Ireland 30–16 Samoa — Group D, 2000 Rugby League World Cup
28 Oct 2000 · Windsor Park, Belfast, Northern Ireland · Attendance: 3,207
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
Group D, 2000 Rugby League World Cup: Ireland 30–16 Samoa, at Windsor Park, Belfast, Northern Ireland on 28 Oct 2000.
Scorers
| Ireland | Tries: Carney; Eagar; Joynt; Prescott; Ricketson Goals: Prescott (5) |
| Samoa | Tries: Betham; Leauma; Milford Goals: Geros (2) |
Teams
| Ireland | Samoa | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Steve Prescott | Fullback | Laloa Milford | 1 |
| 2 | Brian Carney | Wing | Brian Leauma | 2 |
| 3 | Michael Withers | Centre | Anthony Swann | 3 |
| 4 | Michael Eagar | Centre | Joe Galuvao | 4 |
| 5 | Mark Forster | Wing | Francis Meli | 5 |
| 6 | Tommy Martyn | Stand off/Five eighth | Simon Geros | 6 |
| 7 | Ryan Sheridan | Scrum half/Half back | Willie Swann | 7 |
| 8 | Terry O'Connor (c) | Prop forward | Frank Puletua | 8 |
| 9 | Danny Williams | Hooker | Monty Betham | 9 |
| 10 | Barrie McDermott | Prop forward | Jerry Seuseu | 10 |
| 11 | Chris Joynt | Second row | David Solomona | 11 |
| 12 | Kevin Campion | Second row | Fred Petersen | 12 |
| 13 | Luke Ricketson | Loose forward/Lock forward | Willie Poching (c) | 13 |
| Substitutes | ||||
| Interchange | Liam Bretherton | Tony Tatupu | Interchange | |
| Interchange | Johnny Lawless | Vae Kololo | Interchange | |
| Interchange | David Barnhill | Mark Leafa | Interchange | |
| Interchange | Paul Southern | Henry Fa'afili | Interchange | |
| Andy Kelly / Steve O'Neill (joint coaches, per rugbyleagueproject.org) | Coach | Darrell Williams | ||
Match officials
| Referee | Tim Mander |
| Touch judges | Not identified in sources found |
| Player of the match | Not identified in sources found |
Match report
Ireland opened their Group D campaign with a 30-16 win over Samoa at Windsor Park, Belfast, leading 12-10 at half-time before pulling clear with five tries to three.