Australia beat Samoa 44–12 in the men’s Rugby League World Cup semi-final at Sydney’s Allianz Stadium on 8 November 2026. Reece Walsh scored three tries, and the Kangaroos turned a 26–2 half-time lead into a place in the final against New Zealand. Samoa scored first and crossed twice after the break. Australia’s response to each second-half try kept the margin from becoming small enough for Samoa to change the shape of the contest. The NRL reported an attendance of 41,259. NRL full-time match report
The score can be broken into three useful passages. Australia took a lead in the first half by converting field position into tries, including after errors by Samoa. Samoa made the first scoring move of the second half, and Walsh answered soon afterwards. His third try came from a move that started on Australia’s side of halfway, giving the match a different kind of finish from the short-field opportunities that had set it up. The NRL also named Walsh player of the match. NRL player-of-the-match coverage
How Australia turned an early deficit into a lead
Stephen Crichton kicked a penalty goal in the fifth minute after Australia was caught offside. Two minutes later, the situation had changed. Crichton made an error about 20 metres from his line, and Australia attacked from the resulting scrum. Tom Dearden used a dummy and went through to score. The first two scores came from different kinds of opportunities. Samoa took two points after an infringement. Australia obtained a new set of tackles close to the line and had room to look for a try straight away. NRL full-time match report
On the replay, start with the scrum and follow Dearden’s hands. The value of a dummy depends on whether the defenders have a plausible pass to account for. They must cover the potential receiver and still be able to stop the ball carrier if he keeps it. A short starting distance gives them fewer steps in which to recover. Watching the space between the two nearest defenders can tell you more about how the break opened than watching the grounding alone.
The second try came by another route. Keaon Koloamatangi was stopped near the line but got the ball away to Harry Grant. Cameron Munster then sent Jacob Preston underneath to score in the 14th minute. The important distinction is when the ball moved. The defence had already committed to the carry that brought Koloamatangi near the line. Once he offloaded, it had to deal with Grant and the next pass before everyone could reset. Follow the offload before following Preston’s run. It is the moment that turns what could have been the end of a tackle into a new chance on the same play. NRL full-time match report
A mistake by Spencer Leniu in Samoa’s end gave Australia another chance in good territory, and Tom Trbojevic scored after a move involving Dearden and Kotoni Staggs. This time, the finish came on the wing. The first three Australian tries are worth comparing because they all started with favourable field position but asked different questions of the defence. The opener tested the defenders closest to a scrum play. Preston’s try followed an offload and a short running line. Trbojevic’s finish depended on the ball getting far enough across the field to bring the winger into the move. NRL full-time match report
The aerial contest and the end of the half
Samoa came close to scoring around the half-hour. Jarome Luai sent up a high kick, Francis Manuleleua contested it with Walsh, and the ball fell to Crichton, who went over. The bunker ruled a knock-on by Manuleleua in the contest and the try did not stand. The place to begin a replay is the kick rather than the grounding. A chaser has to cover the distance before the receiver can make a clean catch, then make a decision at the ball while moving at speed. The official result of the review was that Samoa received no points from the play. NRL full-time match report
Soon after that, Walsh scored his first try by running into a gap on the left edge between Ronald Volkman and Crichton. The previous passage had put him under pressure as a receiver facing a kick. This one put him in a position to run at defenders who had to make a decision while he was already moving forward. Watch the gap at the instant before Walsh reaches it. A seam that looks narrow from a wide camera can be large enough if the runner arrives while the defenders are still moving in different directions. NRL clip of Walsh’s first try
Australia’s fifth first-half try went to Bradman Best. Cameron Murray carried towards the line and attracted defenders, then passed to Preston, who sent Best over. Leniu was sent to the sin bin for dissent after the try. At the break it was 26–2. By then the sequence of tries had involved a scrum, an offload near the line, an attack to the wing, an edge break and a carry that drew multiple defenders. Looking at those beginnings makes the first-half margin easier to understand than a list of names and times alone. NRL full-time match report
Samoa struck first after half-time, then Walsh answered
Volkman’s high kick early in the second half gave Samoa the chance it had been seeking. Walsh dropped the ball and Crichton collected it to score. The play belongs beside the disallowed first-half effort. Both started with a kick that put Australia’s fullback under pressure, and both ended with Crichton reaching the line. This time the score stood. That difference is why a useful review starts with the kick and follows the ball through the contest, including who touches it and how it comes free. NRL full-time match report
