10 3 Harry Bath was selected manager coach and as the sole selector for the Australian national team s 1962 Ashes series After ten previous tours of Britain the 1963 64 Kangaroo tour saw Australia s first ever Ashes victory on British soil The Arthur Summons coached Kangaroos won the first test at Wembley Stadium before rampaging to a famous 50 12 win in the second test at Station Road in Swinton Although they lost the third test at Headingley legendary winger Ken Irvine became the first Australian player to score a try in each test of an Ashes series The Kangaroos have not lost a series in Britain since 7 Harry Bath coached the national side to World Cup glory in the 1968 World Cup He also coached the team on a tour of New Zealand in 1969 1970s edit The last time that Great Britain won the Ashes was in 1970 They won the series 2 1 in Australia Out of 24 games played Great Britain won 22 drew one and lost one making them the most successful British tourists so far The 1970 Lions contained a galaxy of stars including captain Frank Myler Roger Millward Cliff Watson and Mal Reilly Future Kangaroo Tour captain and later coach Bob Fulton made his test debut in the 1970 Ashes series Fulton had actually played 3 games for Australia in the 1968 World Cup but at the time tests and World Cup games were classed differently Harry Bath again coached Australia to victory in the 1970 World Cup final in a brutal game that became known as the Battle of Headingley Bath also coached the team on a tour of New Zealand in 1971 On that tour Geoff Starling became the youngest player to ever represent Australia He was 18 years and 181 days old when playing a tour match against a New Zealand XIII at Huntly 8 Australia lost the 1972 World Cup Final to Great Britain in controversial circumstances Australian captain Graeme Langlands was denied what seemed a fair try by being ruled offside by the French referee after catching a kick put up by halfback Dennis Ward Television footage of the try showed Langlands was approximately a metre behind Ward when he kicked the ball The French referee Georges Jameau s alleged reason for not awarding the try was that he did not believe anyone could have scored it from an onside position The World Cup final was tied at 10 10 after full time and was still locked after extra time Great Britain were awarded the victory due to a higher points table placing after the pool rounds of the competition The Final was also highlighted by an 80 metre try to Lions captain winger Clive Sullivan 9 On the 1978 Kangaroo tour Great Britain defeated Australia in the second test at Bradford 18 14 before a crowd of 26 447 It took ten years and fifteen consecutive test defeats before Britain could defeat the Kangaroos again starting with Australia s 3 0 whitewash of the Lions during their 1979 Australasian tour The Kangaroos had already won the first test 15 9 at Wigan and wrapped up the series with a 23 6 win in the third test at Headingley However the Australians were defeated by the French team in both tests played at the end of the 1978 tour This was the last defeat of the Kangaroos in a series until 2005 1980s edit The 1980s was the decade in which Australia began to truly dominate world rugby league Along with the emergence of State of Origin football came a new crop of superstar players who led Australia throughout the 1980s Players such as Peter Sterling Mal Meninga Wayne Pearce Brett Kenny Eric Grothe and Wally Lewis came to prominence on the 1982 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France Australia s performance was taken into a new dimension by the tourists also known as the Invincibles when they became the first team to win every game of the tour fifteen games including the first test by 40 4 at Hull in front of 26 771 spectators After the extremely poor showing during their 1979 Australasian tour the Kangaroos rammed home just how far behind British football had fallen at Boothferry Park The score was only 10 4 at half time but after the break Australia s superior fitness showed and ran in six unanswered tries to leave the crowd and British football stunned In 1983 Arthur Beetson became the first Aboriginal to coach the Australian team after Frank Stanton had stood down following the Kangaroo Tour Although Australia won the first test against New Zealand at Carlaw Park in Auckland the Kiwis shocked by winning the return match 19 12 at Lang Park When the Lions toured in 1984 The Kangaroos again swept The Ashes series 3 0 under new team captain Wally Lewis the first Queenslander to captain Australia since Arthur Beetson in 1974 Beetson was replaced as coach in 1984 by a returning Frank Stanton In 1985 Australia made a six match tour of New Zealand under the coaching of Terry Fearnley who before the tour had coached NSW to its first ever Origin series win over Qld the tour actually took place between games 2 and 3 of the Origin series The Kangaroos won five of those matches and the Test series 2 1 Australia won the first Test in Brisbane 26 20 On Sunday 30 June 1985 Australia met New Zealand in the second Test at Carlaw Park Auckland The Test was a 20 000 sell out with all tickets accounted for weeks before the match The Kiwis dominated long periods of the game but ninety seconds from time the Kiwis lost possession close to half way John Ribot scored a try and Australia won 10 6 The tour ended in acrimony as tensions between coach Fearley and the Qld players led by team captain Wally Lewis reached boiling point with Lewis publicly stating that he had caught Fearnley and team vice captain Wayne Pearce going over team selections in Fearnley s hotel room However both Fearnley and Pearce denied the allegations After the second test win Fearnley made 4 changes to the test team for the third and final test at Carlaw Park with all four players were omitted being Queenslanders The changes proved disastrous and NZ ran out easy 18 0 winners Following the tour the Australian Rugby League decided that from then on the Kangaroos coach could not also double as the incumbent coach of either