2021 Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup
International tournament
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 2021 Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup was the fourth staging of the Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup, and was one of three major tournaments part of the 2021 Rugby League World Cup. The tournament was held in England from 3 November to 18 November 2022. It was originally planned to be held in November 2021 but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in England.[3] It was the first occasion on which the wheelchair rugby league competition took place concurrently with the men's and women's tournaments.[4] The competition was also the first time that participants in the wheelchair tournament received the same participation fees as players in the other competitions and the first time that prize money was awarded.[5]
The tournament was won by England who beat France 28–24 in the final on 18 November 2022.[6]
Teams
Qualification
England, as hosts, and France, as holders of the world cup were given automatic entry to the competition. Other nations were invited to submit entries and six were chosen against a range of criteria including current international and domestic infrastructure and plans for growth. The six nations selected to join England and France in the tournament are Australia, Norway, Scotland, Spain, United States and Wales.[4] Norway was replaced by Ireland due to the former being unable to prepare sufficiently for the tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic related issues.[7]
Draw
The teams were drawn into two groups of four. The two seeded teams were England (Group A) and France (Group B). The draw was made at Buckingham Palace on 16 January 2020. Teams from pool 1 were drawn by Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, pool 2 was drawn by Katherine Grainger and pool 3 by Jason Robinson.[8] Norway was replaced by Ireland after the draw.[7] The fixtures were announced on 21 July 2020.[9] All the games in the tournament were played as double headers.[10]
Squads
Each nation named 12-player squads to compete in the tournament.[11]
Venues
Stadium locations
The tournament was played at three venues, the Copper Box Arena in London was used for the Group A games, the English Institute of Sport, Sheffield hosted the Group B games as well as both semi-finals. These venues were confirmed when the revised schedule for the tournament was issued.[12] The final was scheduled for the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool but the postponement of the tournament from 2021 to 2022 resulted in a venue change with the final played in Manchester at Manchester Central.[12]
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Team base camp locations
Two locations were used by the national squads to stay and train before and during the World Cup tournament;[13]
Officiating
Warm-up matches
Group stage
Group A
All six matches in group A were played at Copper Box Arena in London.[10]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  England |
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 263 | 20 | +243 | 6 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 2 |  Australia |
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 136 | 88 | +48 | 4 | |
| 3 |  Spain |
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 99 | 188 | −89 | 2 | |
| 4 |  Ireland |
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 50 | 252 | −202 | 0 |
| Ireland |
32–55 | Spain |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Johnston (4) 31', 46', 50', 78' Roberts 3' McCarthy 65' Goals: Johnston (4) |
