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Rugby League World Cup profiles
PARIS (Reuters) -- Profiles of the 16 teams to contest the Rugby League World Cup tournament from October 28 to November 25: GROUP ONE England: Coach John Kear and skipper Andy Farrell lead a talented young squad that has had an impressive build-up to the competition, including a 108-0 victory over the United States. Kear has chosen the best 24 players available, naming several youngsters rather than concentrating on experience, and hopes his squad can match Australia's battle-hardened team for enthusiasm. Australia: Undoubtedly the strongest, most professional team in the tournament, Chris Anderson's Australians will be at unbackable odds to maintain a dominance of the sport that stretches back almost three decades. With four players from NRL champions the Brisbane Broncos in their squad, the Kangaroos look almost impossible to beat and thrashed Papua New Guinea 82-0 in a warm-up international, running in 14 tries in the process. Russia: There is a small but thriving domestic league in Russia, but a lack of international competition will make it hard for them to compete on the World Cup stage. It struggled on a recent tour of France. Odessa-born prop forward Ian Rubin, who plays for the Sydney City Roosters, is the team's star name alongside loose forward Andre Olari, a member of the Toulouse side that won the French championship earlier this year. Fiji: Political upheavals at home looked like ruling Fiji out of the tournament but it will field an experienced squad, despite a lack of warm-up matches. Veteran Australian coach Don Furner is in charge of a team that will boast the likes of experienced Super League campaigner Waisale Sovatabua and rising Brisbane Broncos star Lote Tuqiri. GROUP TWO Wales: Any side that boasts players of the caliber of Iestyn Harris and Keiron Cunningham has to be taken seriously, but withdrawals have left the Welsh lacking in depth. Coach Clive Griffiths guides a squad that will be hoping to at least match its achievement in making the semifinals five years ago. The Welsh proved its quality with a 40-8 warm-up win over South Africa in Pretoria. New Zealand: Runners-up in 1988, the New Zealanders are one of the only teams capable of mounting a challenge to the Australians, despite some poor recent performances against their local rivals. Led by brothers Robbie and Henry Paul, who are both used to the British conditions, the Kiwis -- under Wigan coach Frank Endacott -- are confident of making it all the way to the final. Lebanon: There is no domestic competition in Lebanon and the squad is made up almost entirely of Australian-based players of Lebanese extraction. The Cedars qualified by beating the United States and will be led by Hazem El Masri, Darren Maroon and Paul Khoury, all of whom are experienced first-grade players in Sydney. A 42-24 loss to South Sydney in a warm-up game nonetheless underlined their limitations. Cook Islands: The islanders will be led by St Helens star Kevin Iro and boast plenty of players with overseas experience, including vice-captain Jason Temu, who plays in Australia for the Newcastle Knights. Anthony Samuels of Workington, Leroy Joe of Hull KR and Jayson Pekepo of Lancashire Lynx are all used to British conditions but the Cooks seem to lack strength in depth. GROUP THREE France: World Cup runners-up in 1954 and 1968, France has struggled at international level over the past two decades and coach Gilles Dumas faces a difficult task getting his side into the last eight. The French squad includes players with knowledge of overseas competition, like Jerome Guisset and Gael Tallec, while the experienced Freddie Banquet is a reliable goalkicker. Tonga: Always a physical side, Tonga will be serious threats to its group rivals despite having had little chance to practice as a squad. The Tongans drew with New Zealand in 1995 and boast several players with top-level experience, including Tevita Vaikona and Martin Masella. Papua New Guinea: Coach Bob Bennett has cast his net far and wide and come up with a strong squad that will be led by Australian-based stars Adrian Lam and Marcus Bai. The absence of powerful prop David Westley is a blow, however, and the Kumuls' morale cannot have been helped by an 82-0 mauling by Australia in a warm-up match in Townsville. South Africa: Rhinos coach Paul Matete has reinforced his squad with five provincial rugby union players -- Jacco Booysens, Conrad Breytenbach, Henry Kemp, Hannes Venter and Jacob Ndlovu -- the first four of whom have previous league experience. South Africa, who include English-based Jamie Bloem and Mark Johnson, warmed up for the tournament with an international against Wales, but probably lacks the experience at this level to make the last eight. GROUP FOUR Scotland: Super League coach Shaun McRae has been preparing a Scottish side who will be making their World Cup debut after playing in the Emerging Nations event five years ago. Three Australians with Scottish heritage -- Scott Logan, Daniel Heckenberg and Geoff Bell -- add some weight to a side that will probably need to beat Ireland in Dublin to have a chance of progressing. Ireland: Winger Brian Carney is the only player who learned his rugby league in Ireland but the squad is strong with plenty of experience. St Helens pair Chris Joynt and Tommy Martyn, Wigan forward Terry O'Connor and Leeds-based Australian David Barnhill give the Irish a solid platform on which to build. Samoa: The Samoans finished second in their group in 1995 and are always formidable competitors. Their squad includes several players with professional experience in England and Australia. Willie Poching captains a team that has been badly hit by the loss of Apollo Perelini and Fereti Tuilagi to rugby union, but still has a realistic chance of making the last eight. New Zealand Maori: Left with players who missed out on places in the New Zealand sqaud, Maori coach Cameroon Bell is nonetheless confident his team will give a good account of themselves. Veteran forward Tawera Nikau will skipper a side that only lost 22-12 to Britain last year, and also includes the talented Tyran Smith.
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
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