NSW or Qld Former Kangaroo Don Furner became Australian coach in 1986 and immediately formed a good working relationship with Wally Lewis and the players The now harmonious Australians swept New Zealand 3 0 in a mid season test series played in Australia During the 1986 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France a then record northern hemisphere crowd of 50 383 attended the first test of the Ashes series at Old Trafford with the Walle Lewis led Australians winning 38 16 On 16 December 1986 the Kangaroos set a new record for largest ever winning margin in a Test match at 52 0 against France In their two Tests against France the Australians ran in 96 points 10 and conceded just a single penalty goal After suffering such heavy losses France decided to call off their proposed 1987 tour of Australia This became the second consecutive tour of Europe in which Australia had won all their games By the end of the tour Terry Lamb had become the first player to appear in every match on a Kangaroo Tour For this tour Wally Lewis Greg Dowling Bob Lindner Gene Miles Wynnum Manly and Bryan Neibling Redcliffe became the last players selected to tour from the Brisbane Rugby League competition By being named as tour captain Wally Lewis became the first Queenslander to captain a Kangaroo Tour since Tom Gorman in 1929 30 Australia crashed to a defeat on Tuesday 21 July 1987 when the Kangaroo dominance of the international game suffered a setback New Zealand were their opponents in a match at Lang Park which had been arranged to fill the gap created by the non appearance of France New Zealand won the game 13 6 The next four internationals between Australia and New Zealand were all staged in New Zealand and all were won by the Kangaroos 11 During the 1988 Great Britain Lions tour the Ashes were successfully retained by Australia by winning the first two Tests however Great Britain won the third test 26 12 at the Sydney Football Stadium ending a 15 game winning streak between the two teams that stretched back to the third Ashes test of 1978 Later that month Australia s 62 point win over Papua New Guinea in the NSW country town of Wagga Wagga set a new record for largest winning margin in international rugby league Australian dual international winger Michael O Connor also set a new record for most points scored by an individual in international rugby league 30 points 4 tries 7 goals 12 Also in 1988 as part of the bicentenary celebrations Australia played a one off test match against Rest Of The World at the Sydney Football Stadium winning the one off test 22 10 The 1985 1988 Rugby League World Cup culminated in the World Cup final against New Zealand at Auckland s Eden Park ground the home of NZ rugby union Australia won a brutal World Cup final 25 12 in front of 47 363 Captain Wally Lewis broke his arm during the game 13 In 1989 the Kangaroos toured New Zealand taking a record breaking twelve Queenslanders in the 20 man squad after Queensland s second straight 3 0 State of Origin series win over New South Wales 14 Don Furner had retired from coaching after the 1988 World Cup final with Manly Warringah 1987 Sydney Rugby League premiership winning coach and 1978 Kangaroo tour captain Bob Fulton taking over from 1989 Fulton s first series in charge of the Australian team saw them sweep New Zealand 3 0 during their 1989 tour 1990s edit The Bob Fulton coached Kangaroos played two mid season tests in 1990 They defeated France 34 2 on a cold night in Parkes with Mal Meninga taking over the captaincy from Wally Lewis who was unavailable with a broken arm 15 They then played a single test against New Zealand in Wellington winning 24 6 With Wally Lewis controversially ruled unfit for the 1990 Kangaroo tour his Queensland teammate Mal Meninga making his 3rd Kangaroo Tour retained the Australian captaincy The Ashes got off to a bad start for the Kangaroos when Great Britain shocked Australia to win the first test 19 12 at Wembley Stadium in front of a new record home crowd of 54 567 The second test at Old Trafford in Manchester was a tight thrilling affair that saw two of the most famous tries scored in test match football Debutante 5 8 Cliff Lyons second half try came after the Kangaroos kept the ball alive through 13 sets of hands before winger Andrew Ettingshausen raced down the wing and centre kicked for Lyons to score With the scores tied at 10 all going into injury time and the Kangaroos pinned just 15 metres from their line Ricky Stuart set off on a 75 metre run before passing to Meninga winning try only seconds from full time to give Australia a 14 10 win 16 The Kangaroos then wrapped up The Ashes with a comprehensive 14 0 win in the third test at Elland Road in Leeds Meninga as captain became just the third Australian after Ken Irvine in 1962 and 1963 64 and Sam Backo in 1988 to score a try in each test of an Ashes series Australia faced New Zealand in a three game mid season Test series in 1991 The first test played at the Olympic Park Stadium in Melbourne the first rugby league test played in Australia outside of NSW or Qld saw the Kiwis again defeat Australia after a successful Kangaroo tour NZ won the first test 24 8 in Melbourne in front of 26 900 fans however a new look Australian side came back to win the second test 44 0 in Sydney and the third test 40 12 in Brisbane 17 At the end of the 1991 NSWRL season the Kangaroos embarked on their first and as of 2017 only tour of Papua New Guinea winning all five games on tour including easily both tests against the Papua New Guinea Kumuls 18 During the 1992 Great Britain Lions tour of Australasia the British lost the first test 22 6 in Sydney before stunning the Australians when they easily won the 2nd Ashes test 33 10 at Princes Park in Melbourne but lost the 3rd test 16 10 in Brisbane The 1992 Rugby League World Cup final at Wembley Stadium set a then international attendance record for a rugby league international of 73 631 The Bob Fulton coached Mal Meninga captained Australians defeat Great Britain 10 6 to win their 7th Rugby League World Cup