Report (RLWC) Report (ERL) |
Tries: Lacombe 7' Monedero 59' Martin (2) 5', 62' Gonzalez (2) 23', 69' Berty (3) 9', 26', 45' Goals: Gonzalez (8) Seron Drop goals: Gonzalez |
| Ireland | Position | Spain | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Toby Burton-Carter | 1 | Starter | 1 | Joel Lacombe (c) |
| Peter Johnston Jnr | 8 | Starter | 2 | Raphael Monedero |
| Rick Rodgers | 3 | Starter | 3 | Yannick Martin |
| Phil Roberts | 9 | Starter | 7 | Theo Gonzalez |
| Tom Martin | 2 | Starter | 5 | David Berty |
| Paddy Forbes | 5 | Interchange | 9 | Eric Perez |
| Oran Spain | 11 | Interchange | 4 | David Raymond |
| Kenneth Maloney | 6 | Interchange | 5 | Jonathan Palomo |
| Stephen Campbell | 4 | Interchange | 8 | Wilfrid Seron |
| James McCarthy | 10 | Interchange | 10 | Pascal Ambrosino |
| Damian McCabe | Coach | Jean-Marc Gonzalez | ||
| England |
38–8 | Australia |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Coyd (2) 19', 22' Brown (2) 25', 35' Collins (2) 32', 71' King 47' Goals: Hawkins Collins (4) |
Report (RLWC) Report (ERL) |
Tries: Karim 10' Goals: Karim McKenna |
| England | Position | Australia | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Tom Halliwell (c) | 7 | Starter | 1 | Peter Arbuckle |
| Robert Hawkins | 2 | Starter | 5 | Cory Cannane |
| Joe Coyd | 3 | Starter | 6 | Brad Grove (c) |
| Sebastien Bechara | 4 | Starter | 12 | Diab Karim |
| Lewis King | 5 | Starter | 5 | Zac Schumacher |
| Jack Brown | 6 | Interchange | 10 | Craig Cannane |
| Nathan Collins | 1 | Interchange | 4 | James Hill |
| Adam Rigby | 8 | Interchange | 2 | Liam Luff |
| Declan Roberts | 9 | Interchange | 11 | Bayley McKenna |
| Wayne Boardman | 10 | Interchange | 9 | Adam Tannock |
| Tom Coyd | Coach | Brett Clark | ||
| England | Position | Spain | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Tom Halliwell (c) | 7 | Starter | 1 | Joel Lacombe (c) |
| Lewis King | 5 | Starter | 2 | Raphael Monedero |
| Wayne Boardman | 10 | Starter | 3 | Yannick Martin |
| Jack Brown | 6 | Starter | 7 | Theo Gonzalez |
| James Simpson | 11 | Starter | 5 | David Berty |
| Nathan Collins | 1 | Interchange | 10 | Pascal Ambrosino |
| Joe Coyd | 3 | Interchange | 5 | Jonathan Palomo |
| Robert Hawkins | 2 | Interchange | 9 | Eric Perez |
| Adam Rigby | 8 | Interchange | 4 | David Raymond |
| Declan Roberts | 9 | Interchange | 8 | Wilfrid Seron |
| Tom Coyd | Coach | Jean-Marc Gonzalez | ||
| Australia | Position | Ireland | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Bayley McKenna | 11 | Starter | 1 | Toby Burton-Carter |
| Diab Karim | 12 | Starter | 8 | Peter Johnston |
| Brad Grove (c) | 6 | Starter | 2 | Tom Martin |
| Adam Tannock | 9 | Starter | 9 | Phil Roberts |
| Peter Arbuckle | 1 | Starter | 5 | James McCarthy |
| Craig Cannane | 10 | Interchange | 11 | Oran Spain |
| Shaun Harre | 3 | Interchange | 5 | Paddy Forbes |
| James Hill | 4 | Interchange | 7 | Scott Robertson |
| Zac Schumacher | 8 | Interchange | 6 | Kenneth Maloney |
| Liam Luff | 2 | Interchange | 3 | Rick Rodgers |
| Brett Clark | Coach | Damian McCabe | ||
| Australia | Position | Spain | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Bayley McKenna | 11 | Starter | 11 | David Berty |
| Diab Karim | 12 | Starter | 7 | Theo Gonzalez |
| Brad Grove (c) | 6 | Starter | 1 | Joel Lacombe |
| Adam Tannock | 9 | Starter | 3 | Yannick Martin |
| Peter Arbuckle | 1 | Starter | 5 | Raphael Monedero |
| Craig Cannane | 10 | Interchange | 4 | David Raymond |
| Cory Cannane | 5 | Interchange | 5 | Jonathan Palomo |
| James Hill | 4 | Interchange | 8 | Wilfrid Seron |
