Great Britain 21–29 New Zealand — World Cup Table, 1957 Rugby League World Cup
25 Jun 1957 · Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, Australia · Attendance: 14,263Lowest-attended match of the tournament
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
World Cup Table, 1957 Rugby League World Cup: Great Britain 21–29 New Zealand, at Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, Australia on 25 Jun 1957.
Scorers
| Great Britain | Tries: Grundy; Jackson; Jones; Little; Sullivan Goals: Jones (3) |
| New Zealand | Tries: Hadfield; Menzies; McLennan; Riddell; Turner Goals: Sorensen (7) |
Teams
| Great Britain | New Zealand | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Glyn Moses | Fullback | Pat Creedy | 1 |
| 2 | Eric Ashton | Wing | Tom Hadfield | 2 |
| 3 | Phil Jackson | Centre | William Sorensen | 3 |
| 4 | Lewis Jones | Centre | George Turner | 4 |
| 5 | Mick Sullivan | Wing | Reese Griffiths | 5 |
| 6 | Austin Rhodes | Five-eighth | George Menzies | 6 |
| 7 | Jeffrey Stevenson | Halfback | Sel Belsham | 7 |
| 8 | Alan Prescott (Captain) | Prop | Henry Maxwell | 8 |
| 9 | Tom McKinney | Hooker | John Butterfield | 9 |
| 10 | Sid Little | Prop | William McLennan | 10 |
| 11 | Jack Grundy | Second Row | John Yates | 11 |
| 12 | Geoff Gunney | Second Row | Cliff Johnson | 12 |
| 13 | Derek Turner | Lock | Jim Riddell | 13 |
| — not identified in sources found (no head coach was appointed for the Great Britain touring party in this era) | Coach | Bill Telford | ||
Match officials
| Referee | Darcy Lawler (Sydney) |
| Touch judges | — not identified in sources found |
| Player of the match | — not identified in sources found |
Match report
Going into the final round-three fixture on 25 June, both Great Britain and New Zealand had already been eliminated from title contention by Australia's dominant form, making this match effectively a battle for pride and for the tournament's runner-up positions. Both teams made significant changes for the dead-rubber encounter. Great Britain's lineup was reshaped considerably, with Eric Ashton shifting to the wing, Lewis Jones moving into the centres, and Phil Jackson, Austin Rhodes, Tom McKinney and Geoff Gunney all coming into the run-on side. New Zealand also rang changes. The match itself turned into a high-scoring, back-and-forth contest. New Zealand led 15-13 at halftime and went on to record their only win of the tournament, running in five tries to Great Britain's five, but doing the crucial damage with the boot — William Sorensen landing seven goals from ten attempts compared with Lewis Jones's three from six for the Lions. The extra conversions proved decisive in New Zealand's 29-21 victory, denying Great Britain what would otherwise have been a share of second place on points difference and giving the Kiwis a rare, notable scalp against a strong British touring side at the SCG. Australia finished the tournament unbeaten to be crowned 1957 World Cup champions with a maximum six competition points and a for-and-against differential of +62, while Great Britain, France and New Zealand all finished level on two points, separated by points difference.
Previous World Cup meetings
- 1954 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Great Britain 26–6 New Zealand
- 1960 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Great Britain 23–8 New Zealand
- 1968 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Great Britain 38–14 New Zealand
- 1970 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Great Britain 27–17 New Zealand
- 1972 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Great Britain 53–19 New Zealand
- 1977 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): New Zealand 12–30 Great Britain
- 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Great Britain 6–6 New Zealand
- 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): New Zealand 12–10 Great Britain
- 1989–1992 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Great Britain 10–6 New Zealand
- 1989–1992 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): New Zealand 21–18 Great Britain