Australia 34–2 New Zealand — Final, 2013 Rugby League World Cup

30 Nov 2013 · Old Trafford, Manchester, England · Attendance: 74,468Highest-attended match of the tournament

Data last verified: 11 August 2026.

2013 Rugby League World Cup ▾

Final, 2013 Rugby League World Cup: Australia 34–2 New Zealand, at Old Trafford, Manchester, England on 30 Nov 2013.

Scoring timeline

19′Australia — try, Slater · Thurston kicked
31′Australia — try, Cronk · Thurston kicked
41′Australia — try, Slater · Thurston kicked
53′Australia — try, Morris · Thurston kicked
73′Australia — try, Morris · Thurston kicked

Tries in order scored, with the conversion kicked/missed alongside each one where our source data lets us match a kicker to that specific try. Sources don't record exact minutes for missed kicks, so misses are matched by elimination (attempts left over once every made kick is accounted for), not sequenced by time. Standalone penalty goals are shown separately below, not attached to a try.

Scorers

AustraliaTries: Slater (2) 19', 41'; Cronk 31'; Morris (2) 53', 73'
Goals: Thurston (7/7) 3' pen, 23', 35' pen, 37', 43', 59', 75'
New ZealandGoals: Johnson (1/1) 40' pen

Teams

AustraliaNew Zealand
1Billy SlaterFullbackKevin Locke1
2Brett MorrisWingRoger Tuivasa-Sheck2
3Greg InglisCentreDean Whare3
4Jarryd HayneCentreBryson Goodwin4
5Darius BoydWingManu Vatuvei5
6Johnathan ThurstonStand off/Five eighthKieran Foran6
7Cooper CronkScrum half/Half backShaun Johnson7
8Matthew ScottProp forwardJared Waerea-Hargreaves8
9Cameron Smith (c)HookerIssac Luke9
10James TamouProp forwardJesse Bromwich10
11Greg BirdSecond rowSimon Mannering (c)11
12Sam ThaidaySecond rowSonny Bill Williams12
13Paul GallenLoose forward/Lock forwardElijah Taylor13
Substitutes
14Daly Cherry-EvansFrank-Paul Nu'uausala14
15Josh Papali'iSam Kasiano15
16Andrew FifitaBen Matulino16
17Corey ParkerAlex Glenn19
Tim SheensCoachStephen Kearney

Match officials

Kick-off14:30 GMT (UTC±00:00)
RefereeRichard Silverwood (England)
Touch judgesJames Child (England), Grant Atkins (England)
Player of the matchJohnathan Thurston (Australia)

Match report

Australia led from the first minute and were never troubled. Johnathan Thurston opened the scoring with an early penalty goal, and after New Zealand had a couple of chances to respond, Thurston's high kick was gathered by Billy Slater for the first try, converted for 8-0. Cooper Cronk added a second try from a Darius Boyd grubber to make it 14-0, and a second Thurston penalty just before the break sent Australia in 16-0 up. Shaun Johnson's penalty right on half-time was New Zealand's only score of the match, making it 16-2 at the interval.

The second half was one-way traffic. Slater scored his second try within a minute of the restart, Brett Morris crossed twice either side of the hour mark — his second a length-of-the-field try after Jarryd Hayne intercepted a Sonny Bill Williams pass and set him away — and Thurston converted all seven of his seven attempts on the day. The 74,468 crowd remains the largest ever to watch an international rugby league match, and Thurston's player-of-the-match display took his Kangaroos Test points tally past Mick Cronin's 31-year-old record.

Previous World Cup meetings

Sources

← 2013 Rugby League World Cup — full match archive

← 2013 Rugby League World Cup