The Vanuatu national rugby league team represents Vanuatu in international rugby league matches. The team was founded in 2011 and is administered by the Vanuatu Rugby League (VRL).
History
The Vanuatu national team was founded in 2011 after Australian Dane Campbell began to promote rugby league in Vanuatu.[1] Campbell was the inaugural head coach of the team. They played their first match in the Cabramatta International Nines on 4 February 2012. Joe Meninga, nephew of Mal Meninga, was selected in Vanuatu's squad for the tournament.[2] The team were undefeated in reaching the final, where they lost to the Australian Aboriginal team.
Vanuatu played their first test match against Greece on 20 October 2012, which they lost 14-24.[3][4] On 20 August 2013, David Simpson was announced as head coach, succeeding the inaugural head coach Dane Campbell.[5]
Vanuatu finished in eighth place at the 2018 Emerging Nations World Championship.[6]
Competitive record
Below is a list Vanuatu national team record as of 23 December 2020.[7]
Overall
| Opponent | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Win % | For | Aga | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Greece |
2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0% | 14 | 64 | –50 |
 Hungary |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0% | 13 | 18 | –5 |
 Niue |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 22 | 20 | +2 |
 Philippines |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0% | 16 | 32 | –16 |
 Poland |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0% | 4 | 44 | –40 |
 Solomon Islands |
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 112 | 65 | +47 |
 Turkey |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 100% | 26 | 27 | –1 |
| Total | 10 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 40% | 207 | 270 | –63 |
Results
| Date | Opponent | Score | Venue | Attendance | Competition | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 October 2012 | Greece |
14–24 |  Port Vila Municipal Stadium, Port Vila |
Friendly | ||
| 7 October 2013 | Solomon Islands |
48–30 |  Stadium Mackay, Mackay |
1,648 | Friendly | |
| 12 October 2013 | Niue |
22–20 | Port Vila Municipal Stadium, Port Vila |
3,022 | Friendly | |
| 11 October 2014 | Philippines |
16–32 | Chapius Stadium, Luganville |
2,021 | Friendly | |
| 16 October 2016 | Solomon Islands |
24–16 | Port Vila Municipal Stadium, Port Vila |
1,000 | Friendly | |
| 4 October 2018 | Hungary |
13–18 | St Marys Leagues Stadium, Sydney |
300 | 2018 Emerging Nations World Championship | [6][8] |
| 7 October 2018 | Greece |
0–38 | Kellyville Ridge Stadium, Sydney |
130 | 2018 Emerging Nations World Championship | [6][9] |
| 10 October 2018 | Poland |
4–44 | New Era Stadium, Sydney |
170 | 2018 Emerging Nations World Championship | [6][10] |
| 10 October 2018 | Turkey |
26–27 | St Marys Leagues Stadium, Sydney |
2018 Emerging Nations World Championship | [6][11] |
IRL Rankings
| Official rankings as of December 2024 | |||
| Rank | Change | Team | Pts % |
| 1 |  |
Australia |
100 |
| 2 | |
 New Zealand |
86 |
| 3 | |
 England |
84 |
| 4 |  1 |
 Tonga |
63 |
| 5 |  1 |
 Samoa |
54 |
| 6 | 1 |
 Papua New Guinea |
53 |
| 7 | 1 |
 Fiji |
44 |
| 8 | |
 France |
30 |
| 9 | 2 |
 Serbia |
23 |
| 10 | |
 Cook Islands |
22 |
| 11 | 1 |
 Netherlands |
22 |
| 12 | 5 |
 Wales |
18 |
| 13 | 2 |
 Malta |
17 |
| 14 | 6 |
 Ukraine |
13 |
| 15 | 1 |
Greece |
12 |
| 16 | 7 |
 Lebanon |
12 |
| 17 | 4 |
 Italy |
11 |
| 18 | 2 |
 Ireland |
9 |
| 19 | 1 |
 Jamaica |
8 |
| 20 | 1 |
 Czech Republic |
8 |
| 21 | 2 |
 Chile |
8 |
| 22 | 3 |
 Scotland |
7 |
| 23 | 4 |
Philippines |
7 |
| 24 | 7 |
 United States |
7 |
| 25 | 1 |
Poland |
5 |
| 26 | 2 |
 South Africa |
5 |
| 27 | 5 |
 Germany |
5 |
| 28 | 3 |
 Norway |
5 |
| 29 | 4 |
 Brazil |
4 |
| 30 | 4 |
 Kenya |
4 |
| 31 | 10 |
 Canada |
4 |
| 32 | |
 Montenegro |
4 |
| 33 | 2 |
 North Macedonia |
3 |
| 34 | 15 |
 Argentina |
3 |
| 35 | 5 |
 Albania |
2 |
| 36 | |
 Bulgaria |
2 |
| 37 | 7 |
 Ghana |
2 |
| 38 | 9 |
 Nigeria |
2 |
| 39 | 5 |
Turkey |
1 |
| 40 | 3 |
 Cameroon |
1 |
| 41 | 2 |
 Japan |
1 |
| 42 | 4 |
 Spain |
1 |
| 43 | 1 |
 Colombia |
1 |
| 44 | 1 |
 El Salvador |
0 |
| 45 | |
 Russia |
0 |
| 46 | 1 |
 Bosnia and Herzegovina |
0 |
| 47 | 3 |
 Hong Kong |
0 |
| 48 | 3 |
Solomon Islands |
0 |
| 49 | 8 |
Vanuatu |
0 |
| 50 | |
Niue |
0 |
| 51 | 1 |
 Latvia |
0 |
| 52 | 2 |
 Denmark |
0 |
| 53 | 2 |
 Belgium |
0 |
| 54 | 4 |
 Estonia |
0 |
| 55 | 9 |
 Sweden |
0 |
| 56 | 12 |
 Morocco |
0 |
| 57 | 9 |
Hungary |
0 |
| Complete rankings at INTRL.SPORT | |||
See also
References
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-04-10. Retrieved 2011-12-20.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Vanuatu Rugby League announces national team". Vanuatu Daily Post. 19 December 2011. Archived from the original on 25 March 2012.
- ^ "Rugby League Planet - Greece defeat Vanuatu in Port Vila". rugbyleagueplanet.com. Archived from the original on 2012-10-26.
- ^ Bryan, Andrew (6 November 2012). "Lazarus' Greek Odyssey". NRL.com. Retrieved 14 October 2016.
- ^ "New Squad and Coach announced". VanuatuRL.com. 20 August 2013. Retrieved 14 October 2016.
- ^ a b c d e "Vanuatu". Rugby League Emerging Nations World Championship. Archived from the original on 22 March 2019.
- ^ "Head to Head". Rugby League Planet. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
- ^ "Match Report: Hungary vs. Vanuatu". Rugby League Emerging Nations World Championship. 4 October 2018. Archived from the original on 7 October 2018.
- ^ "Match Report: Greece vs. Vanuatu". Rugby League Emerging Nations World Championship. 8 October 2018. Archived from the original on 2 April 2019.
- ^ "Match report: Poland ease past Vanuatu into trophy final". Rugby League Emerging Nations World Championship. 10 October 2018. Archived from the original on 9 April 2019.
- ^ "Match report: Turkey defeat Vanuatu in golden point thriller". Rugby League Emerging Nations World Championship. 13 October 2018. Archived from the original on 9 April 2019.
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