2014 Rugby League Four Nations

2014 (2014) Four Nations  ()
Number of teams	4
Host countries	New Zealand  Australia
Winner	New Zealand (2nd title)
Matches played	7
Attendance	144,722 (20,675 per match)
Points scored	286 (40.86 per match)
Tries scored	52 (7.43 per match)
Top scorer	Shaun Johnson (30)
Top try scorer	Jason Nightingale (5)
Tournaments  < 2011 2016 >

The 2014 Rugby League Four Nations tournament was the fourth staging of the Rugby League Four Nations tournament played in Australia and New Zealand over three weeks from Saturday, 25 October to Saturday, 15 November 2014. The series was contested by regular participants Australia, England and New Zealand, joined by Samoa, having won their Pacific qualifier against Fiji. New Zealand won the tournament, defeating Australia in the final at Wellington's Westpac Stadium on Saturday 15 November.^[1]

History[]

The 2014 tournament is the first Four Nations series to be scheduled following the 2013 Rugby League World Cup, with the venues rotating between Europe and the South Pacific.

In addition to automatic inclusions Australia, England and New Zealand, Pacific nations Fiji and Samoa met in a mid-season test match at the Penrith Stadium in western Sydney to determine the fourth entrant in the tournament. Samoa won an entertaining match 32-16 in front of 9,063 fans.

The 34,500 capacity Westpac Stadium in Wellington will play host to the first Four Nations Final played in New Zealand. The last time the final of the tournament was held in New Zealand was at the Mount Smart Stadium in Auckland when the tournament was known as the Tri-Nations in its inaugural year, 1999.

Venues[]

The games were played at the following venues in Australia and New Zealand. The tournament final was played in Wellington.

Referees[]

• Henry Perenara (Referee and Video Referee - New Zealand)^[2]
• Phil Bentham (Referee - England)^[3]
• Gerard Sutton (Referee - Australia)^[3]
• Ben Cummins (Replacement Referee - Australia)^[3]

Touch judges/video referees[]

• Anthony Eliott (Touch Judge - New Zealand)^[2]
• Grant Atkins (Touch Judge - Australia)^[3]
• Jason Walsh (Touch Judge - Australia)^[3]
• Robert Hicks (Touch Judge - England)^[3]
• Ian Smith (Video Referee - England)^[3]
• Bernard Sutton (Video Referee - Australia)^[3]

Participating nations[]

Team	Coach	Captain	RLIF Rank	Continent
Australia	Tim Sheens	Cameron Smith	1st	Oceania
England	Steve McNamara	Sean O'Loughlin	3rd	Europe
New Zealand	Stephen Kearney	Simon Mannering	2nd	Oceania
Samoa	Matt Parish	David Fa'alogo	7th	Oceania

Squads[]

Qualifier[]

Samoa v. Fiji[]

• Samoa qualified for main tournament

Results[]

Round 1[]

• Ben Roberts made his 10th appearance for Samoa, only the second player to hit double-digit appearances for his country with George Carmont being the first.

FB 1 Sam Tomkins RW 2 Josh Charnley RC 3 Kallum Watkins LC 4 Michael Shenton LW 5 Ryan Hall SO 6 Gareth Widdop SH 7 Matty Smith PR 8 George Burgess HK 9 Josh Hodgson PR 10 James Graham (c) SR 11 Liam Farrell SR 12 Joel Tomkins LF 13 Joe Westerman Substitutions: BE 14 Daryl Clark BE 15 Brett Ferres BE 16 Tom Burgess BE 17 Chris Hill Coach: Steve McNamara

FB 1 Tim Simona RW 2 Antonio Winterstein RC 3 Ricky Leutele LC 4 Joey Leilua LW 5 Daniel Vidot FE 6 Ben Roberts HB 7 Kyle Stanley PR 8 Sam Tagataese HK 9 Michael Sio PR 10 David Fa'alogo (c) SR 11 Frank Pritchard SR 12 Leeson Ah Mau LK 13 Josh McGuire Substitutions: BE 14 Pita Godinet BE 15 Jesse Sene-Lefao BE 16 Isaac Liu BE 17 Mose Masoe Coach: Matt Parish

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• Dallin Watene-Zelezniak could have made his international test debut in the starting XIII for New Zealand on the right-wing, but was ruled out for the game and for the rest of the tournament with an ankle injury and Gerard Beale replaced him.
• Jason Taumalolo made his international test debut for New Zealand.
• Daniel Tupou, Josh Mansour, Dylan Walker, Aaron Woods and Aidan Guerra made their international test debut for Australia
• With the victory, this was New Zealand's first Test win over Australia since the 2010 Four Nations Final.

