New Zealand reach Women’s Rugby League World Cup final as Waaka hat-trick sinks Samoa
Kalyn Ponga returns from a broken arm to inspire New Zealand to victory in a pulsating encounter with Tonga as they reach their first World Cup final since 2013.
Key points
- The Kiwi Ferns were rarely threatened in their 32-0 victory over an inexperienced Fetu Samoa in Newcastle, running away with it late with four tries in the final 12 minutes on Saturday afternoon.
- The dual international Waaka made the most of her opportunities, setting up New Zealand’s early first try, before securing three of her own.
- With her hat-trick, Waaka drew level with Australia winger Jaime Chapman atop the tournament’s try-scoring tally with nine.
Kiwi Ferns defeat Fetu Samoa 32-0 in semi-final Centre Waaka scores three of Kiwi Ferns’ seven tries A Stacey Waaka hat-trick has helped secure New Zealand their place in the Women’s Rugby League World Cup final.
New Zealand's women will hope it is fourth time lucky after defeating Samoa 32-0 to reach next Sunday's Rugby League World Cup final.
How this summary was made: extractive summary — built from the sources' own reporting. It is drawn only from the reporting of the sources listed below — read the originals for full detail. How we summarize →
Advertisement
Every article behind this summary — 3 articles from 3 outlets
BBC NewsNovember 7, 2026, 11:45 AM UTC →
The Guardian SportNovember 7, 2026, 8:36 AM UTC →
BBC SportNovember 7, 2026, 8:32 AM UTC →
Get stories like this in your inbox.
Subscribe — it's freeOne free email at 6am — your topics, deduplicated, five minutes. No account, no paywall.