Walsh then took a short pass from Grant and went through Crichton for his second try. Munster converted for 32–8. The immediate exchange mattered because Samoa had just made the first cut into the half-time margin. Australia did not need another long move to restore its position. It used a short pass to get Walsh onto the ball near the line. Watch Grant first and see when he delivers relative to Walsh’s approach. A short pass near a defender is most useful when it gives the runner time to carry through contact before the defence can shift. NRL clip of Walsh’s second try · NRL full-time match report
Samoa scored again through Izack Tago in the 61st minute. Volkman, Luai and Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow were involved before Tago finished in the left corner. The two Samoan tries show two routes to points after the interval. One exploited the loose ball from a high kick. The other relied on moving the ball to the edge and giving the outside runner a chance to reach the corner. That distinction matters for reviewing Australia’s defence. A high ball asks the backfield to secure possession. An edge movement asks the line to communicate and cover the ball across multiple passes. NRL full-time match report
The third Walsh try started on the other side of halfway
Walsh completed the hat-trick after a move that started in Australia’s own half. Trbojevic, Dearden and Munster contributed before Walsh finished it. The longer starting distance is what makes this try useful alongside the first two. The first depended on the fullback reaching a seam on the edge, and the second followed a short ball near the line. On the third, the challenge was to support a break across more ground and still have a finishing option when the defenders turned to chase. NRL clip of Walsh’s third try · NRL full-time match report
If you watch one clip from the match, use that third try and watch it twice. On the first viewing, follow the ball from its starting point. On the second, try following the nearest supporting runner even when that player does not have the ball. A long break can close quickly when a support runner gets ahead of the passer or moves so far away that the pass becomes difficult. Following the player away from the ball helps explain how a move can keep going after the initial opening has been used. Walsh is the scorer in the record, and the longer clip shows the teammates who made the finish available.
Jack Bostock scored Australia’s final try with eight minutes remaining. Munster’s conversion put the score at 44–12. For a score check, Australia crossed eight times and kicked six conversions, which gives 32 points from tries and 12 from kicks. Samoa’s 12 came from its opening penalty goal, two tries and one conversion. The score arithmetic is useful when watching highlights because missed kicks may be absent from a short video. It also explains why the margin grew in some passages by four points and in others by six. NRL full-time match report
A replay guide for the shifts in field position
To compare the five Australian tries before half-time, make a note of where the attacking possession began and where the final receiver got the ball. The position of the first carry can be more informative than the spot where the try is grounded. A team starting close to the line can ask its halves to play directly, since a short break is enough to score. A team starting in its own half has to find a route through the line and then maintain support over the distance still to cover. The third Walsh try is the best example here of the second kind of attack.
Do the same for Samoa’s two tries after the break. For Crichton’s try, focus on who is close enough to reach the ball after the kick comes down. For Tago’s, watch the inside runners before the final pass to the corner. The two moves can look similar in a highlights package because both finish at the try line. The work that made each possible happened in a different place. That distinction helps separate the ways Samoa threatened from the final margin, which is a record of all scoring across the night.
What carries into the New Zealand final
The final will be in Brisbane, where Australia will face New Zealand at Suncorp Stadium. The Kiwis reached the decider by beating Tonga 34–10 in Newcastle. Australia and New Zealand had already met in the tournament opener, with Australia winning 24–22 in Sydney. Those are useful comparisons for a reader preparing for the final because they establish the path each side took and show that the previous meeting between the finalists was much closer than either men’s semi-final. The earlier score cannot determine how the teams will play in Brisbane. The match records give a starting point for what to watch. NRL preview and final venue · NRL tournament opener match report · Our New Zealand–Tonga analysis
The sequence to take into the next game is the exchange after half-time. Samoa’s kick produced an error and a try, and Australia answered quickly with a different attacking option. That provides a concrete comparison for the final. When either side scores, track the next possession that begins in good territory and see whether the other side can turn it into points. The response after a score can reveal how quickly a team can shift from recovering field position to putting pressure back on the opponent.
In the Australia view of Google Trends Trending Now, “rugby league world cup” ranked first when checked at 18:18 UTC on 8 November. The past-24-hour table showed the query as Active with a displayed search volume of 100K+. The table was sorted by search volume and included all categories and trend statuses. The query’s related searches included the Australia–Samoa matchup. It is a measure of search interest across the selected period, while the NRL’s full-time report is the basis for the score, scorers and progression to the final. Google Trends Australia
Sources consulted 9 November 2026, Dhaka time. The match took place on 8 November 2026 in Sydney. The image is an original rugby illustration.