title The WCF was a tight game with the Lions leading 6 4 with less than 20 minutes remaining before an on debut Steve Renouf crossed for the only try of the game and along with Meninga s sideline conversion gave the Kangaroos a famous victory 19 Australia again played a mid season test series against New Zealand in 1993 The first test at the Mt Smart Stadium in Auckland ended in a 14 all draw thanks to a late Laurie Daley field goal Daley had captained Australia for the first time in the match following a two game suspension to Mal Meninga The Kangaroos then won the second test 16 8 at the very wet Palmerston North Showgrounds before wrapping up the series with a 16 4 win at Lang Park in Brisbane On 4 July 1994 Australia defeated France 58 0 at the Parramatta Stadium in Sydney their only test on home soil for the year 20 The 1994 Kangaroo Tour was the last time the Australian national team played matches against British provincial teams in addition to the Tests Australia continued its dominance winning both Test series against Great Britain and France suffering only one loss again against Great Britain in the First Test at Wembley and remained undefeated against British club outfits in a streak stretching back to 1978 Australia adopted the name Kangaroos for the July test against France since then the team has been officially known by this name The 1994 Kangaroo tour was also the first and only time that the traditional Australian test kit was only worn during test matches For the tour games including the friendly against Wales in Cardiff the first time Australia had played Wales in 12 years the Kangaroos wore jumpers that had increasing thickness gold hoops underneath the twin gold chevrons The Australian team that contested and won the 1995 Rugby League World Cup consisted only of players from clubs that remained loyal to the Australian Rugby League during the Super League war This meant several Super League aligned clubs that were already well established internationals were not selected for the World Cup squad During 1995 the Kangaroos defeated New Zealand 3 0 in the Trans Tasman Test series played in Australia As they were for the World Cup only ARL loyal players were selected for Australia which saw several players including Steve Menzies Mark Coyne Terry Hill Gary Larson Trevor Gillmeister and Jason Smith make their test debuts during the New Zealand series Despite having what many described as a second string side without players such as Laurie Daley Allan Langer Andrew Ettingshausen Brett Mullins Glenn Lazarus Bradley Clyde Ian Roberts Ricky Stuart and Steve Walters Bob Fulton s Kangaroos won their 8th World Cup and 5th in a row when they defeated England 16 8 in the World Cup final in front of 66 540 fans at Wembley The star of the day for Australia was halfback hooker Andrew Johns In 1997 also due to the Super League war Australian rugby league was split down the middle by two competitions the ARL s Optus Cup and Super League s Telstra Cup As a result that season there were also two Australian sides 21 Australian Rugby League nbsp Australia v nbsp Rest of the World 11 July 1997Suncorp Stadium BrisbaneFullback Tim Brasher Wingers Mark Coyne Robbie O Davis Centres Paul McGregor Terry Hill Five eighth Brad Fittler c Halfback Geoff Toovey Props Paul Harragon Mark Carroll Hooker Andrew Johns Second rowers Steve Menzies Gary Larson Lock Billy Moore Reserves Matt Sing John Simon Nik Kosef Dean Pay Coach Bob Fulton Super League nbsp Australia v nbsp Great Britain 1st SL Test 1 November 1997Wembley Stadium LondonFullback Darren Lockyer Wingers Brett Mullins Wendell Sailor Centres Andrew Ettingshausen Ryan Girdler Five eighth Laurie Daley c Halfback Craig Gower Props Jason Stevens Brad Thorn Hooker Steve Walters Second rowers Matt Adamson Gorden Tallis Lock Darren Smith Reserves Robbie Kearns Craig Greenhill Ken Nagas Brett Kimmorley Coach John Lang Great Britain played a home three Test series against the Australian Super League Test team in 1997 and lost 2 1 The three matches played have been given test status by the UK s Rugby Football League 22 The Australian Rugby League has decided not to recognise the matches of its rival as tests since the Super League war ended and does not consider the series to be a genuine Ashes contest 23 Super League s Anzac Test concept which is an early season one off test match against New Zealand was retained and has been played annual ever since The 1998 Kangaroo Tour was cancelled because of the Super League war With the Super League war finally over in 1998 Great Britain travelled to the Southern Hemisphere for the first Rugby League Tri Nations tournament with Australia and New Zealand in 1999 Chris Anderson took over from Wayne Bennett as coach of the team in March 1999 24 2000s edit The new millennium started with the 2000 World Cup which Australia won In 2001 the Australians arrived in Britain for the first Ashes series since 1994 Great Britain surprised everyone by winning the first test but lost the next two In July 2002 Australia handed Great Britain their worst ever test defeat by defeating them 64 10 in a Sydney test match In 2003 the New Zealand Rugby League counted its 100th international match against Australia because they take World Cup matches and Super League tests into account 25 In November 2003 Great Britain lost an Ashes series 0 3 on home soil The margin was extremely small in each game 22 18 in game 1 23 20 in game 2 and 18 12 in game 3 and it was known as Brett Kimmorley s greatest series as he orchestrated Australia s last minute victories However the dominance of the Australian team over the last generation has begun to slip since 2003 In 2003 and 2005 New Zealand won the Bill Kelly Memorial Trophy from Australia Australia won the first two Rugby League Tri Nations competitions in 1999 and 2004 before being defeated by New Zealand in the final of the 2005 competition on 26 November 2005 26 Before that defeat Australia had not lost a Test series since December 1978 when they were defeated by France in both Test matches On 