Wales 16–22 England — World Cup Table, 1975 Rugby League World Cup
20 Sep 1975 · Wilderspool Stadium, Warrington, England · Attendance: 5,034
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
World Cup Table, 1975 Rugby League World Cup: Wales 16–22 England, at Wilderspool Stadium, Warrington, England on 20 Sep 1975.
Scorers
| Wales | Tries: Banner; Coslett Goals: Watkins (5) |
| England | Tries: Fielding; Holmes; Hughes; — not identified in sources found (a further point is required to reconcile with the 22-point total; no field goal or fourth try is recorded in the source found) Goals: Fairbairn (6) |
Teams
| Wales | England | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bill Francis | Fullback | George Fairbairn | 1 |
| 2 | Clive Sullivan | Wing | Keith Fielding | 2 |
| 3 | David Watkins (c) | Centre | Eric Hughes | 3 |
| 4 | Frank Wilson | Centre | John Holmes | 4 |
| 5 | John Bevan | Wing | John Atkinson | 5 |
| 6 | David Treasure | Stand off/Five eighth | Ken Gill | 6 |
| 7 | Peter Banner | Scrum half/Half back | Roger Millward (c) | 7 |
| 8 | John Mantle | Prop forward | Brian Hogan | 8 |
| 9 | Tony Fisher | Hooker | John Bridges | 9 |
| 10 | Mel James | Prop forward | Colin Forsyth | 10 |
| 11 | Eddie Cunningham | Second row | Jeff Grayshon | 11 |
| 12 | Brian Gregory | Second row | Bob Irving | 12 |
| 13 | Kel Coslett | Loose forward/Lock forward | Steve Norton | 13 |
| Substitutes | ||||
| 14 | Peter Rowe | David Eckersley | 14 | |
| 15 | Glyn Turner | George Nicholls | 15 | |
| Les Pearce | Coach | Alex Murphy | ||
Match officials
| Referee | Marcel Caillol (France) |
| Player of the match | — not identified in sources found |
Match report
England and Wales had already met twice in 1975 before this game: England won a European Championship fixture 12-8 at Salford in February, and Wales then won the World Cup return fixture 12-7 in Brisbane in June. This Wilderspool match on 20 September was the reverse fixture, played on home soil in Warrington. England led 14-9 at halftime and held on for a win, with goal-kicking accuracy from George Fairbairn (6 goals) proving decisive against David Watkins' five goals for Wales.
Both nations were chasing Australia at the top of the table; Australia ultimately retained the World Cup, finishing on 13 points from 8 games, with England runners-up on 12 points, and Wales tied for third/fourth with France on 6 points.
Sourcing caveat: Wales's total reconciles exactly (2 tries + 5 goals = 16). England's three named tries plus six goals total 21, one point short of the official 22; no field goal or fourth try scorer is recorded in the source found, so this single point is flagged as unidentified rather than guessed.