Wales 23–2 France — World Cup Table, 1975 Rugby League World Cup
6 Nov 1975 · The Willows, Salford, England · Attendance: 2,247
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
World Cup Table, 1975 Rugby League World Cup: Wales 23–2 France, at The Willows, Salford, England on 6 Nov 1975.
Scorers
| Wales | Tries: Banner; Bevan; Francis; Gregory; Willicombe Goals: Watkins (4) |
| France | Goals: Guilhelm (1) |
Teams
| Wales | France | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | David Watkins (c) | Fullback | José Calle | 1 |
| 2 | Roy Mathias | Wing | Jean-François Grechi | 2 |
| 3 | Frank Wilson | Centre | René Terrats | 3 |
| 4 | David Willicombe | Centre | Bernard Guilhelm | 4 |
| 5 | John Bevan | Wing | Bernard Curt | 5 |
| 6 | Bill Francis | Stand off/Five eighth | Jean-Pierre Lacoste | 6 |
| 7 | Peter Banner | Scrum half/Half back | Jean-Marie Imbert | 7 |
| 8 | John Mantle | Prop forward | Yves Alvernhe | 8 |
| 9 | Dick Evans | Hooker | Antoine Gonzales | 9 |
| 10 | Mick Murphy | Prop forward | Michel Moussard | 10 |
| 11 | Brian Gregory | Second row | Jean-Pierre Trémouille | 11 |
| 12 | Stuart Gallacher | Second row | Jean-Pierre Sauret | 12 |
| 13 | Clive Jones | Loose forward/Lock forward | Jean-Claude Mayorgas | 13 |
| Substitutes | ||||
| Interchange | Glyn Turner | Michel Maïque | Interchange | |
| Interchange | Brian Butler | Michel Gonzales | Interchange | |
| Interchange | Peter Rowe | |||
| Les Pearce | Coach | Antoine Jiminez | ||
Match officials
| Referee | Fred Lindop (England) |
| Player of the match | David Watkins (Wales) |
Match report
Wales hosted France at The Willows, Salford, in front of a sparse crowd of 2,247. Wales led 15-2 at halftime and pulled away in the second half to win comfortably, 23-2. Wales scored five tries -- Peter Banner, John Bevan, Bill Francis, Brian Gregory and David Willicombe -- to France's none, with captain David Watkins adding four goals. France's only points came from a single Bernard Guilhelm goal.
The result kept Wales in contention in the standings; Australia ultimately won the overall 1975 tournament, with England finishing runners-up.