4 November 2006 Australia lost to Great Britain 23 12 1 It was a huge upset and the first time since 1988 that the Kangaroos had been beaten by Great Britain in Sydney The match was Australia s 3rd match of the 2006 Tri Nations series having already secured a place in the final with two wins against New Zealand earlier in the tournament 30 18 and 20 15 The Australian side reclaimed the title of Tri Nations champions on 25 November with a victory over the New Zealand side in the final by 16 12 with a try in the second period of extra time by captain Darren Lockyer 27 In 2007 Australia played two test matches both against New Zealand and both emphatic victories The first 30 6 and the second 58 0 28 nbsp The Australian Kangaroos line up to face the New Zealand haka at the 2008 Rugby League World CupAustralia hosted the 2008 World Cup and did not have to qualify They did not lose a match until the final which they lost to New Zealand 34 20 who became world champions for the first time Following this loss Ricky Stuart was replaced as coach by Tim Sheens then the most experienced NRL coach Tim Sheens first match as Australian coach was against New Zealand 2009 Anzac Test In this match Sheen s side included a record equalling ten Queensland representatives including an all maroon backline and front row 29 reflecting the state s dominance in the annual State of Origin series All of the points were also scored by Queenslanders in the 38 10 victory Later that year Australia traveled up to play in the inaugural Four Nations tournament The Kangaroos advanced to the final after a draw against New Zealand and wins over co hosts England and France Australia took on the English in the final and despite at one point trailing 14 16 a dominant last quarter of the game saw Australia win the inaugural Four Nations tournament Captain Darren Lockyer also reached a milestone in this match after becoming the first Australian to make 50 appearances for his country 30 2010s edit Australia began 2010 with a 4 point win in the Anzac Test that symbolised the opening of the new stadium in Melbourne AAMI Park After the 2010 domestic season the major international tournament was the 2010 Four Nations held in Australia and New Zealand In Australia s opening match against Papua New Guinea captain Darren Lockyer surpassed Ken Irvine s record for most test tries for Australia scoring his 34th Australia won all of their matches comfortably to advance to the final to have a 2008 World Cup final re match against New Zealand at Suncorp Stadium The Kiwis won the game 16 12 and 2010 Four Nations title after a try in the final seconds of the match Australia gained revenge over the Kiwis after another Anzac Test win retaining the Bill Kelly Memorial Trophy in the process with a 10 point win on the Gold Coast Later in that year Australia played a test match against New Zealand 12 days before the 2011 Four Nations kicked off at the newly reconstructed Ausgrid Stadium in Newcastle Australia thrashed the Kiwis by 36 points in front of a record crowd Darren Lockyer became the most capped International player of all time after surpassing New Zealand international Ruben Wiki s record of 55 appearances for his country Australia took on New Zealand again in the opening game of the Four Nations held in England and Wales The Australians yet again beat their trans tasman rivals They then went on to beat England at Wembley and were surprised in their final round robin fixture after Wales were leading 8 0 after 13 minutes and were behind Australia by only 10 points at the break But Sheens men thrashed the Welsh to easily advance to another final meeting with England After being tied with the English at one point in the second half Australia went on to win the game by 22 points 31 In 2012 the Anzac Test was held in New Zealand for the first time since 1998 which was the Kiwis last win in the fixture Home advantage made no difference for the Kiwis as Sheens Kangaroos won the match by eight points The Kangaroos took on the Kiwis one more time later in the year this time in Townsville In front of a sold out crowd the Kangaroos won the test match with another eight point victory There was no tournament this year because there was a World Cup next year for the teams to prepare for Australia began the 2013 International season by retaining the Bill Kelly Memorial Trophy after another Anzac Test win At the end of the year Australia traveled up to play in the 2013 World Cup co hosted by England and Wales In their opening game against England the Kangaroos faced a 0 10 scoreline after twenty minutes But Australia went on to regain the control and go on to win the match by eight points The England match was Australia s only scare in the tournament as the Kangaroos went on to win and dominate all of their remaining matches recording a 244 4 total aggregate score They went on to earn revenge for their defeat to New Zealand five years ago in the World Cup final to beat them this time around at the same stage The final was watched in front of a record International rugby league attendance of 74 468 In the match five eighth Johnathan Thurston broke Mick Cronin s 31 year record of top point scorer after a conversion took him past the previous record of 309 points This was the Kangaroos tenth World Cup title 32 After the England game Australia recorded five successive games without conceding a try in the tournament This feat was one game off equaling the 1981 82 Australian team s record 33 Australia could not equal that feat despite another Anzac Test win in 2014 Later that year Australia co hosted the 2014 Four Nations with New Zealand They took on the Kiwis in the second of the double header clashes at Suncorp Stadium However Australia s record against the Kiwis at the venue continued to be a negative one after another defeat made it three defeats in the past four meetings at the Cauldron This meant Australia were facing England in a must win game at AAMI Park in Melbourne With many regulars missing Sheens had to make decisions like naming an 18 year old in