Papua New Guinea Defeats Wales to set up England World Cup Quarter-Final – There is no doubt that Papua New Guinea has given England some food for thought. No matter how the Kumuls performed here on a rainy night in Doncaster, England was certain to open Saturday’s quarterfinal as favorites due to the nature of the hosts’ performances thus far in the Rugby League World Cup.
Any England supporter present, though, will have been impressed by Stanley Tepend’s team. The topic of conversation prior to the game was if Wales might pull off an incredible shock and defeat Papua New Guinea by 22 points or more to claim the eighth and last quarterfinal spot. After barely 25 minutes, the possibility was categorically disregarded.
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At that point, Papua New Guinea enjoyed a formidable 18-0 lead. Kyle Laybutt scored a nice solo try to start things off, and then Nixon Putt and Jimmy Ngutlik added further scores. That seemed like a lead that the Welsh would be unable to overcome under the dreadful conditions, even alone without taking into account the necessary amount of points they needed to earn to advance from Group D.
An almost completely part-time Welsh player has displayed great spirit in a challenging group. That is encouraging for the future, but any dim aspirations of making it to the final eight were dashed well before the break. Wales coach John Kear remarked, “This is a good group, they’ve improved over the past month so we’ll get ready to rock and roll for the next World Cup in 2025.”
You have to wonder what Shaun Wane and his England players would have thought of Papua New Guinea’s professional performance. They have some impressive players, notably NRL superstar Alex Johnston, and will cause issues for the hosts at the weekend. After Daniel Russell’s try gave the Kumuls a 24-0 halftime lead, they may have been able to ease off the pressure in the second half.
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Nonetheless, their defensive commitment to hold Wales scoreless was another noteworthy aspect of their performance. Shortly after the resumption of play, Putt scored his second goal, and then Ngutlik did the same in the last minutes, with the outcome already set.