Papua New Guinea 22–42 Great Britain — World Cup Table, 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup
22 May 1988 · Lloyd Robson Oval, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea · Attendance: 12,107
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
World Cup Table, 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup: Papua New Guinea 22–42 Great Britain, at Lloyd Robson Oval, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea on 22 May 1988.
Scorers
| Papua New Guinea | Tries: Kovae (2); Krewanty; Rop Goals: Numapo (3) |
| Great Britain | Tries: Gill (2); Schofield (2); Gregory; Medley; Stephenson Goals: Loughlin (7) |
Teams
| Papua New Guinea | Great Britain | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dairi Kovae | Fullback | Paul Loughlin | 1 |
| 2 | Kepi Saea | Wing | Phil Ford | 2 |
| 3 | Mea Morea | Centre | Garry Schofield | 3 |
| 4 | Bal Numapo (c) | Centre | David Stephenson | 4 |
| 5 | Arnold Krewanty | Wing | Henderson Gill | 5 |
| 6 | Darius Haili | Stand off/Five eighth | Shaun Edwards | 6 |
| 7 | Tony Kila | Scrum half/Half back | Andy Gregory | 7 |
| 8 | Isaac Rop | Prop forward | Kevin Ward | 8 |
| 9 | Michael Matmillo | Hooker | Kevin Beardmore | 9 |
| 10 | Yer Bom | Prop forward | Brian Case | 10 |
| 11 | Mathias Kambra | Second row | Paul Medley | 11 |
| 12 | Tuiyo Evei | Second row | Mike Gregory | 12 |
| 13 | Haoda Kouoru | Loose forward/Lock forward | Ellery Hanley (c) | 13 |
| Substitutes | ||||
| 14 | Thomas Rombuk | David Hulme | 14 | |
| 15 | Ngala Lapan | Paul Dixon | 15 | |
| Skerry Palanga | Coach | Mal Reilly | ||
Match officials
| Referee | Greg McCallum (Australia) |
| Player of the match | — not identified in sources found |
Match report
The opening fixture of Great Britain's 1988 Lions tour of Australasia, played in oppressive tropical heat at Lloyd Robson Oval. Great Britain, led by captain Ellery Hanley and coach Mal Reilly, took control early and led 28-6 at halftime before easing off after the break. Garry Schofield was the outstanding performer, scoring two tries -- his 17th and 18th in just 18 Great Britain Test appearances -- while Henderson Gill also crossed twice. Papua New Guinea, led by veteran captain Bal Numapo (who landed three goals), showed attacking spark of their own through fullback Dairi Kovae, who scored twice.
The win lifted Great Britain above New Zealand into second place on the World Cup table. The match also produced an early tour setback for Britain: 21-year-old debutant Shaun Edwards suffered a knee injury only six minutes in, requiring surgery, and missed the remainder of the tour.
Previous World Cup meetings
- 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Great Britain 42–0 Papua New Guinea
- 1989–1992 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Papua New Guinea 8–40 Great Britain
- 1989–1992 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Great Britain 56–4 Papua New Guinea