the team who d become the youngest player to play for Australia Sione Mata utia aged 18 years and 129 days eclipsed the previous record held by Israel Folau since 2007 by 65 days when he played on debut for Australia against the Poms The match was headlined with controversy In the last minute of the game England put a grubber kick in the in goal area since they were desperate for a try as they were trailing by just four points Australian fullback Greg Inglis had to force the ball dead due to incoming England attack but the video referees wanted to have another look and see whether or not it was Inglis or the incoming English winger Ryan Hall got the last touch on the ball On the slow motion replays it showed that Ryan Hall s right hand s little finger had put some downward pressure on the ball however in normal speed it was deemed inconclusive by Australian officiating rules and therefore a NO TRY was given to the frustration of the English players and supporters but respect from Sheens and his Australian players Had the try been awarded and England converted it would have been Australia s first defeat to England since 1995 the first time they suffered back to back home defeats since 1970 and the first time they failed to qualify for a tournament final since 1954 34 35 In their final round robin fixture they dominated proceedings against the Samoans who had been causing trouble for England and New Zealand in the tournament to advance to the final which was held in New Zealand However they could not get revenge for their defeat earlier in the tournament as Australia lost 18 22 The 2015 Anzac Test was held in Suncorp Stadium The Australian team s horrible record in Brisbane against the Kiwis continued as they suffered another defeat and records continued to be made for the New Zealand team This was the first time they beat Australia for three consecutive test matches since 1953 and the first time they won the Anzac Test since 1998 Australia did not play another test match that year 36 37 After the match Sheens was facing scrutiny from the media after many believed it was time for the old players he fielded to move on since the much younger Kiwis side had beaten them on the past three occasions Australia also dropped down to number 2 on the RLIF World Rankings which added further scrutiny At the end of the year Sheens was unable to cope with the pressure of the media despite wanting to coach the team at the 2017 World Cup He took up an advisory role with English domestic club Salford Red Devils and therefore resigned as coach of the Australian national team In December 2015 successful Queensland Maroons coach Mal Meninga announced he d leave his role as the coach of the Queensland representative side to coach the Australian national team Before his appointment Mal announced his ambitions that he wanted the International game to become the pinnacle of rugby league like it was in his playing days 38 Mal Meninga s first game in charge as Australian coach was the 2016 Anzac Test Before the test Meninga stirred controversy around the rugby league world after selecting Fijian born player Semi Radradra who is eligible due to living in Australia for three years in his team over other homegrown Australian players Radradra who represented Fiji at the 2013 World Cup still had a Fijian passport at that time and this brought up the question of changing eligibility rules in International rugby league Meninga s selection questioned the ambition he raised of wanting to make the International game the pinnacle of the sport Australia won the test match 16 0 and in the process ended their losing run against the Kiwis They also held New Zealand scoreless in a test match for the first time since 2007 But despite the result Australia suffered criticism with commentator Phil Gould saying the Australian team is too old and are kidding themselves if they think they ll win the World Cup next year He believes Australia should ve put much more points on a weakened New Zealand team missing many regular players through various reasons Meninga hit back saying That was a real test match That s what test footy is People who have never played it don t know what it is 39 At the conclusion of the 2016 domestic season Australia took on New Zealand in Perth in what was the first ever test match in Western Australia Meninga s men then began their 2016 Four Nations campaign with comfortable 42 point win over Scotland in the first ever meeting between the two countries After a tough encounter with New Zealand and a convincing win over England Australia met their Trans Tasman rivals once again in the final Meninga s Roos made the final tournament match look easy as the Kangaroos dominated their opponents with a 26 point victory claiming their third tournament title in the process 40 In the last ever scheduled Anzac Test captain Cameron Smith became just the second player to play 50 tests for Australia behind former captain and record cap holder Darren Lockyer He became the first Australian to wear the gold chevron on his shoulder after a new initiative created by Meninga last year Other players are also honoured with players that have earned 20 caps wearing a white chevron 30 wearing a bronze chevron and 40 wearing a silver chevron on their shoulder If a player beats Lockyer s record for the most appearances they will wear a special purple commemorative jersey 41 Australia won the final Anzac test match by a convincing scoreline of 30 12 Later in the year countries were preparing for the grandest stage in the international game the World Cup However the biggest talking point wasn t about whether Australia would defend their title It was around Tonga after many players of Tongan heritage had quit the opportunity to represent the New Zealand squad in order to play for Tonga Regular Australian prop forward Andrew Fifita also followed suit after initially being announced in Meninga s squad to the disapproval of Australian halfback Cooper Cronk 42 Meninga however also voiced his opinion saying he had no issue with Fifita s decision as