Fiji 30–14 Ireland — Qualifying Final, 2008 Rugby League World Cup
10 Nov 2008 · Robina Stadium, Gold Coast, Australia · Attendance: 8,224
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
Qualifying Final, 2008 Rugby League World Cup: Fiji 30–14 Ireland, at Robina Stadium, Gold Coast, Australia on 10 Nov 2008.
Scorers
| Fiji | Tries: Uate (2) Goals: Naiqama (5/6) |
| Ireland | Tries: Blanch; Grix Goals: Richards (1/4) |
Teams
| Fiji | Ireland | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jarryd Hayne | Fullback | Michael Platt | 1 |
| 2 | Semi Tadulala | Wing | Damien Blanch | 2 |
| 3 | Wes Naiqama (c) | Centre | Sean Gleeson | 3 |
| 4 | Daryl Millard | Centre | Stuart Littler | 4 |
| 5 | Akuila Uate | Wing | Pat Richards | 5 |
| 6 | Alipate Noilea | Stand off/Five eighth | Scott Grix (c) | 6 |
| 7 | Aaron Groom | Scrum half/Half back | Liam Finn | 7 |
| 8 | Ilisoni Vonomateiratu | Prop forward | Eamon O'Carroll | 8 |
| 9 | Waisale Sukanaveita | Hooker | Bob Beswick | 9 |
| 10 | Osea Sadrau | Prop forward | Gareth Haggerty | 10 |
| 11 | Ashton Sims | Second row | Ben Harrison | 11 |
| 12 | Sevanaia Koroi | Second row | Lee Doran | 12 |
| 13 | Jayson Bukuya | Loose forward/Lock forward | Simon Finnigan | 13 |
| Substitutes | ||||
| 14 | James Storer | Mike McIlorum | 14 | |
| 15 | Nick Bradley-Qalilawa | Karl Fitzpatrick | 15 | |
| 17 | Semisi Tora | Ged Corcoran | 16 | |
| 23 | Kaliova Nauqe Tani | Ryan Tandy | 17 | |
| Josaia "Joe" Dakuitoga | Coach | Andy Kelly | ||
Match officials
| Referee | Ashley Klein (Australia) — single-sourced |
| Touch judges | Jose Pereria, Paul Holland |
| Player of the match | Not confirmed to Tier-1 standard |
Match report
Fiji beat Ireland at Skilled Park (now Robina Stadium) on the Gold Coast to book a semi-final against Australia, leading 12-10 at the break before pulling clear with Akuila Uate's second try. Ireland, coached by Andy Kelly, had led early through Scott Grix and Pat Richards' goal-kicking but couldn't hold off Fiji's forward power in the second half.
Source note: RLP is the only source with a full breakdown for this match; several details below are single-sourced and flagged accordingly. Fiji's #8/#10 props (Osea/Jone Sadrau and Ilisoni Vonomateiratu) are transposed between sources for this tournament and may reflect a genuine in-tournament change rather than an error.