FB 1 Greg Inglis RW 2 Josh Mansour RC 3 Michael Jennings LC 4 Dylan Walker LW 5 Daniel Tupou SO 6 Daly Cherry-Evans SH 7 Cooper Cronk PR 8 Aaron Woods HK 9 Cameron Smith (c) PR 10 Sam Thaiday SR 11 Beau Scott SR 12 Ryan Hoffman LF 13 Greg Bird Substitutions: BE 14 Robbie Farah BE 15 Aidan Guerra BE 16 Josh Papalii BE 17 Corey Parker Coach: Tim Sheens

FB 1 Peta Hiku RW 19 Gerard Beale RC 3 Shaun Kenny-Dowall LC 4 Dean Whare LW 2 Jason Nightingale FE 6 Kieran Foran HB 7 Shaun Johnson PR 8 Jesse Bromwich HK 9 Thomas Leuluai PR 10 Adam Blair SR 11 Simon Mannering (c) SR 12 Kevin Proctor LK 13 Jason Taumalolo Substitutions: BE 14 Lewis Brown BE 15 Greg Eastwood BE 16 Martin Taupau BE 17 Tohu Harris Coach: Stephen Kearney

Round 2[]

• Suaia Matagi made his international test debut for New Zealand
• Tautau Moga and Dominique Peyroux made their international test debut for Samoa
• With the victory, New Zealand retained the Peter Leitch QSM Challenge Trophy.

FB 1 Peta Hiku RW 2 Jason Nightingale RC 3 Shaun Kenny-Dowall LC 4 Dean Whare LW 5 Manu Vatuvei FE 6 Kieran Foran HB 7 Shaun Johnson PR 8 Jesse Bromwich HK 9 Issac Luke PR 10 Adam Blair SR 11 Simon Mannering (c) SR 12 Kevin Proctor LK 13 Jason Taumalolo Substitutions: BE 14 Lewis Brown BE 15 Suaia Matagi BE 16 Martin Taupau BE 17 Tohu Harris Coach: Stephen Kearney

FB 1 Tim Simona RW 20 Tautau Moga RC 3 Tim Lafai LC 4 Joey Leilua LW 5 Daniel Vidot FE 6 Ben Roberts HB 7 Kyle Stanley PR 8 Isaac Liu HK 13 Josh McGuire PR 10 David Fa'alogo (c) SR 11 Frank Pritchard SR 12 Leeson Ah Mau LK 16 Sauaso Sue Substitutions: BE 9 Pita Godinet BE 14 Dunamis Lui BE 17 Mose Masoe BE 18 Dominique Peyroux Coach: Matt Parish

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• Perth born Dan Sarginson made his international test début for England.
• Ben Hunt and David Klemmer made their international test debuts for Australia.
• Sione Mata'utia also made his international test début for Australia and becoming the youngest ever player to play for Australia at aged 18 years and 129 days, eclipsing Israel Folau's seven-year-old record by 65 days.
• Cameron Smith becomes the 6th Kangaroo-Test player, to play 40-Test games for Australia.

FB 1 Greg Inglis RW 2 Josh Mansour RC 3 Michael Jennings LC 4 Dylan Walker LW 5 Sione Mata'utia SO 6 Daly Cherry-Evans SH 7 Cooper Cronk PR 8 Aaron Woods HK 9 Cameron Smith (c) PR 10 Sam Thaiday SR 11 Beau Scott SR 12 Greg Bird LF 13 Corey Parker Substitutions: BE 14 Boyd Cordner BE 15 Ben Hunt BE 16 David Klemmer BE 17 Josh Papalii Coach: Tim Sheens

FB 1 Sam Tomkins RW 2 Josh Charnley RC 3 Kallum Watkins LC 18 Dan Sarginson LW 5 Ryan Hall SO 6 Gareth Widdop SH 7 Matty Smith PR 8 George Burgess HK 9 Josh Hodgson PR 10 James Graham SR 11 Liam Farrell SR 12 Joel Tomkins LF 19 Sean O'Loughlin (c) Substitutions: BE 14 Daryl Clark BE 15 Brett Ferres BE 16 Tom Burgess BE 17 Chris Hill Coach: Steve McNamara

Round 3[]

• With the victory, New Zealand secured a place in the final.

FB 1 Peta Hiku RW 2 Jason Nightingale RC 3 Shaun Kenny-Dowall LC 4 Dean Whare LW 5 Manu Vatuvei FE 6 Kieran Foran HB 7 Shaun Johnson PR 8 Jesse Bromwich HK 14 Thomas Leuluai PR 10 Adam Blair SR 11 Simon Mannering (c) SR 12 Kevin Proctor LK 13 Jason Taumalolo Substitutions: BE 9 Issac Luke BE 15 Greg Eastwood BE 16 Martin Taupau BE 17 Tohu Harris Coach: Stephen Kearney

FB 1 Sam Tomkins RW 2 Josh Charnley RC 3 Kallum Watkins LC 4 Dan Sarginson LW 5 Ryan Hall SO 6 Gareth Widdop SH 7 Matty Smith PR 8 George Burgess HK 14 Daryl Clark PR 10 James Graham SR 11 Liam Farrell SR 12 Joel Tomkins LF 13 Sean O'Loughlin (c) Substitutions: BE 15 Brett Ferres BE 16 Tom Burgess BE 17 Chris Hill BE 18 Elliott Whitehead Coach: Steve McNamara

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• Josh Jackson made his international test debut for Australia.
• With the victory, Australia secured a place in the final.