| Zac Schumacher | 8 | Interchange | 9 | Eric Perez |
| Liam Luff | 2 | Interchange | 10 | Pascal Ambrosino |
| Brett Clark | Coach | Jean-Marc Gonzalez | ||
| England | Position | Ireland | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Tom Halliwell (c) | 7 | Starter | 1 | Toby Burton-Carter |
| Joe Coyd | 3 | Starter | 8 | Peter Johnston |
| Seb Bachara | 4 | Starter | 2 | Tom Martin |
| James Simpson | 11 | Starter | 9 | Phil Roberts |
| Lewis King | 5 | Starter | 5 | James McCarthy |
| Wayne Boardman | 10 | Interchange | 11 | Oran Spain |
| Nathan Collins | 1 | Interchange | 5 | Paddy Forbes |
| Adam Rigby | 8 | Interchange | 7 | Scott Robertson |
| Declan Roberts | 9 | Interchange | 3 | Rick Rodgers |
| Jack Brown | 6 | Interchange | 4 | Stephen Campbell |
| Tom Coyd | Coach | Damian McCabe | ||
Group B
All six matches in group B were played at English Institute of Sport in Sheffield.[10]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  France |
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 350 | 27 | +323 | 6 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 2 |  Wales |
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 126 | 222 | −96 | 4 | |
| 3 |  United States |
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 100 | 207 | −107 | 2 | |
| 4 |  Scotland |
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 92 | 212 | −120 | 0 |
| France |
154–6 | Wales |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Alazard (6) 1', 3', 14', 21', 25', 51' Clausells (2) 5', 53' Guttadoro (2) 16', 74' Bourson (5) 10', 18', 23', 33', 45' Penella (3) 19', 37', 48' Abassi (5) 35', 42', 55', 69', 78' Vargas (2) 38', 71' Hivernat 40', 67' Goals: Alazard (13) Guttadoro (4) Penella (6) |
Report |
Tries: Jones 27' Goals: Halsey |
| France | Position | Wales | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Lionel Alazard | 1 | Starter | 1 | Stephen Halsey |
| Gilles Clausells (c) | 2 | Starter | 2 | Scott Trigg-Turner |
| Mostefa Abassi | 3 | Starter | 3 | Gary Preece |
| Jeremy Bourson | 4 | Starter | 5 | Jodie Boyd-Ward |
| Julien Penella | 6 | Starter | 5 | Stuart Williams (c) |
| Florian Guttadoro | 10 | Interchange | 8 | Lucie Roberts |
| Guillaume Mautz | 12 | Interchange | 9 | Martin Lane |
| Arno Vargas | 7 | Interchange | 11 | Harry Jones |
| Jonathan Hivernat | 11 | Interchange | 6 | Andrew Higgins |
Interchange | 10 | Mark Williams | ||
| Sylvain Crismanovich | Coach | Stephen Jones | ||
| Scotland |
41–62 | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Young (4) 6', 13', 17', 67' Grant (2) 22', 51' Blackmore 25' Willans 43' Goals: Willans (4) |
Report (RLWC) Report (ERL) |
Tries: Johnson (4) 1', 3', 28', 46' Wooloff (2) 20', 31' Lind (2) 34', 40' Townsend (4) 48', 56', 66', 70' Goals: Johnstone (5) Stewart Townsend |
| Scotland | Position | USA | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Connor Blackmore | 9 | Starter | 5 | Mackenzie Johnson |
| Dan Grant | 6 | Starter | 10 | William Johnstone |
| Mike Mellon | 7 | Starter | 7 | Micah Stewart |
| John Willans | 11 | Starter | 1 | Jeffrey Townsend (c) |
| Callum Young | 1 | Starter | 5 | Matthew Wooloff |
| Gregor Anderson | 4 | Interchange | 2 | Jesse Lind |
| Paul Hartley | 8 | Interchange | 11 | Andy Kingsley |
| Peter Lauder | 12 | Interchange | 3 | Jensen Blaine |
| Greame Stewart | 5 | Interchange | 4 | Freddie Smith |
| Caydn Thomson | 2 | Interchange | 8 | Jabrier Lee |
| Mark Roughsedge | Coach | Geoff Mason | ||
| France | Position | Scotland | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Nicolas Clausells | 8 | Starter | 1 | Callum Young |
| Florian Gattadoro | 10 | Starter | 7 | Michael Mellon |
