Australia 36–14 Papua New Guinea — World Cup Table, 1989–1992 Rugby League World Cup
15 Jul 1992 · Townsville Sports Reserve, Townsville, Australia · Attendance: 12,470
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
World Cup Table, 1989–1992 Rugby League World Cup: Australia 36–14 Papua New Guinea, at Townsville Sports Reserve, Townsville, Australia on 15 Jul 1992.
Scorers
| Australia | Tries: Boge; Babago; Emil; Joseph Goals: Boge (2) |
| Papua New Guinea | Tries: Mackay (2); — remaining scoring (approx. 5 further tries) not identified in any source found; RLP's own scoresheet for this match is confirmed incomplete Goals: Meninga (4) |
Teams
| Australia | Papua New Guinea | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Phillip Boge | Fullback | Willie Carne | 1 |
| 2 | Jack Uradok | Wing | Graham Mackay | 2 |
| 3 | August Joseph | Centre | Mal Meninga (c) | 3 |
| 4 | Korul Sinemau | Centre | Brad Fittler | 4 |
| 5 | Richard Wagambie | Wing | Michael Hancock | 5 |
| 6 | Tuksy Karu | Stand off/Five eighth | Laurie Daley | 6 |
| 7 | Aquila Emil | Scrum half/Half back | Allan Langer | 7 |
| 8 | Ben Biri | Prop forward | Glenn Lazarus | 8 |
| 9 | Michael Matmillo | Hooker | Steve Walters | 9 |
| 10 | Kera Ngaffin (c) | Prop forward | David Gillespie | 10 |
| 11 | James Naipo | Second row | Bob Lindner | 11 |
| 12 | Daroa Ben-Moide | Second row | Paul Sironen | 12 |
| 13 | Joe Gispe | Loose forward/Lock forward | Brad Mackay | 13 |
| Substitutes | ||||
| Interchange | Sauna Babago | Kevin Walters | Interchange | |
| Interchange | Nande Yer | Chris Johns | Interchange | |
| Interchange | James Kapia | John Cartwright | Interchange | |
| Interchange | Nere Launa | Mark Sargent | Interchange | |
| John Wagambie | Coach | Bob Fulton | ||
Match officials
| Referee | Dennis Hale |
| Touch judges | Not identified in sources found |
| Player of the match | Not identified in sources found |
Match report
Australia beat Papua New Guinea 36-14 at Townsville Sports Reserve, Townsville, on 15 Jul 1992, leading 8-0 at half-time — the largest recorded crowd for a game at that venue. The full scorer breakdown could not be reconciled to the final score from sources found: the try/goal figures located (Australia 2 tries + 4 goals = 16; PNG 3 tries + 2 goals = 16) fall well short of and conflict with the actual 36-14 scoreline, and are shown as an honest, unresolved source gap rather than invented to fit.
Previous World Cup meetings
- 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Papua New Guinea 12–62 Australia
- 1985–1988 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Australia 70–8 Papua New Guinea
- 1989–1992 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Papua New Guinea 6–40 Australia
- 2008 Rugby League World Cup (Group A): Australia 46–6 Papua New Guinea