Wales 18–58 New Zealand — Group B, 2000 Rugby League World Cup
5 Nov 2000 · Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales · Attendance: 17,612
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
Group B, 2000 Rugby League World Cup: Wales 18–58 New Zealand, at Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales on 5 Nov 2000.
Scorers
| Wales | Tries: Briers; Atcheson; Farrell Goals: Harris (3) |
| New Zealand | Tries: Vainikolo (3); Barnett (2); Carroll; Lauiti'iti; Paul; Talau; Vagana; Wiki Goals: Paul (5); Lavea (2) |
Teams
| Wales | New Zealand | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wes Davies | Fullback | Richie Barnett (c) | 1 |
| 2 | Paul Sterling | Wing | Nigel Vagana | 2 |
| 3 | Hefin O'Hare | Centre | Tonie Carroll | 3 |
| 4 | Jason Critchley | Centre | Willie Talau | 4 |
| 5 | Anthony Sullivan | Wing | Lesley Vainikolo | 5 |
| 6 | Iestyn Harris (c) | Stand off/Five eighth | Henry Paul | 6 |
| 7 | Lee Briers | Scrum half/Half back | Stacey Jones | 7 |
| 8 | Anthony Farrell | Prop forward | Craig Smith | 8 |
| 9 | Ian Watson | Hooker | Richard Swain | 9 |
| 10 | Dave Whittle | Prop forward | Nathan Cayless | 10 |
| 11 | Mick Jenkins | Second row | Matt Rua | 11 |
| 12 | Justin Morgan | Second row | Stephen Kearney | 12 |
| 13 | Chris Morley | Loose forward/Lock forward | Ruben Wiki | 13 |
| Substitutes | ||||
| Interchange | Barry Eaton | Tasesa Lavea | Interchange | |
| Interchange | Paul Atcheson | Joe Vagana | Interchange | |
| Interchange | Paul Highton | Tony Puletua | Interchange | |
| Interchange | Chris Smith | Ali Lauiti'iti | Interchange | |
| Clive Griffiths | Coach | Frank Endacott | ||
Match officials
| Referee | Russell Smith (Castleford) |
| Touch judges | Not identified in sources found |
| Player of the match | Not identified in sources found |
Match report
New Zealand ran out 58-18 winners over Wales at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, leading 30-6 at half-time, with winger Lesley Vainikolo scoring a hat-trick. Wales's tries came from Lee Briers, Paul Atcheson and Anthony Farrell.
Previous World Cup meetings
- 1975 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): New Zealand 13–8 Wales
- 1975 Rugby League World Cup (World Cup Table): Wales 25–24 New Zealand