England 20–2 France — World Cup Table, 1975 Rugby League World Cup
16 Mar 1975 · Headingley, Leeds, England · Attendance: 10,842
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
World Cup Table, 1975 Rugby League World Cup: England 20–2 France, at Headingley, Leeds, England on 16 Mar 1975.
Scorers
| England | Tries: Fielding (2); Millward; Morgan Goals: Gray (4) |
| France | Goals: Serrano (1) |
Teams
| England | France | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paul Charlton | Fullback | Francis Tranier | 1 |
| 2 | Keith Fielding | Wing | Ellie Bonal | 2 |
| 3 | Derek Noonan | Centre | Michael Molinier | 3 |
| 4 | Les Dyl | Centre | René Terrats | 4 |
| 5 | John Atkinson | Wing | Bernard Curt | 5 |
| 6 | Ken Gill | Stand off/Five eighth | Jean-Pierre Lacoste | 6 |
| 7 | Roger Millward | Scrum half/Half back | Jean-Marie Imbert | 7 |
| 8 | Dave Chisnall | Prop forward | Francis de Nadaï | 8 |
| 9 | John Gray | Hooker | Fernand Kaminski | 9 |
| 10 | Phil Jackson | Prop forward | Victor Serrano | 10 |
| 11 | Tommy Martyn | Second row | Serge Gleyzes | 11 |
| 12 | George Nicholls | Second row | Didier Hermet | 12 |
| 13 | Barry Philbin | Loose forward/Lock forward | Michel Anglade | 13 |
| Substitutes | ||||
| 14 | Mick Morgan | Jean-Louis Castel | 14 | |
| 15 | John Walsh | Antoine Gonzales | 15 | |
| Alex Murphy | Coach | — not identified in sources found (a fragmentary source referenced an 'Antoine Jimenez' as a French selector this year, but this could not be confirmed as head coach for this specific fixture) | ||
Match officials
| Referee | Keith Page (England), replaced after 27 minutes by touch judge Harry Hunt (England) |
| Touch judges | Harry Hunt (England) — came on as referee after 27 minutes |
| Player of the match | — not identified in sources found |
Match report
England opened their 1975 World Championship Series campaign with a comfortable 20-2 win over France at Headingley, Leeds. Winger Keith Fielding scored twice, with further tries to Roger Millward and interchange forward Mick Morgan; hooker John Gray landed all four of his conversion attempts. France's only points came from a single goal by Victor Serrano, with the French unable to cross the try-line.
A notable incident during the game was a mid-match referee change: appointed referee Keith Page had to be replaced after 27 minutes by touch judge Harry Hunt, reportedly due to a reaction to a vaccination. England, coached by former Great Britain great Alex Murphy, went on to have a strong tournament, finishing runners-up to Australia in the final standings.