Netherlands national rugby league team
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The Netherlands national rugby league team is the national rugby league team of The Netherlands. It was formed in January 2003. The national team played its first international match in 2003 against Scotland A, where they lost 22–18.
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| Team information | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governing body | Netherlandse Rugby League Bond | |||||
| Region | Europe | |||||
| Head coach |  Dave Hunter | |||||
| Captain |  Paul Kuijpers | |||||
| IRL ranking | 9th | |||||
| Uniforms | ||||||
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| Team results | ||||||
| First international | ||||||
 Scotland A 22–18 Netherlands (Sassenheim, Netherlands; 2003) | ||||||
| Biggest win | ||||||
 Serbia 6–52 Netherlands (Niš, Serbia; 2024) | ||||||
| Biggest defeat | ||||||
Netherlands 16–70 Germany  (Delft, Netherlands; 2014) | ||||||
| World Cup | ||||||
| Appearances | 0 | |||||
History
Rugby league foundation year was in 2003 where it has regularly being played since 2003 under the NNRLB and has seen small domestic growth along the way. The first rugby league club match was played between Te Werve Bustards (Den Haag) and the touring side Essex Eels. After rugby league ceased in 2008 a new board the Nederlandse Rugby League Bond (NRLB) was entrusted to administer and grow the game in the Netherlands in 2009.
The Dutch participated in 1989 Student Rugby League World Cup in England, against Australia, England, France, New Zealand, Wales, Ireland and Scotland. The first rugby league match in Netherlands was a preparation match for the tournament against the French Army side at the Royal Military Academy in Breda. While in the late 1980s they faced Toulouse to earn a 20 all draw. Having played their first international against Scotland A in Sassenheim only narrowly losing 18 to 22, introducing the Rotterdam Cup in 2004 with a 24–14 loss to Scotland Students and debut 24 to 14 win against Serbia.
2005 saw the Netherlands build on the previous season with the national team playing four internationals. The Netherlands were defeated by Georgia 34 – 14 in April. They then went on to win their other three internationals against Serbia, Scotland and Germany
Serbia made the task of getting past the first round of European qualifiers all the more harder. The Netherlands suffered heavy defeats to Russia 40 – 14 and Georgia 57 – 16. As a consolation the Netherlands managed to defeat the other European newcomers Serbia 38 – 26. Netherlands finished 3rd in the Pool and failed to qualify for the 2008 Rugby League World Cup. The Netherlands capped off 2006 with a win against the Czech Republic 34 – 28.
Rotterdam hosted the Nederlandse International Rugby League Nines Festival for visiting European teams between 2004 and 2007.
At present the NRLB are a nonprofit sports association for rugby league with their main goal to get the game exposure and attract more people to the sport. The NRLB have a short summer season (4 rounds + Finals) with the Netherlands 3V Sports Grand Prix 9's competition for clubs Capelle Spartans, Delft Rugby League, Nootdorp Musketiers and Te Werve Bustards, while they host teams for 13-aside matches including the annual clash with Oxford University Old Boys (in the Kermis Challenge) and varying teams from the UK. Netherlands as national and developmental squads have participated in away tours in tournaments such as the Heidelberg 9's in Germany and UK based events.
In recent seasons the Dutch have also participated in a Cross Border Challenge with select German clubs, National Selection matches (Select GPN vs Residents) and promotional games (combined squad vs Capelle Spartans). At youth level this year, the Dutch staged a BARLA U17 tour against a Netherlands Tasman U17 select in July at Nootdorp and Delft.
Like most developing rugby league nations there are restrictions that the Dutch board face within early stages of development like funding, sponsorship, support and promotion.
The Dutch ten-year plan is to have a fully self-supportive domestic competition running for at least 6 months of the year and to have multiple self-standing Rugby League clubs all over the country. The national squad back on the international stage competing with the best. The Nederlandse Rugby League Bond gained Observer membership status from the Rugby League European Federation in February 2012.
In May 2013, Netherlands made 28th on the RLIF World Rankings after their match against Germany in a losing effort.