| Guillaume Mautz (c) | 12 | Starter | 6 | Dan Grant |
| Arno Vargas | 7 | Starter | 11 | John Willans |
| Yann Verdi | 9 | Starter | 5 | Connor Blackmore |
| Mostefa Abassi | 3 | Interchange | 3 | Dave Anderson |
| Jeremy Bourson | 4 | Interchange | 4 | Gregor Anderson |
| Gilles Clausells | 2 | Interchange | 10 | David Birtles |
| Thomas Duhalde | 5 | Interchange | 12 | Pete Lauder |
| Julien Penella | 6 | Interchange | 2 | Cadyn Thomson |
| Sylvain Crismanovich | Coach | Mark Roughsedge | ||
| Wales |
50–32 | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Preece (2) 13', 59' S. Williams (3) 25', 29', 39' Halsey 31' Jones 46' Higgins 61' Trigg-Turner 67' Goals: Halsey (5/6) Higgins (2/3) |
Report |
Tries: Townsend (4) 8', 19', 54', 72' Johnson 11' Wooloff 36' Goals: Johnstone (3/4) Stewart (1/2) |
| Wales | Position | USA | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Stephen Halsey | 1 | Starter | 5 | Mackenzie Johnson |
| Gary Preece | 3 | Starter | 1 | Jeffrey Townsend (c) |
| Jodie Boyd-Ward | 5 | Starter | 7 | Micah Stewart |
| Stuart Williams | 2 | Starter | 10 | William Johnstone |
| Martin Lane | 9 | Starter | 5 | Matthew Wooloff |
| Alan Caron | 12 | Interchange | 12 | Tony Leboutillier |
| Harry Jones | 11 | Interchange | 2 | Jesse Lind |
| Andrew Higgins | 6 | Interchange | 11 | Andy Kingsley |
| Mark Williams | 10 | Interchange | 9 | Gabi Cha |
| Scott Trigg-Turner | 2 | Interchange | 3 | Jensen Blaine |
| Stephen Jones | Coach | Geoff Mason | ||
| France |
116–6 | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Bourson (5) 1', 7', 9', 17', 38' Hivernat (3) 11', 20', 23' Abassi (5) 13', 18', 63', 75', 78' Duhalde (2) 34', 60' G Clausells (3) 41', 45', 51' Mautz 55' N Clausells 58' Alazard 65' Goals: Alazard (9/11) G Clausells (3/4) Duhalde (4/6) |
Report |
Tries: Johnson 72' Goals: Stewart (1/1) |
| France | Position | USA | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Lionel Alazard | 1 | Starter | 1 | Jeffrey Townsend |
| Jonathan Hivernat | 11 | Starter | 5 | Mackenzie Johnson |
| Mostefa Abassi | 3 | Starter | 6 | Matthew Wooloff |
| Jeremy Bourson | 4 | Starter | 7 | Micah Stewart |
| Nicolas Clausells | 8 | Starter | 5 | William Johnstone |
| Julien Penella | 6 | Interchange | 3 | Jensen Blaine |
| Arno Vargas | 7 | Interchange | 9 | Gabi Cha |
| Thomas Duhalde | 5 | Interchange | 11 | Andy Kingsley |
| Gilles Clausells | 2 | Interchange | 8 | Jabrier Lee |
| Guillaume Mautz | 12 | Interchange | 2 | Jesse Lind |
| Sylvain Crismanovich | Coach | Geoff Mason | ||
| Wales | Position | Scotland | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Scott Trigg-Turner | 2 | Starter | 9 | Connor Blackmore |
| Gary Preece | 3 | Starter | 6 | Dan Grant |
| Jodie Boyd-Ward | 5 | Starter | 7 | Michael Mellon |
| Andrew Higgins | 6 | Starter | 11 | John Willans |
| Stuart Williams | 7 | Starter | 5 | Callum Young |
| Martin Lane | 9 | Interchange | 3 | Dave Anderson |
| Harry Jones | 11 | Interchange | 10 | David Birtles |
| Lucie Roberts | 8 | Interchange | 8 | Paul Hartley |
| Mark Williams | 10 | Interchange | 12 | Pete Lauder |
| Alan Caron | 12 | Interchange | 2 | Cadyn Thomson |
| Stephen Jones | Coach | Mark Roughsedge | ||
Knockout stage
| Semi-finals | Final | |||||
| 13 November – Sheffield | ||||||
| France
| 84 | |||||
| 18 November – Manchester | ||||||
| Australia
| 40 | |||||
| France
| 24 | |||||
| 13 November – Sheffield | ||||||
| England
| 28 | |||||
| England
| 125 | |||||
| Wales
| 22 | |||||
Semi-finals
Both semi-finals were played at English Institute of Sport in Sheffield.[10]
| France |