it was great for Tonga and the international game After conceding early Australia went on to grit out a tough victory over England The Kangaroos then went on to beat a spirited French team in a game which saw Wade Graham became the seventh player to equal the record of four tries in a World Cup game and only the second Australian forward to score four tries in a single game since Gorden Tallis in 2000 43 Australia finished off their pool stage games with a comprehensive victory over a gallant Lebanese outfit Australia then advanced past Samoa to the semi finals with ease thanks to a record breaking five tries in a single World Cup match from Valentine Holmes Holmes then remarkably beat his own record a week later in the semi finals against Fiji With the six tries he surpassed former Kangaroo Wendell Sailor s record for most tries in a single World Cup tournament held since 2000 44 In the final Australia took on England for the first time in 22 years after facing New Zealand for three consecutive editions The Kangaroos went on to retain the World Cup at Lang Park the venue at which they lost the World Cup final when the tournament was last held in Australia Australia also became the first team to win 11 World Cup crowns The final score of 6 0 made this the lowest scoring World Cup final in the history of the tournament This was also the first time that a country had won the competition on home soil in 40 years 45 On 20 October 2018 for the first time in history Australia played a Test match against Tonga In front of a sold out crowd at Mt Smart Stadium in Auckland the Kangaroos withstood a spirited challenge from the Mate Ma a to win 34 16 46 On 2 November 2019 in front of 25 257 Tonga beat Australia for the first time in their history which marked the first time Australia had lost to a Tier 2 side since the system came in and the first time they d lost to a team which wasn t New Zealand Great Britain or England since 1978 47 2020s edit Due to the COVID 19 pandemic the 2021 Rugby League World Cup was delayed until the end of 2022 48 Throughout 2022 several NRL players with international heritage opting to play for their home nation during the World Cup including Jarome Luai Brian To o and Joseph Sua ali i for Samoa Felise Kafusi for Tonga and Viliame Kikau Apisai Koroisau and Maika Sivo for Fiji 49 50 51 52 Mal Meninga named his 24 man squad on the 5th October with James Tedesco named as captain after previously playing for Italy in the 2017 World Cup 53 The campaign kicked off against Fiji at Emerald Headingley Stadium winning 42 8 with debutants Jeremiah Nanai Angus Crichton and Harry Grant crossing for tries Josh Addo Carr getting a double and Cameron Munster winning man of the match The Kangaroos then crushed a hapless Scotland side 84 0 at Coventry Building Society Arena with Addo Carr scoring four tries including a last minute try off a no look between the legs flick from Addo Carr s Bulldogs teammate Matt Burton citation needed Burton Nathan Cleary Isaah Yeo and Campbell Graham all scored tries on debut with Addo Carr also receiving man of the match 54 55 Meninga named his squad for Australia on the 27th October pairing together Cleary and Daly Cherry Evans in the halves 56 The two had been in contention to be Meninga s first choice halfback 57 Australia then went on to beat Italy 66 6 at Totally Wicked Stadium with Tedesco scoring a try against his former team and Campbell Graham scoring a double 58 Australia won their 12th World Cup title defeating Samoa 30 10 in the final 59 Coaches editSee also List of Australia national rugby league team coaches The current coach of the Australian team is former team captain and Immortal Mal Meninga who was appointed coach in late 2015 after the resignation of Tim Sheens who coached the team from 2009 to 2015 Bob Fulton has coached the most matches with 40 starting in 1989 and finishing in 1998 Jack Gibson despite never having coached at international level was named coach of the Australian rugby league team of the century 1908 2008 Albert Johnston 1946 Col Maxwell 1948 1949 Len Smith 1949 Keith Froome 1949 Vic Hey 1950 1951 1954 1955 Clive Churchill 1952 1953 1959 60 1963 Ken Kearney 1956 1957 Herbert Poole 1957 Norm Robinson 1958 Keith Barnes 1960 Brian Carlson 1961 Harry Bath 1962 1968 1972 Arthur Summons 1963 1964 1970 Reg Gasnier 1964 1967 1968 Ian Walsh 1965 1966 Graeme Langlands 1973 1975 Terry Fearnley 1977 1985 Frank Stanton 1978 1982 1984 Arthur Beetson 1983 Don Furner 1986 1988 Bob Fulton 1989 1998 John Lang 1997 Super League Wayne Bennett 1998 2004 2005 Chris Anderson 1999 2003 Ricky Stuart 2006 2008 Tim Sheens 2009 2015 Mal Meninga 2016 Players editMain article List of Australia national rugby league team players Current squad edit The Australian Kangaroos squad for the 2023 Pacific Championships The squad was announced on 3 October with updates on 4 October and 6 October 2023 60 61 62 Statistics in this table are compiled from the website Rugby League Project and are up to 5 November 2023 including the Final of the 2023 Pacific Championships Jersey numbers are those used in that Final J Player Age Position s Kangaroos Club NRL Other RepsDbt M T G F P CM TM1 James Tedesco 30 Fullback 2018 13 9 0 0 36 nbsp nbsp Sydney Roosters 136 226 nbsp 22 nbsp 6 nbsp 1 nbsp 22 Dylan Edwards 27 Wing Fullback 2023 3 1 0 0 4 nbsp nbsp Penrith Panthers 131 1313 Hamiso Tabuai Fidow 22 Centre Fullback 2023 3 2 0 0 8 nbsp nbsp Dolphins NRL 20 70 nbsp 4 nbsp 1 nbsp 14 Kotoni Staggs 25 Centre 2023 3 1 5 0 14 nbsp nbsp Brisbane Broncos 100 100 nbsp 1 nbsp 1 nbsp 35 Valentine Holmes 28 Wing 2016 21 20 22 0 124 nbsp nbsp North Queensland Cowboys 74 179 nbsp 166 Cameron Munster 29 Five eighth 2017 12 4 0 0 16 nbsp nbsp Melbourne Storm 195 195 nbsp 187 Daly Cherry Evans 34 Halfback 2011 21 5 3 0 26 nbsp nbsp Manly Warringah Sea Eagles 305 305 nbsp 22 nbsp 28 Payne Haas 23 Prop 2019 4 1 0 0 4 nbsp nbsp Brisbane Broncos 104 104 nbsp 11 nbsp 19 Ben Hunt 33 Hooker Halfback 2014 15 4 0 0 16 nbsp nbsp St George Illawarra Dragons 125 312 nbsp 17 nbsp 410 Tino Fa