Matches
The Netherlands have played their first match in 2003 against Scotland A, losing 22 to 18. They then competed in the 2004 Rotterdam Cup, a tournament that saw Scotland Students, Scotland Students "A", Netherlands, Netherlands "A", Serbia and Serbia "A" playing six full games over five days The Dutch lost both "A" team games and also the senior game to the Scottish Students but opened their winning account by beating the senior side from Serbia.
The Netherlands failed to progress past the preliminary stages of qualifying for the 2008 Rugby League World Cup, after being defeated by Georgia and Russia in 2006. They did however manage a victory against Serbia.
Following these matches, the national team went on hiatus following a dispute between the Netherlands Federation and the RLEF. In 2009, a new board " Nederlandse Rugby League Bond (NRLB) " was appointed to run the Dutch game and re-establish relations with the RLEF. The Netherlands were re-admitted to the RLEF in 2010, and resumed international competition in 2013 with a friendly match against Germany.
Jerseys
Primary
        Primary 2004–2009 |
Primary 2009–present |
Alternative
|
Alternative 2004–2009 |
Alternative 2009–present |
Coaching Roster
Current staff
| Coaches Name | Role | Date Appointed | P | W | L | D | Win% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Hunter | Head coach | March 2022 | 12 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 83.3 |
| Hannes Bavius | Assistant coach | June 2022 | |||||
| Paul Dirkzwager | Assistant coach | June 2023 | |||||
| Ben Dommershuijsen | Assistant coach | June 2023 | |||||
| Stephanie van Diepen | Physio | June 2017 | |||||
 Matthew Rigby | Team Manager | August 2019 |
Former Staff
| Coaches Name | Role | Date Appointed | Date Departed | P | W | L | D | Win% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joe Collins | Assistant coach | June 2016 | August 2017 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.00 |
 Matthew Rigby | Assistant coach | June 2016 | August 2019 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 71.43 |
| Timo Meinders | Team Manager | May 2017 | August 2018 |
Current squad
Netherlands are able to call on eligible NRL players such as Ryan Papenhuyzen, Jaylan De Groot, Jett Liu, Haizyn Mellars, Ben Te Kura and Aublix Tawha
Squad selected for the Euro B Round 1 against Malta on 10 October 2025.[1]
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Pts | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amsterdam Cobras | |||||
| Den Haag Knights | |||||
| Zwolle Wolves | |||||
| Den Haag Knights | |||||
| Amsterdam Cobras | |||||
| Brabant Bears | |||||
| Zwolle Wolves | |||||
| Dimitri Haringa | Zwolle Wolves | ||||
| Mavi Gevers | Brabant Bears | ||||
| Lachlan van der Vliet | Mareeba Gladiators | ||||
| Kevin Ebing | Brabant Bears | ||||
| Hidde van den Berg | Amsterdam Cobras | ||||
| Damon Koolstra | Souths Sharks Mackay | ||||
| Tom Turnock | Rotterdam Pitbulls | ||||
| Paul Kuijpers | Zwolle Wolves | ||||
| Tom Van Boken | Cromer KingFishers | ||||
| Rik Baats | Brabant Bears | ||||
| Joran Schoenmaker | Palau Broncos | ||||
Competitive Record
Below is a table of the representative rugby league matches played by the Netherlands national rugby league team at test level up until 8 October 2023.