84–40 | Australia |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Guttadoro (3) 1', 5', 60' Bourson (5) 6', 8', 17', 21', 26' N Clausells (2) 28', 78' Abassi (4) 31', 35', 39', 52' Duhalde 75' Goals: Alazard (7/8) G Clausells (5/7) |
Report |
Tries: Grove (2) 3', 69' Schumacher 13', 58' Karim 41' Luff 62' Craig Cannane 73' Goals: McKenna (4/5) Karim (2/2) |
| France | Position | Australia | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Lionel Alazard | 1 | Starter | 1 | Peter Arbuckle |
| Mostefa Abassi | 3 | Starter | 6 | Brad Grove (c) |
| Jeremy Bourson | 4 | Starter | 12 | Diab Karim |
| Florian Guttadoro | 10 | Starter | 8 | Zac Schumacher |
| Nicolas Clausells | 8 | Starter | 5 | Bayley McKenna |
| Gilles Clausells (c) | 2 | Interchange | 5 | Cory Cannane |
| Julien Penella | 6 | Interchange | 10 | Craig Cannane |
| Guillaume Mautz | 12 | Interchange | 4 | James Hill |
| Arno Vargas | 7 | Interchange | 2 | Liam Luff |
| Thomas Duhalde | 5 | Interchange | 3 | Shaun Harre |
| Sylvain Crismanovich | Coach | Brett Clark | ||
| England |
125–22 | Wales |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Bechara (4) 2', 4', 7', 32' Coyd (4) 11', 20', 23', 43' Brown (8) 26', 30', 34', 36', 41', 50', 57', 59' Hawkins (2) 28', 77' King 46' Collins 53' Roberts 68' Simpson 75' Goals: Hawkins (7/8) Collins (10/11) Roberts (1/3) Drop goals: Roberts |
Report |
Tries: Trigg-Turner 17' Preece 49' S. Williams 55' Caron 65' Goals: Preece (1/2) Higgins (2/2) |
| England | Position | Wales | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Rob Hawkins | 2 | Starter | 6 | Andrew Higgins |
| Joe Coyd | 3 | Starter | 9 | Martin Lane |
| Seb Bechara | 4 | Starter | 3 | Gary Preece  75' to 80' |
| Lewis King | 5 | Starter | 2 | Scott Trigg-Turner |
| Tom Halliwell (c) | 7 | Starter | 5 | Stuart Williams (c) |
| Nathan Collins | 1 | Interchange | 11 | Harry Jones |
| Jack Brown | 6 | Interchange | 8 | Lucie Roberts |
| Declan Roberts | 9 | Interchange | 12 | Alan Caron |
| Wayne Boardman | 10 | Interchange | 6 | Jodie Boyd-Ward |
| James Simpson | 11 | Interchange | 1 | Stephen Halsey |
| Tom Coyd | Coach | Stephen Jones | ||
Final
The final was played at Manchester Central Convention Complex in Manchester, the day before the men's and women's finals.[10]
Manchester Central, Manchester Attendance: 4,526 Referees: Ollie Cruickshank (Scotland), Laurent Abrial (France) Touch judges: David Butler (England), David Roig (France) Player of the Match: Tom Halliwell (England) |
| France | Position | England | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Number | Number | Name | |
| Mostefa Abassi | 3 | Starter | 7 | Tom Halliwell (c) |
| Lionel Alazard | 1 | Starter | 2 | Rob Hawkins |
| Jérémy Bourson | 4 | Starter | 3 | Joe Coyd |
| Julien Pennella | 6 | Starter | 4 | Seb Bechara |
| Nicolas Clausells | 8 | Starter | 5 | Lewis King |
| Florian Guttadoro | 10 | Interchange | 1 | Nathan Collins |
| Jonathan Hivernat | 11 | Interchange | 6 | Jack Brown |
| Guillaume Mautz | 12 | Interchange | 9 | Declan Roberts |
| Gilles Clausells (c) | 2 | Interchange | 10 | Wayne Boardman |
| Arno Vargas | 7 | Interchange | 11 | James Simpson |
| Sylvain Crismanovich | Coach | Tom Coyd | ||
Team of the Tournament
Between the Semi-finals and final the RLWC2021 organisers announced the Wheelchair Team of the Tournament:[16]
- Lionel Alazard – France
- Seb Bechara – England
- Jérémy Bourson – France
- Jack Brown – England
- Nicolas Clausells – France
- Joe Coyd – England
- Theo Gonzalez – Spain
- McKenzie Johnson – United States
- Bayley McKenna – Australia
- Stuart Williams – Wales
See also
Notes
- Norway was replaced by Ireland in March 2022.
