New Zealand 12–27 Australia — World Cup Table, 1977 Rugby League World Cup
29 May 1977 · Carlaw Park, Auckland, New Zealand · Attendance: 18,000
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
World Cup Table, 1977 Rugby League World Cup: New Zealand 12–27 Australia, at Carlaw Park, Auckland, New Zealand on 29 May 1977.
Scorers
| New Zealand | Tries: Rushton; Smith Goals: Collicoat (3) |
| Australia | Tries: McMahon; Harris; Peard; Thomas; — not identified in sources found (a 5th try is required to reconcile with the 27-point total under this era's 3-point try scoring) Goals: Cronin (6) |
Teams
| New Zealand | Australia | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Warren Collicoat | Fullback | Graham Eadie | 1 |
| 2 | Dane O'Hara | Wing | Mark Harris | 2 |
| 3 | Olsen Filipaina | Centre | Michael Cronin | 3 |
| 4 | Chris Jordan | Centre | Mark Thomas | 4 |
| 5 | Kevin Fisher | Wing | Allan McMahon | 5 |
| 6 | Dennis Williams | Stand off/Five eighth | John Peard | 6 |
| 7 | John Smith | Scrum half/Half back | Tom Raudonikis | 7 |
| 8 | Whetu Henry | Prop forward | Greg Veivers (c) | 8 |
| 9 | Alan Rushton | Hooker | Nick Geiger | 9 |
| 10 | Dane Sorensen | Prop forward | Denis Fitzgerald | 10 |
| 11 | Kurt Sorensen | Second row | Terry Randall | 11 |
| 12 | Tony Coll (c) | Second row | Ray Higgs | 12 |
| 13 | Whare Henry | Loose forward/Lock forward | Greg Pierce | 13 |
| Substitutes | ||||
| 14 | John Whittaker | |||
| 15 | Ray Baxendale | |||
| Ron Ackland | Coach | Terry Fearnley | ||
Match officials
| Referee | Billy Thompson (England) |
| Player of the match | Denis Fitzgerald (Australia) |
Match report
The opening fixture of the 1977 World Cup, jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand and contested as a single round-robin pool of four nations (Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain, France) followed by a final between the top two. Australia arrived missing several frontline Kangaroos names, with Michael Cronin, John Peard and Ray Higgs drafted into the run-on side. The Kangaroos took control early and led 12-2 at halftime before pulling away in the second period to win 27-12, with fullback Michael Cronin landing 6 from 6 attempts off the tee.
Denis Fitzgerald, in the front row, was named player of the match for his go-forward and work rate despite not scoring. For New Zealand, hooker Alan Rushton and halfback John Smith scored the Kiwis' two tries, with fullback Warren Collicoat kicking three goals. This result set the tone for a disappointing home World Cup campaign for New Zealand, who went on to lose 12-30 to Great Britain before salvaging pride with a 28-20 win over France, missing out on a final berth as Australia and Great Britain advanced to contest the final at the SCG.
Sourcing caveat: This era's international rugby league used a 3-point try (the switch to 4-point tries did not happen until 1983), consistent with the pre-existing 1977 Final entry in this file. Under that scoring, New Zealand's total reconciles exactly (2 tries + 3 goals = 12); Australia's four named try scorers plus 6 goals only total 24 of the 27 points, so a fifth Australian try scorer is not identified in sources found. Australia's bench is not identified in sources found for this fixture.
Previous World Cup meetings
- 1954 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 34–15 New Zealand
- 1957 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 25–5 New Zealand
- 1960 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 21–15 New Zealand
- 1968 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 31–12 New Zealand
- 1970 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 47–11 New Zealand
- 1972 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 9–5 New Zealand
- 1975 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 36–8 New Zealand
- 1975 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): New Zealand 8–24 Australia
- 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): New Zealand 18–0 Australia
- 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 32–12 New Zealand
- 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup (Final): Australia 25–12 New Zealand
- 1989–1992 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): New Zealand 14–22 Australia
- 1989–1992 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 40–12 New Zealand
- 1995 Rugby League World Cup (Semi-final): Australia 30–20 New Zealand
- 2000 Rugby League World Cup (Final): Australia 40–12 New Zealand
- 2008 Rugby League World Cup (Group A): Australia 30–6 New Zealand
- 2008 Rugby League World Cup (Final): New Zealand 34–20 Australia
- 2013 Rugby League World Cup (Final): Australia 34–2 New Zealand
- 2021 Rugby League World Cup (Semi-final): Australia 16–14 New Zealand