Final thoughts
Well, there might not be too much surprise over the scoreline – and the 46-point margin probably reflects the Kangaroos’ second-half dominance – but the identity of the scorer of four tries cannot have been predicted. Wade Graham was the undoubted star of the show in Canberra, although it’s fair to say that the hosts would have been safe even without his try-scoring exploits.
Brave, valiant, gutsy... it was a also decent overall performance from the French but they simply didn’t have the bulk or skill to trouble the Kangaroos. Their try was a highlight, and will be remembered for some time to come, and for that they can at least something out of the game. They may even test England next weekend, should they be able to recreate some of their better moments tonight.
For Australia though, the quarter-finals beckon, with just next weekend’s game against Lebanon to come in Group A. It’s another game Mal Meninga’s side should comfortably win, and with another week to fine-tune his players, Australia should be even better placed to continue their improvement.
Here’s John Davidson’s full match report from Canberra. But from me for now, it’s goodbye until next time.
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Full-time: Australia 52-6 France
80 mins: There goes the siren and there’s no time for any more drama. A comfortable win for the Kangaroos, as expected. Final thoughts to follow.
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TRY! Australia 52-6 France (Holmes)
78 mins: Holmes makes no mistake moments later though, on the other side of the field, as he makes an immediate impact, diving over the line to touch down and bring up the half-century for the Kangaroos. It’s a tough kick for Munster and the ball doesn’t quite come back as he would have hoped.
76 mins: The crowd gets excited for a moment as the ball reaches Graham out wide, but he chooses to pass instead of going for a fifth, and the chance goes begging.
TRY! Australia 48-6 France (Munster)
74 mins: Two for Munster on debut! He’s got Josh Dugan to thank, after his kick slices open the French defence and makes Munster’s job relatively easy. He takes the conversion himself, but he makes a hash of it, and the ball barely gets enough air to go over the posts. It’s not even on target though. Not to worry.
71 mins: The French are still fighting but it’s a lost cause. This is a decent kick though, which Trbojevic picks up right on his goal line before making several crucial metres.
70 mins: Australia make a few changes as Morgan finds a gap in the French defence and hoons through it. He’s held up but the Kangaroos don’t stop there and they come again soon enough. But Morgan’s kick this time hits a French wall and possession is ceded.
68 mins: Graham has scored a hat-trick previously on this ground – for the Sharks in their win over the Raiders back in March this year. Must be something in the Canberra air he likes.
TRY! Australia 44-6 France (Graham)
66 mins: It’s four to Graham! What a night for him! This one comes off the back of a Slater 40-20, before Munster delivers the final pass and Graham does the rest! Slater is on target with his boot and that’s 38 points the difference now.
65 mins: And now Morgan is absolutely monstered by Baitieri! That’s a huge hit. Again, the player gets right up again. Amazing stuff.
63 mins: It’s Fages’ turn now to be on the receiving end of a meaty Australian tackle – from Will Chambers. He’s up straight away though and play continues.
62 mins: Oh dear! Slater only has himself to blame as he misses out on a certain try – a record breaking one at that – by dropping a punt through to him, right under the posts. He’s all alone but somehow his concentration is lost and ball spills out of his hands!
60 mins: Twenty minutes remaining for France to get themselves back into contention. It’s unlikely, of course, but you never know. Chambers is told to “calm down” by the referee, not sure why, to be honest – there’s been a complete absence of niggle in this game so far.
59 mins: This is much better from France – two impressive sets now on the bounce. But can they convert it into something more meaningful, like points?
58 mins: Campbell-Gillard absolutely hammers Pelissier late. The Frenchman stays down for a moment as he comes to his senses, but he’s OK to continue.
56 mins: Fages looks to conjure something for the French now. He kicks through into the Australian in-goal, where Trbojevic juggles with the ball before falling on it. Decent stuff from the French.
55 mins: Now a mistake from Slater gifts France possession, as Wade Graham gets ready to re-enter the fray, in search of a possible fourth try on the night.
53 mins: Woods takes a hit up and Julian Bousquet is penalised for a shoulder charge.
TRY! Australia 38-6 France (Slater)
52 mins: OK, I think the floodgates have officially opened now. Morgan throws a textbook dummy before offloading to Slater, who gleefully touches down to equal Fulton and Hayne on 13 World Cup tries. Smith kicks the easiest of his kicks tonight and there off and gone now, leaving France to suck in their fumes.
