France 0–52 Australia — World Cup Table, 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup
13 Dec 1986 · Stade d'Albert Domec, Carcassonne, France · Attendance: 5,000
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
World Cup Table, 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup: France 0–52 Australia, at Stade d'Albert Domec, Carcassonne, France on 13 Dec 1986.
Scorers
| France | No scorers recorded. |
| Australia | Tries: Shearer (4); Jack (3); Folkes; Niebling; O'Connor Goals: O'Connor (6) |
Teams
| France | Australia | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Patrick Wosniak | Fullback | Garry Jack | 1 |
| 2 | Sebastien Rodriguez | Wing | Dale Shearer | 2 |
| 3 | Philippe Fourquet | Centre | Brett Kenny | 3 |
| 4 | Francis Laforgue | Centre | Gene Miles | 4 |
| 5 | Hugues Ratier | Wing | Michael O'Connor | 5 |
| 6 | Roger Palisses | Stand off/Five eighth | Wally Lewis (c) | 6 |
| 7 | Christian Scicchitano | Scrum half/Half back | Peter Sterling | 7 |
| 8 | Max Chantal | Prop forward | Greg Dowling | 8 |
| 9 | Thierry Bernabé | Hooker | Royce Simmons | 9 |
| 10 | Serge Titeux | Prop forward | Paul Dunn | 10 |
| 11 | Guy Laforgue (c) | Second row | Steve Folkes | 11 |
| 12 | Daniel Verdes | Second row | Bryan Niebling | 12 |
| 13 | Philippe Gestas | Loose forward/Lock forward | Bob Lindner | 13 |
| Substitutes | ||||
| 14 | Gilles Dumas | Terry Lamb | 14 | |
| 15 | Yves Storer | Les Davidson | 15 | |
| Tas Baitieri | Coach | Don Furner | ||
Match officials
| Referee | Fred Lindop (England) |
| Player of the match | — not identified in sources found |
Match report
The second of two Tests France hosted against Australia in 1986, coming at the tail end of the 'Unbeatables' Kangaroo tour, in which Australia won all 20 matches played. France, financially and competitively weakened during this era, had no answer: Australia ran in ten tries to nil, with fullback Garry Jack (3) and winger Dale Shearer (4) doing the bulk of the damage out wide, while Steve Folkes, Bryan Niebling and goal-kicking winger Michael O'Connor (6 from 6) each also crossed.
The 52-0 scoreline underlined Australia's total superiority in this World Cup cycle. France finished bottom of the four-team World Cup table, later failing to fulfil some away fixtures against Australia, New Zealand and PNG for financial reasons.
Previous World Cup meetings
- 1954 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): France 15–5 Australia
- 1957 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 26–9 France
- 1960 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 13–12 France
- 1968 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 37–4 France
- 1968 Rugby League World Cup (Final): Australia 20–2 France
- 1970 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 15–17 France
- 1972 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): France 9–31 Australia
- 1975 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 26–6 France
- 1975 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): France 2–41 Australia
- 1977 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 21–9 France
- 1989–1992 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 34–2 France
- 1989–1992 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): France 10–34 Australia
- 2017 Rugby League World Cup (Group A): Australia 52–6 France