FB 1 Greg Inglis RW 2 Josh Mansour RC 3 Michael Jennings LC 4 Dylan Walker LW 5 Sione Mata'utia SO 6 Daly Cherry-Evans SH 7 Cooper Cronk PR 8 Aaron Woods HK 9 Cameron Smith (c) PR 10 Josh Papalii SR 11 Sam Thaiday SR 12 Greg Bird LF 13 Corey Parker Substitutions: BE 14 Boyd Cordner BE 15 Ben Hunt BE 19 David Klemmer BE 21 Josh Jackson Coach: Tim Sheens

FB 1 Tim Simona RW 2 Antonio Winterstein RC 3 Tim Lafai LC 4 Joey Leilua LW 5 Daniel Vidot FE 6 Ben Roberts HB 7 Kyle Stanley PR 8 Isaac Liu HK 13 Josh McGuire PR 10 David Fa'alogo (c) SR 11 Frank Pritchard SR 12 Leeson Ah Mau LK 17 Mose Masoe Substitutions: BE 9 Pita Godinet BE 14 Dunamis Lui BE 15 Reni Maitua BE 16 Sauaso Sue Coach: Matt Parish

Standings[]

2014 Four Nations v t
	Team	Pld	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	Pts
1	New Zealand W	3	3	0	0	60	38	+22	6
2	Australia	3	2	0	1	72	60	+12	4
3	England	3	1	0	2	58	58	0	2
4	Samoa	3	0	0	3	56	90	–34	0

Final[]

New Zealand	Position	Australia
Peta Hiku	FB	Greg Inglis
Jason Nightingale	WG	Josh Mansour
Dean Whare	CE	Michael Jennings
Shaun Kenny-Dowall	CE	Dylan Walker
Manu Vatuvei	WG	Sione Mata'utia
Kieran Foran	FE	Daly Cherry-Evans
Shaun Johnson	HB	Cooper Cronk
Jesse Bromwich	PR	Aaron Woods
Isaac Luke	HK	Cameron Smith (c)
Adam Blair	PR	Josh Papalii
Simon Mannering (c)	SR	Sam Thaiday
Kevin Proctor	SR	Greg Bird
Jason Taumalolo	LK	Corey Parker
Lewis Brown	Int	Boyd Cordner
Greg Eastwood	Int	Ben Hunt
Martin Taupau	Int	Josh Jackson
Tohu Harris	Int	David Klemmer

Score Progression:
11th: Australia 6 - 0 (Jennings Try, Smith Goal) 23rd: Even 6 - 6 (Nightingale Try, Johnson Goal) 29th: New Zealand 8 - 6 (Johnson Penalty Goal) 35th: New Zealand 14 - 6 (Vatuvei Try, Johnson Goal) 42nd: New Zealand 14 - 12 (Mata'utia Try, Smith Goal) 58th: New Zealand 18 - 12 (Johnson Try) 63rd: New Zealand 22 - 12 (Vatuvei Try) 76th: New Zealand 22 - 18 (Hunt Try, Smith Goal)

Match records:

• This was Australia's first game at Wellington's Westpac Stadium since 2007, when they beat New Zealand 58-0.
• This was New Zealand's first home game at Wellington's Westpac Stadium since the 2010 Four Nations Round 1 clash with England, when they won 24-10.
• With the victory, New Zealand won this year's Four Nations Title, as well as their second Tournament Title.
• New Zealand became the second team since Australia (in the 2011 Four Nations series), to go through the tournament undefeated.
• New Zealand won 2 consecutive matches against Australia, for the first time since 1998.^[6]
• New Zealand earned their first victory over Australia at a home venue since 2003, when they won 30-16 over Australia at Auckland's North Harbour Stadium.
• Manu Vatuvei becomes New Zealand's all-time leading try-scorer, passing Nigel Vagana's record (of 19 tries) after scoring his second try in the game for a total of 20 test tries.
• Simon Mannering became the fifth Kiwi-Test player to play 40 tests for New Zealand.

Player statistics[]

Broadcasting rights[]

In the United Kingdom, Premier Sports televised all the matches live while BBC Two televised England's round robin matches and the final live. BBC One televised highlights of matchday one while BBC Two televised highlights of matchday two while BBC One televised highlights of England's final round robin match against New Zealand while highlights of matchday three was televised on BBC Two in England and England HD at 10:00pm and in Northern Ireland at 10:30pm and in Scotland 11:00pm and in Wales at 11:30pm. BBC One televised highlights of the final.

References[]

External links[]