asuamaleaui 23 Prop 2022 7 1 0 0 4 nbsp nbsp Gold Coast Titans 63 90 nbsp 12 nbsp 1 nbsp 317 Reuben Cotter 24 Second row Prop 2022 5 0 0 0 0 nbsp nbsp North Queensland Cowboys 59 59 nbsp 4 nbsp 2 nbsp 112 Liam Martin 26 Second row 2022 7 3 0 0 12 nbsp nbsp Penrith Panthers 104 104 nbsp 913 Isaah Yeo 28 Lock 2022 8 2 0 0 8 nbsp nbsp Penrith Panthers 220 220 nbsp 11 nbsp 114 Harry Grant 25 Hooker 2022 8 1 0 0 4 nbsp nbsp Melbourne Storm 62 77 nbsp 815 Lindsay Collins 27 Prop 2022 6 3 0 0 12 nbsp nbsp Sydney Roosters 90 90 nbsp 916 Patrick Carrigan 25 Lock 2022 8 0 0 0 0 nbsp nbsp Brisbane Broncos 83 83 nbsp 618 Nicho Hynes 27 Halfback Fullback 2023 2 0 0 0 0 nbsp nbsp Cronulla Sutherland Sharks 46 82 nbsp 1 nbsp 3 nbsp 119 Thomas Flegler 24 Prop 2023 1 0 0 0 0 nbsp nbsp Brisbane Broncos 96 96 nbsp 3 nbsp 211 Cameron Murray 25 Second row Lock 2019 8 7 0 0 28 nbsp nbsp South Sydney Rabbitohs 147 147 nbsp 13 nbsp 120 Selwyn Cobbo 21 Wing 2023 1 0 0 0 0 nbsp nbsp Brisbane Broncos 49 49 nbsp 4 nbsp 3 nbsp 121 Jake Trbojevic 29 Prop Lock 2016 13 2 0 0 8 nbsp nbsp Manly Warringah Sea Eagles 200 200 nbsp 16 nbsp 4Records editMain article List of Australia national rugby league team records Bold denotes that the player is still active Most capped players edit Name Career Caps1 Darren Lockyer 1998 2011 592 Cameron Smith 2006 2017 563 Mal Meninga 1982 1994 464 Graeme Langlands 1963 1975 45Petero Civoniceva 2001 2011 456 Brad Fittler 1991 1995 1998 2001 407 Reg Gasnier 1959 1967 39Johnny Raper 1959 1968 39Greg Inglis 2006 2016 3910 Johnathan Thurston 2006 2009 2011 2017 38Cooper Cronk 2007 2009 2017 38Top try scorers edit Name Career Tries1 Darren Lockyer 1998 2011 352 Ken Irvine 1959 1967 333 Greg Inglis 2006 2016 314 Reg Gasnier 1959 1967 285 Billy Slater 2008 2014 2017 276 Bob Fulton 1968 1975 1978 257 Brett Morris 2009 2014 238 Mal Meninga 1982 1994 219 Graeme Langlands 1963 1975 20Valentine Holmes 2016 2023 20Top points scorers edit Name Career Points Tries Goals Field Goals1 Johnathan Thurston 2006 2017 382 13 165 02 Mick Cronin 1973 1982 308 10 139 03 Mal Meninga 1982 1994 278 21 99 04 Andrew Johns 1995 1998 2006 226 12 89 05 Graeme Langlands 1963 1975 206 20 73 06 Darren Lockyer 1998 2011 204 35 31 27 Michael O Connor 1986 1990 198 17 65 08 Cameron Smith 2006 2017 170 9 67 09 Mat Rogers 1998 2000 168 9 66 0Team records edit Biggest win 110 4 v nbsp Russia at The Boulevard 4 November 2000 dd Biggest loss 30 0 v nbsp New Zealand at FMG Stadium Waikato 4 November 2023 dd Highest all time attendance 74 468 v nbsp New Zealand at Old Trafford 30 November 2013 dd Individual edit Most tries in a match 6 Valentine Holmes v nbsp Fiji 24 November 2017 dd Most points in a match 46 Ryan Girdler v nbsp Russia at The Boulevard 4 November 2000 dd Youngest player 18 years 129 days Sione Mata utia v nbsp England 2 November 2014 dd Team of the Century 1908 2008 edit Main article Australian rugby league team of the century As Australian rugby league celebrated its first centenary in 2008 an Australian team of the century was named which comprises one player for each of the thirteen positions plus four interchange players 63 Winger Brian Bevan is the only player in the team who never represented Australia in a test match while coach Jack Gibson never coached the Australian test team No Position Player 1 Clive Churchill FB 2 Brian Bevan WG 3 Reg Gasnier CE 4 Mal Meninga CE 5 Ken Irvine WG 6 Wally Lewis FE 7 Andrew Johns HB 8 Arthur Beetson PR 9 Noel Kelly HK No Position Player 10 Duncan Hall PR 11 Norm Provan SR 12 Ron Coote SR 13 Johnny Raper LK 14 Graeme Langlands positions 15 Dally Messenger positions 16 Bob Fulton positions 17 Frank Burge positions CO Jack Gibson positionsCaptains edit Arthur Hennessy 1908 Denis Lutge 1908 Alex Burdon 1909 Dally Messenger 1908 1910 Larry O Malley 1909 Robert Graves 1909 Bill Heidke 1910 Chris McKivat 1910 1912 Sid Deane 1914 Arthur Halloway 1919 Albert Rick Johnston 1919 1920 Herb Gilbert 1920 Charles Chook Fraser 1921 1922 Jim Craig 1924 Tom Gorman 1928 1930 Herb Steinohrt 1932 Frank McMillan 1933 Peter Mick Madsen 1933 Dave Brown 1935 1936 Wally Prigg 1937 1938 Joe Jorgenson 1946 Ron Bailey 1946 Len Smith 1948 Col Maxwell 1948 Wally O Connell 1948 Bill Tyquin 1949 Keith Froome 1949 Clive Churchill 1950 1954 Ken Kearney 1956 1957 Dick Poole 1957 Brian Davies 1958 Brian Carlson 1959 1961 Keith Barnes 1959 1962 Barry Muir 1960 1961 Reg Gasnier 1962 1967 Arthur Summons 1962 1964 Billy Wilson 1963 Ian Walsh 1963 1966 Peter Gallagher 1967 Johnny Raper 1967 1968 John Sattler 1969 1970 Graeme Langlands 1970 1975 Phil Hawthorne 1970 Ron Coote 1970 Billy Smith 1970 Bob McCarthy 1973 Tommy Raudonikis 1973 Arthur Beetson 1973 1977 John Brass 1975 Greg Veivers 1977 Greg Pierce 1978 Bob Fulton 1978 George Peponis 1979 1980 Steve Rogers 1981 Max Krilich 1982 1983 Wally Lewis 1984 1989 Mal Meninga 1990 1994 Laurie Daley 1993 1998 Brad Fittler 1995 2001 Paul Harragon 1995 Geoff Toovey 1996 Allan Langer 1998 Gorden Tallis 2000 2002 Andrew Johns 2002 2003 Darren Lockyer 2003 2011 Danny Buderus 2004 2005 Craig Gower 2005 2007 Cameron Smith 2007 2017 Boyd Cordner 2018 2019 James Tedesco 2022 note during 2020 2021 there were no international gamesCompetitive records editMain article List of results of the Australian national rugby league team Overall record edit Below is the table of the official representative rugby league matches played by Australia at test level up until 5 November 2023 64 65 Opponent Played Won Lost Drawn Last Meeting Win For Aga Diff nbsp England 25 16 7 2 2017 64 558 281 277 nbsp Fiji 8 8 0 0 2022 100 00 462 38 424 nbsp France 61 45 14 2 2017 73 77 1476 547 929 nbsp Great Britain 139 73 61 5 2006 52 52 2352 1745 607 nbsp Ireland 1 1 0 0 2013 100 00 50 0 50 nbsp Italy 3 3 0 0 2022 100 00 170 43 127 nbsp Lebanon 2 2 0 0 2022 100 00 82 4 78 nbsp New Zealand 145 107 35 3 2023 73 79 3299 1934 1365 nbsp Maori 9 6 2 1 1980 66 67 166 107 59 nbsp Papua New Guinea 11 11 0 0 2010 100 00 580 68 512 nbsp Rest of the World 3 3 0 0 1997 100 00 70 29 41 nbsp Russia 1 1 0 0 2000 100 00 110 4 