TRY! Australia 32-6 France (Frizell)
49 mins: Tyson Frizell adds another! There’s no stopping the big man after he latches onto a Munster pass and bulldozes through the French defence! Smith on target with the kick and it’s a 26-point game.
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47 mins: There are some big hits being laid out there, not least this one from McGuire on Margolet. Oof.
45 mins: Arnaud is off, sensibly. His arm is in a sling and I don’t think there’s any way he’ll be back on tonight, even if he wants to.
TRY! Australia 26-6 France (Munster)
44 mins: Munster throws a dummy and charges over the line for a try on his first start in a Kangaroos jumper! Again, it’s made to look easy after having been fed by Slater. Smith on target and the Kangaroos are pulling away.
43 mins: Miraculously, Arnaud is going to stay on the pitch and continue playing. Either he was playacting (unlikely, this is rugby league) or he’s incredibly hard (likely, this is rugby league, French rugby league at that).
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42 mins: Oh dear, this doesn’t look good for the French. Arnaud is down and in some visible discomfort. It’s his arm, possibly his shoulder. And there’ll be a break in play while he is treated/carted off the field.
41 mins: OK, here we go again. Smith hits the ball high and long to gets things back underway.
Breathless stuff at times from the Kangaroos. But there’s just about enough life in the game left to keep things interesting for the beginning of the second period. Back in a bit for the rest of the match in Canberra.
Half-time: Australia 20-6 France
40 mins: And there goes the siren! Wade Graham gives a wave to fans on his way down the tunnel; he’s been the star of the show so far. France are still in it though, down by just 14 points at the break.
“We knew it would be tough. But we ‘ad a good ‘alf,” says a gloriously Gallic-accented Marginet.
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39 mins: Here goes Kheirallah once again with another exciting burst past a couple of green shirts! He really is a livewire, the Darlinghurst boy (we’re going to hear that a lot for the remainder of France’s tournament). He’s eventually stopped this time though and there won’t be a dream double. Yet.
38 mins: Smith ends up kicking into the in-goal and with McGuire chasing, Kheirallah is forced to pick up the ball.
37 mins: Mansour makes some good metres here, on the Kangaroos’ first tackle of what will be a set of seven. And in the blink of an eye, the hosts are deep inside enemy territory.
35 mins: That was some terrific play from Dugan. The French defence didn’t really know how to deal with him there.
Cosme writes in, enlighteningly so. “Apparently, Chanticleer is the English version of Chanteclerc, which is the name of a rooster in the Roman de Renart: a medieval collection of fables with animals (I think the English title is Reynard The Fox). By the way, Chanteclerc could also means ‘clear singing’ in old French, which is a bit of a stretch considering how French rugbymen sing.”
TRY! Australia 20-6 France (Dugan)
33 mins: And another! This time Dugan gets in on the action as he bursts through, shimmies this way and that and dives into the corner! There’s some consternation that he loses control of the ball in midair, but the video referee is satisfied he didn’t and it stands. Smith can’t add to the score this time, though.
32 mins: Well, if there’s a way of deflating French sails, that was it. Just as the visitors were looking threatening.
TRY! Australia 16-6 France (Graham)
31 mins: Wade Graham scores a first-half hat-trick! Actually, it’s far more impressive than that – three tries in under 20 minutes. What a performance. Munster gives him a short pass and over he goes! Simple They make it look easy. Smith adds the extras and Australia’s lead is back out to 10.
28 mins: A note on the pitch at GIO Stadium – it really is a beautiful playing surface. Sadly, there’s not a great crowd inside the ground tonight.
26 mins: France seem to have been energised by that try and they’re threatening the Australian line once more. But Slater eventually picks up a difficult kick towards near his own goal line and the hosts can breathe again.
25 mins: Well, what a story for Kheirallah – born in Sydney, he’s France’s only naturalised player. He featured once for the Roosters in the NRL and currently plies his trade for Toulouse Olympique. Fantastic stuff.
TRY! Australia 10-6 France (Kheirallah)
24 mins: France! France! France! Kheirallah collects the ball virtually under his own posts, shrugs off Billy Slater’s tackle and then runs fully 90 metres to score! What a moment for the Australia-born player! The extras are added and they’re back in the game.