Overall
| Opponents | Matches | Won | Draw | Lost | Points For | Points Against | Pts Difference | Win% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Albania | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 58 | 18 | +40 | 100% |
 Belgium | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 46 | 148 | -102 | 0% |
 Czech Republic | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 70 | 38 | +32 | 100% |
 European Combined Nations | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 52 | 28 | +24 | 100% |
 Georgia | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 30 | 91 | -61 | 0% |
| Germany | 10 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 272 | 273 | -1 | 50% |
 Norway | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 58 | 22 | +36 | 100% |
 Russia | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 40 | -26 | 0% |
| Scotland A | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 18 | 22 | -4 | 0% |
| Scotland | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 37 | 34 | +3 | 50% |
| Serbia | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 86 | 50 | +36 | 100% |
 Spain | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 30 | +6 | 100% |
 Sweden | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 52 | 28 | +24 | 100% |
 Turkey | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 40 | 18 | +22 | 100% |
| Total | 32 | 18 | 0 | 14 | 869 | 840 | +29 | 53.33% |
European Championship
| European Championship Record | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | League | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L |
| 2021 | D | Final | 1st | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | B | Cancelled | Qualified | ||||
Results
| Date | Home | Score | Away | Competition | Location | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 July 2003 | Netherlands | 18–22 | Scotland A | Friendly | Sassenheim, Netherlands | |
| 23 April 2004 | Netherlands | 24–14 | Serbia | Friendly | Rotterdam, Netherlands | |
| 7 May 2004 | Netherlands | 14–24 | Scotland | Friendly | Rotterdam, Netherlands | |
| 29 April 2005 | Georgia | 34–14 | Netherlands | 2005 European Championship Qualifiers | Hook of Holland, Netherlands | |
| 18 June 2005 | Netherlands | 26–10 | Serbia | Čair Stadium | ||
| 29 June 2005 | Netherlands | 10–17 | Scotland | Friendly | Capelle aan den IJssel, Netherlands | |
| 28 April 2006 | Netherlands | 14–40 | Russia | 2008 World Cup European Qualifiers | Hook of Holland, Netherlands | |
| 26 May 2006 | Georgia | 57–16 | Netherlands | Mikheil Meskhi Stadium | ||
| 17 June 2006 | Netherlands | 38–26 | Serbia | Rotterdam, Netherlands | ||
| 5 August 2006 | Netherlands | 34–28 | Czech Republic | Friendly | Rotterdam, Netherlands | |
| 4 May 2013 | Germany | 28–22 | Netherlands | 2013 Western Euro Tri-Nations | Heidelberg, Germany | |
| 6 June 2013 | Netherlands | 6–22 | Belgium | Delft, Netherlands | ||
| 3 May 2014 | Netherlands | 16–70 | Germany | 2014 Western Euro Tri-Nations | Delft, Netherlands | |
| 28 June 2014 | Belgium | 32–16 | Netherlands | Brussels, Belgium | ||
| 2 May 2015 | Netherlands | 12–60 | Belgium | 2015 Western Euro Tri-Nations | Rotterdam, Netherlands | |
| 20 June 2015 | Germany | 46–12 | Netherlands | Karlsruhe, Germany | ||
| 13 August 2016 | Netherlands | 6–8 | Germany | 2016 Western Euro Tri-Nations | Rotterdam, Netherlands | |
| 3 September 2016 | Belgium | 32–12 | Netherlands | Brussels, Belgium | ||
| 26 August 2017 | Germany | 18–30 | Netherlands | 2017 Griffin Cup | Osnabrück, Germany | |
| 9 September 2017 | Netherlands | 28–24 | Sweden | Friendly | NRCA Stadium | |