106 nbsp Samoa 5 5 0 0 2023 100 00 224 50 174 nbsp Scotland 2 2 0 0 2022 100 00 138 12 126 nbsp South Africa 3 3 0 0 1995 100 00 174 33 141 nbsp Tonga 2 1 1 0 2019 50 00 46 32 14 nbsp United States 2 2 0 0 2013 100 00 98 24 74 nbsp Wales 13 13 0 0 2011 100 00 455 143 312Total 435 302 120 13 2023 69 43 10 510 5 094 5 416 Includes five matches in 1997 as Australia SL 66 Includes matches played against Tonga Invitational XIII 67 World Cup edit Further information Australia at the Rugby League World Cup A red box around the year indicates tournaments played within Australia World Cup RecordHost s Year s Round Position Pld Win Draw Loss nbsp France 1954 Group 3rd out of 4 3 1 0 2 nbsp Australia 1957 Winners 1st out of 4 3 3 0 0 nbsp England 1960 Group 2nd out of 4 3 2 0 1 nbsp Australia nbsp New Zealand 1968 Winners 1st out of 4 4 4 0 0 nbsp England 1970 Winners 1st out of 4 4 2 0 2 nbsp France 1972 Final 2nd out of 4 4 2 0 2Worldwide 1975 Winners 1st out of 5 9 7 1 1 nbsp Australia nbsp New Zealand 1977 Winners 1st out of 4 4 4 0 4Worldwide 1985 88 Winners 1st out of 5 8 6 0 2Worldwide 1989 92 Winners 1st out of 5 9 9 0 0 nbsp England 1995 Winners 1st out of 10 5 4 0 1 nbsp England nbsp France nbsp Ireland nbsp Scotland nbsp Wales 2000 Winners 1st out of 16 6 6 0 0 nbsp Australia 2008 Final 2nd out of 10 5 4 0 1 nbsp England nbsp Wales 2013 Winners 1st out of 14 6 6 0 0 nbsp Australia nbsp New Zealand nbsp Papua New Guinea 2017 Winners 1st out of 14 6 6 0 0 nbsp England 2021 Winners 1st out of 16 6 6 0 02026 QualifiedWorld Cup 9 s edit World Cup 9 s RecordHost s Year Round Position Pld Win Draw Loss nbsp Australia 2019 Winners 1st out of 12 5 5 0 0Tri Four Nations edit Tri Four Nations RecordHost s Year Round Position Pld Win Draw Loss nbsp Australia nbsp New Zealand 1999 Winners 1st out of 3 3 2 0 1 nbsp England 2004 Winners 1st out of 3 5 3 1 1 nbsp England 2005 Runners up 2nd out of 3 5 4 0 1 nbsp Australia nbsp New Zealand 2006 Winners 1st out of 3 5 4 0 1 nbsp England nbsp France 2009 Winners 1st out of 4 4 3 1 0 nbsp Australia nbsp New Zealand 2010 Final 2nd out of 4 4 3 0 1 nbsp England nbsp Wales 2011 Winners 1st out of 4 4 4 0 0 nbsp Australia nbsp New Zealand 2014 Final 2nd out of 4 4 2 0 2 nbsp England 2016 Winners 1st out of 4 4 4 0 0Rugby League Pacific Championship edit Rugby League Pacific Championship recordYear Round Position GP W L D2019 Champions 1 3 2 1 1 02023 Second place 2 3 3 2 1 0Total 1 Titles 2 2 5 3 2 0Kangaroo Tour Test matches edit Further information Kangaroo Tour Year To Result Score1908 09 nbsp Great Britain Loss 0 21911 12 nbsp Great Britain nbsp Wales Won Won 2 0 1 01919 nbsp New Zealand Won 3 11921 22 nbsp Great Britain nbsp Wales Loss Won 1 3 1 01929 30 nbsp Great Britain nbsp Wales Loss Won 1 2 1 01933 34 nbsp Great Britain nbsp Wales Loss Won 0 3 1 01935 nbsp New Zealand Won 2 11937 38 nbsp Great Britain nbsp France Loss Won 1 2 2 01948 49 nbsp Great Britain nbsp Wales nbsp France Loss Won Won 0 3 1 0 2 01949 nbsp New Zealand Draw 1 11952 53 nbsp Great Britain nbsp France Loss Loss 1 2 1 21953 nbsp New Zealand Loss 1 21956 57 nbsp Great Britain nbsp France Loss Won 1 2 3 01959 60 nbsp Great Britain nbsp France nbsp Italy Loss Won Won 1 2 3 0 2 01961 nbsp New Zealand Draw 1 11963 64 nbsp Great Britain nbsp France Won Won 2 1 2 11965 nbsp New Zealand Draw 1 11967 68 nbsp Great Britain nbsp France Won Loss 2 1 0 21969 nbsp New Zealand Draw 1 11971 nbsp New Zealand Loss 0 11973 nbsp Great Britain nbsp France Won Won 2 1 2 01978 nbsp Great Britain nbsp Wales nbsp France Won Won Loss 2 1 1 0 0 21980 nbsp New Zealand Won 2 01982 nbsp Great Britain nbsp Wales nbsp France Won Won Won 3 0 1 0 2 01985 nbsp New Zealand Won 2 11986 nbsp Great Britain nbsp France Won Won 3 0 2 01989 nbsp New Zealand Won 3 01990 nbsp Great Britain nbsp France Won Won 2 1 2 01991 nbsp Papua New Guinea Won 2 01993 nbsp New Zealand Won 2 01994 nbsp Great Britain nbsp Wales nbsp France Won Won Won 2 1 1 0 1 02001 nbsp Great Britain Won 2 12003 nbsp Great Britain Won 3 0Honours editWorld Cup 1957 1968 1970 1975 1977 1988 1992 1995 2000 2013 2017 2021 Tri Nations Four Nations 1999 2004 2006 2009 2011 2016 Pacific Championship 2019 Anzac Test 1997 1999 2000 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2016 2017 2019 The Ashes 1911 1920 1950 1954 1964 1966 1968 1973 1974 1978 1979 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 2001 2003IRL Rankings editIRL Men s World RankingsvteOfficial rankings as of 21 December 2023Rank Change Team Pts 1 nbsp nbsp Australia 100 002 nbsp nbsp New Zealand 91 003 nbsp 1 nbsp England 74 004 nbsp 1 nbsp Samoa 70 005 nbsp nbsp Tonga 54 006 nbsp nbsp Papua New Guinea 50 007 nbsp nbsp Fiji 49 008 nbsp 1 nbsp France 24 009 nbsp 1 nbsp Lebanon 24 0010 nbsp 3 nbsp Cook Islands 22 0011 nbsp 1 nbsp Serbia 19 0012 nbsp 6 nbsp Netherlands 17 0013 nbsp 1 nbsp Italy 15 0014 nbsp 5 nbsp Malta 15 0015 nbsp 1 nbsp Greece 14 0016 nbsp 4 nbsp Ireland 14 0017 nbsp 6 nbsp Wales 13 0018 nbsp 3 nbsp Jamaica 10 0019 nbsp 2 nbsp Scotland 9 0020 nbsp 8 nbsp Ukraine 7 0021 nbsp 6 nbsp Czech Republic 7 0022 nbsp 1 nbsp Germany 6 0023 nbsp 10 nbsp Philippines 6 0024 nbsp 5 nbsp Poland 6 0025 nbsp 1 nbsp South Africa 5 0026 nbsp 4 nbsp Chile 5 0027 nbsp 4 nbsp Kenya 0 0028 nbsp 6 nbsp Norway 4 0029 nbsp 6 nbsp Nigeria 4 0030 nbsp 6 nbsp Ghana 4 0031 nbsp 6 nbsp Brazil 4 0032 nbsp 12 nbsp Turkey 3 0033 nbsp 4 nbsp United States 3 0034 nbsp 1 nbsp Bulgaria 3 0035 nbsp 5 nbsp Cameroon 2 0036 nbsp 2 nbsp Montenegro 2 0037 nbsp 5 nbsp Spain 2 0038 nbsp 6 nbsp Japan 1 0039 nbsp nbsp Albania 1 0040 nbsp 4 nbsp Colombia 1 0041 nbsp 6 nbsp El Salvador 1 0042 nbsp nbsp North Macedonia 1 0043 nbsp 1 nbsp Morocco 1 0044 nbsp 3 nbsp Sweden 0 0045 nbsp nbsp Bosnia and Herzegovina 0 0046 nbsp 3 nbsp Canada 0 0047 nbsp span class, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library, article , read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games. © Copyright 2021, All Rights Reserved  |   www.wiki3.en-us.nina.az Rss Feed SiteMap Ping DMCA Contact Us HomePage Closed Call: