Papua New Guinea national rugby league team

Infobox rugby league nation
Name = Papua New Guinea
Badge = Papua New Guinea RL.jpg
Badge_size = 100px
Nickname = The Kumuls
Association = Papua New Guinea Rugby Football League
Region = Oceania
Coach = flagicon|Papua New Guinea Adrian Lam
Captain = flagicon|Papua New Guinea Stanley Gene
Most caps =
Top scorer =
Home Stadium = Lloyd Robson Oval
RLIF Rank = 7th
pattern_la1=|pattern_b1=PNGRL|pattern_ra1=
leftarm1=FFFF00|body1=FFFF00|rightarm1=FFFF00|shorts1=FF0000|socks1=FFFF00
First game = flagicon|England England 40 - 12 Papua New Guinea flagicon|Papua New Guinea (Port Moresby, PNG; 6 July 1975)
Largest win = flagicon|Cook Islands Cook Islands 6 - 86 Papua New Guinea flagicon|Papua New Guinea (Port Moresby, PNG; November 1998
Largest loss = flagicon|Australia Australia 82 - 0 Papua New Guinea flagicon|Papua New Guinea (Dairy Farmers Stadium, Townsville; 7 October 2000)
World cup apps = 4
World cup first = 1988
World cup best = Quarter-finals, 2000

Rugby league in Papua New Guinea is regarded as the country’s national sport. The national side are known as the Kumuls ("bird of paradise" in Tok Pisin). Many Papua New Guinean players have left the country in order to pursue professional rugby league careers in Great Britain and Australia.

A team representing Papua New Guinea (generally made up of a mixture of locally based players and International Players) plays an Australian Prime Minister's XIII in an annual match. The Australian side consists mostly of developing players from the premier competition the National Rugby League (NRL).

The current coach of the Kumuls is former Queensland and Papua New Guinea half back Adrian Lam.

History

Rugby league was first played in Papua New Guinea in the late forties; it was introduced to the nation by Australian soldiers stationed there during and after the Second World War. Papua New Guinea were admitted to the game’s International Federation in 1974. On 6th July 1975, at Lloyd Robnson Oval, in Port Moresby the Kumuls played their first ever international. They were beaten 40-12 by England. The English team were en route to Australia and New Zealand to fulfil away fixtures during the 1975 World Cup.

They first entered the Rugby League World Cup for the 1985-89 competition, though it was not until 1995 that they were able to win away from home. In 1987 The Kumuls stage their first full test playing tour of Britain, after playing BARLA opposition in 1979. They lost the test 42-0 at Central Park, Wigan.

On Tuesday 20 October 1987, that Cumbria met Papua New Guinea before a crowd of 3,750 at the Recreation Ground, Whitehaven. Cumbria won 22-4. Four days later they played a World Cup rated Test against Great Britain.

Papua New Guinea played an exhibition match against Australia in 1988. In 1991 Papua New Guinea played host to a touring Great Britain, the series ended in a 1-1 draw.

On Sunday 27 October 1991, Papua New Guinea met Wales at Vetch Field, Swansea. Roared on by a fervent crowd of 11,422; Wales won by a record 68-0 margin, scoring thirteen tries. Papua New Guinea never recovered and lost all five matches in Britain, conceding 232 points in the process, and won only one of their four matches in France.

Papua New Guinea wound up their 1991 tour of Europe with a World Cup rated Test match against France, which was played on Sunday 24 November at the Stade Albert Domec, Carcassonne. Despite Papua New Guinea lesding 8-4 at half-time; France defeated their visitors 28-14.

In 2005 Papua New Guinea beat the Australian Prime Minister's XIII 24-16 in Darwin. This was the first win over "any" Australian based national side. In 2007 Papua New Guinea drew with Australia PM XIII 24-24.

They have been granted automatic qualification to the 2008 World Cup.

2008 World Cup Squad

"As of October 20, 2007":

COACH Adrian Lam

Famous players

*Marcus Bai
*Stanley Gene
*Adrian Lam
*Arnold Kerwanty
*David Westley
*John Wilshere

Famous Players now deceased

*Tuiyo Evei
*David Buko
*Michael Angra

KUMULS Results

*France Def Papua New Guinea 22-16 Begles, France
*2007: Papua New Guinea def France A 20-6 Villenuve, France
*2007: France def Papua New Guinea 38 - 26 (France)
*2007: Papua New Guinea def France A 38-12 Avignon, France
*2007: Wales def Papua New Guinea 50-10 Bridgend , Wales
*2007: Papua New Guinea Drew Australia PM XIII 24-24
*2006: Australia PM XIII def. Papua New Guniea 28-8 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*2005: Australia def. Papua New Guinea 70-22 Dairy Farmers Stadium, Townsville
*2004: Australia def. Papua New Guinea 32-20 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*2003: Papua New Guinea def. Junior Kangaroos 24-22 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*2003: Australia PM XIII def. Papua New Guinea 32-0 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*2002: Junior Kangaroos def. PNG President XIII 28-16 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*2001: New Zealand def. Papua New Guinea 38-8 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*2001: New Zealand A def. Papua New Guinea President's XIII 36-6 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*2001: Australia PM XIII def. Papua New Guinea 32-6 Danny Leahy Oval (Goroka)
*2000: Australia def. Papua New Guinea 82-0 Dairy Dairmers Stadium (Townsville)
*2000: Papua New Guinea def. Tonga 22-18 Leeds, England
*2000: Wales def. Papua New Guinea 22-8 Headingley Stadium England
*2000: Papua New Guinea def. South Africa 16-0 Leeds, England
*2000: Papua New Guinea def. Tonga 30-22 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1999: Australia def. Papua New Guinea 36-6 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1998: Papua New Guinea President's XIII def. Fiji 16-14 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1998: Australia def. Papua New Guinea 56-0 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1998: Papua New Guinea def. Fiji 34-12 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1998: Papua New Guinea def. Cook Islands 86-6 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1998: Australia def. Papua New Guinea 56-0 Sydney Cricket Ground
*1998: Papua New Guinea def. Tonga 44-28 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1998: Papua New Guinea def. Tonga 54-12 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1997: Papua New Guinea Prime Minister's XIII def. NZ Moari’s 28-20 Sir Hubert Murray Stadium (Port Moresby)
*1996: Papua New Guinea def. Tonga 56-16 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1996: Kiwis def. Papua New Guinea 62-8 International Stadium, Rotorua
*1995: Papua New Guinea def. France 18-16 Danny Leahy Oval (Goroka)
*1995: Australia def. Papua New Guinea 77-8 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1995: BARLA def. Papua New Guinea 28-18 Sir Hubert Murray Stadium (Port Moresby)
*1995: Papua New Guinea drew Tonga 28-28 St James Park England
*1993: Papua New Guinea def. Fiji 35-24 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1992: Papua New Guinea def. France 38-8 Danny Leahy Oval (Goroka)
*1992: France def. Papua New Guinea 28-26 Sir Hubert Murray Stadium (Port Moresby)
*1992: Great Britain def. Papua New Guinea 20-14 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1991: Wales def. Papua New Guinea 68-24 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1991: Great Britain def. Papua New Guinea 56-4 Wigan, England
*1990: Great Britain def. Papua New Guinea 40-38 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1990: Papua New Guinea def. Great Britain 20-18 Danny Leahy Oval (Goroka)
*1987: Papua New Guinea drew France 20-20 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1988: Great Britain def. Papua New Guinea 42-22 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1987: Great Britain def. Papua New Guinea 42-0 Wigan, England
*1984: Great Britain def. Papua New Guinea 38-20 Pope John Paul II Oval (Mt Hagen)
*1981: Papua New Guinea def. France 28-8 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1980: Australia def. Papua New Guinea 20-18 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)
*1979: BARLA def. Papua New Guinea 42-0 Central Park, Wigan
*1977:Great Britain def. Papua New Guinea 44-4 Headingley Stadium, England
*1976: Australia def. Papua New Guinea 49-18 Sydney Cricket Ground
*1975:Great Britain def. Papua New Guinea 40-12 Lloyd Robson (Port Moresby)

BOLD Matches are wins

Courtesy of www.pngnrl.com.pg and PNGRFL Annual General Review Other Papua New Guinean Teams

* PNG Prime Minister XIII - Development to comprising of local based players and only 3 international players, used to play both national and development sides.
* PNG President XIII - PNGRFL 'select' usually playing another development side like Junior Kangaroos or New Zealand A. Rarely used to play national sides.
* PNG Residents- Papua New Guinea development side made up of solely local players. Regularly playing matches with the Junior Kangaroos, New Zealand Moaris and even national sides.
* Papua New Guinea KUNDUS - Papua New Guinea junior U18 schoolboys side.- Recently played QLD U18 as a curtain raiser to Origin I. The QLD U/18 def. Kundus 20-16. The team is captained by Wayne Bond

Participating Tournament

* Rugby League World Cup
* Pacific Nations Cup
* Papua New Guinea 50th Independence Challenge
* Somare Cup

See also

* Rugby league in Papua New Guinea
* Emerging Nations Tournament
* World Cup

Website

http://www.pngrfl.org/* [http://www.rugbyleague.org/index.php?showforum=204 Papua New Guinea Rugby League Fans Forums - RugbyLeague.org]
* [http://www.rlwc.com/ 2008 Rugby League World Cup Site]