| 1 September 2018 | Netherlands | 38–22 | Germany | 2018 Griffin Cup | Rotterdam, Netherlands | |
| 22 September 2018 | Sweden | 4–24 | Netherlands | Friendly | Gothenburg, Sweden | |
| 14 September 2019 | Germany | 18–56 | Netherlands | 2019 Griffin Cup | Gnarrenburg, Germany | |
| 26 September 2020 | Netherlands | 20–18 | Germany | 2020 Griffin Cup | Zwolle, Netherlands | |
| 2 October 2021 | Germany | 48–16 | Netherlands | 2021 Griffin Cup | Düsseldorf, Germany | |
| 14 October 2021 | Turkey | 18–40 | Netherlands | 2022 Euro D | Bodrum, Turkey | |
| 17 October 2021 | Czech Republic | 10–36 | Netherlands | Bodrum, Turkey | ||
| 17 September 2022 | Spain | 36–30 | Netherlands | Friendly | Madrid, Spain | |
| 24 September 2022 | Netherlands | 52–28 | European Combined Nations | Friendly | Zaandam, Netherlands | |
| 8 October 2022 | Netherlands | 24–29 | Germany | 2022 Griffin Cup | Voorschoten, Netherlands | |
| 30 September 2023 | Netherlands | 88–22 | Norway | Friendly | Sassenheim, Netherlands | |
| 7 October 2023 | Netherlands | 58–18 | Albania | Friendly | Zaandam, Netherlands | |
| 21 October 2023 | Germany | 18–44 | Netherlands | 2023 Griffin Cup | Hatingen, Germany | |
| 14 September 2024 | Netherlands | 34–26 | Scotland | Friendly | RC Bassets, Sassenheim | |
| 21 September 2024 | Netherlands | 28–30 |  Ireland | Friendly | Zaandijk RC, Zaandam | |
| 28 September 2024 | Serbia | 6–52 | Netherlands | Friendly | FC Masinac, Niš | |
| 4 October 2025 | Netherlands | 0–30 | Ireland | Friendly | RC The Bassets, Sassenheim | |
| 12 October 2025 | Netherlands | 12–56 |  Ukraine | Friendly | RC Octopus, Uden | |
| 18 October 2025 |  Malta | 6–36 | Netherlands | 2025 Euro B | Marsa Sports Complex, Marsa | |
| 25 October 2025 | Netherlands | 4–30 | Serbia | RC Oysters, Oisterwijk | ||
| 11 July 2026 | Netherlands | 6–34 |  Canada | Friendly | Rotterdamse RC Beekweg, Rotterdam | |
| 12 September 2026 | Netherlands | – | Germany | 2026 Griffin Cup | Zaandijk Rugby Club, Zaandam |
IRL Rankings
| Official rankings as of August 2026 | |||
| Rank | Change | Team | Pts % |
| 1 |  |  Australia | 100 |
| 2 | | New Zealand | 82 |
| 3 | | England | 70 |
| 4 | |  Samoa | 56 |
| 5 | |  Tonga | 54 |
| 6 | |  Papua New Guinea | 47 |
| 7 | |  Fiji | 34 |
| 8 |  1 |  Cook Islands | 24 |
| 9 | 2 | Netherlands | 23 |
| 10 | 2 | Ukraine | 21 |
| 11 |  3 |  France | 21 |
| 12 | 2 | Serbia | 20 |
| 13 | |  Wales | 18 |
| 14 | | Ireland | 17 |
| 15 | |  Greece | 14 |
| 16 | | Malta | 14 |
| 17 | 12 | Canada | 13 |
| 18 | 1 |  Italy | 11 |
| 19 | 1 |  Jamaica | 9 |
| 20 | 7 | Scotland | 8 |
| 21 | 1 |  United States | 8 |
| 22 | 3 |  Poland | 7 |
| 23 | 3 |  Lebanon | 7 |
| 24 | 1 | Germany | 7 |
| 25 | 1 | Czech Republic | 6 |
| 26 | 5 | Norway | 6 |
| 27 | 2 |  Chile | 5 |
| 28 | 2 |  Philippines | 5 |
| 29 | 1 |  South Africa | 4 |
| 30 | |  Brazil | 3 |
| 31 | |  Morocco | 3 |
| 32 | 1 |  Argentina | 3 |
| 33 | 2 |  Ghana | 2 |
| 34 | 2 |  Kenya | 2 |
| 35 | 1 |  Montenegro | 2 |
| 36 | 1 |  Nigeria | 2 |
| 37 | 5 |  North Macedonia | 1 |
| 38 | | Albania | 1 |
| 39 | | Turkey | 1 |
| 40 | |  Bulgaria | 1 |
| 41 | |  Cameroon | 0 |
| 42 | |  Japan | 0 |
| 43 | | Spain | 0 |
| 44 | |  Colombia | 0 |
| 45 | | Russia | 0 |
| 46 | |  El Salvador | 0 |
| 47 | |  Bosnia and Herzegovina | 0 |
| 48 | |  Hong Kong | 0 |
| 49 | |  Solomon Islands | 0 |
| 50 | |  Vanuatu | 0 |
| 51 | |  Hungary | 0 |
| 52 | |  Latvia | 0 |
| 53 | |  Denmark | 0 |
| 54 | | Belgium | 0 |
| 55 | |  Estonia | 0 |
| 56 | | Sweden | 0 |
| 57 | |  Niue | 0 |
| Complete rankings at www.internationalrugbyleague.com | |||