🛩 French fullback Mark Kheirallah turns on the jets for @FFRXIII in the first half.#AUSvFRA#RLWC2017 pic.twitter.com/TzkSZGTElT
— RLWC2017 (@RLWC2017) November 3, 2017
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21 mins: France! France! Marginet breaks free and chips through for Kheirallah charging onto it. But the bounce isn’t kind to him and as he collects the ball, he’s hauled down by the hosts’ defence. A difference bounce there and it would have been a certain try.
20 mins: Oh dear, there’s a French bum on show. It belongs to Pelessier, who’s had his shorts pulled down in a tackle. He recovers quickly, and play continues.
19 mins: Oh, that’s lovely slick hands from the Kangaroos... until it reaches Mansour out on the wing. He drops the pill and France will now have a chance to put into a scrum.
18 mins: Some sloppy play from the French leads to an Australian scrum and here come the hosts once more.
16 mins: If you’re French, you’d surely be fearing an absolute belting now. They’re just not getting out of their own half at the moment.
TRY! Australia 10-0 France (Graham)
15 mins: Another! Graham again! Two tries in three minutes for the Cronulla player! Slater dishes inside to him and he barrels over the line. This time Smith connects with the kick and it’s a 10-point game early on.
13 mins: So, that had an air of inevitability about it. And here come the Kangaroos again, looking to increase their lead already.
TRY! Australia 4-0 France (Graham)
12 mins: McGuire and then Campbell-Gillard have pops at muscling their way over the line before Graham finally shows them how to do it, fending off a couple of French tackles before scoring his first international try! Smith fails to do the business with his boot and Australia will have to settle for just the four points.
10 mins: You feel the Kangaroos can sense a try here. They’ve got a scrum on the 10m line. McLean goes close this time, as the French defence clings on.
9 mins: Oooh! Chambers goes mighty close to opening the scoring, but he can’t fashion a chance to get the ball down even though he ran over the goal line! Superb French defence.
8 mins: Well, that’s a disappointment for Trbojevic, but to be honest, it’s a fair call. Morgan ran in behind a team-mate’s decoy before sending his kick through.
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7 mins: Tommy Turbo thinks he’s done it on debut! Morgan dinks a kick through and he gets on the end of it in the French in-goal, but it’s chalked off after the video replay shows an obstruction on Benjamin Garcia in the buildup.
6 mins: It’s been a decent start from the Kangaroos. Some decent kicking and defensive work in evidence so far.
5 mins: Smith boots from well within his own half, but his attempted 40-20 doesn’t work out. Still the chasing Kangaroos haul down the French player and they’ll have to start well inside their own half once more.
4 mins: Morgan kicks on the last tackle and Tommy Turbo rises to claim it! He knocks down to Chambers but it’ll be a scrum with a French feed.
Not sure how the French are expected to win wearing Roosters jerseys #RLWC2017
— Wal G (@Gisikus) November 3, 2017
Snort.
3 mins: Here goes Mansour, using all his strength to gain metres and take the hosts towards the French half.
2 mins: Smith hoofs upfield at the end of the Kangaroos’ first set of six and Bergal claims, before he is monstered by a posse of green shirts and pushed back deep inside his own half.
Peeeep!
1 min: OK, let’s get this show up and running. Robert Hicks, the Englishman, is tonight’s referee and he gives a toot on his whistle to begin proceedings. France kick off, high into the night sky...
To Advance Australia Fair. The Kangaroo players link arms as the anthem is blasted out to a far-from sell-out crowd in the nation’s capital. Which, believe it or not, has recently been nominated as one of the hottest new travel destinations in the world. No, really. Look:
Here we go with the anthems, France first. It’s a cracker, a personal favourite of mine. Always reminds me of Eric Cantona. Bloody hell though, the French players really can’t hold a tune.
Ah, fair enough, here come the teams now to the sounds of a didgeridoo, the hosts led by Cameron Smith. The Kangaroos captain is breaking yet another record tonight – this will be his 36th straight appearance in the green and gold, bettering Clive Churchill’s long-standing previous benchmark of 35.
Not far from kick-off now, assuming that’ll happen at the advertised time of 8pm local. Ha. But given it’s 8pm already and there’s no sign of the teams yet, that’s unlikely.
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Here’s confirmation of tonight’s line-ups:
Here's how we line up against @FFRXIII #GoTheRoos 🇦🇺#RISE #RLWC2017 pic.twitter.com/UHY2KKyoNn
— Australian Kangaroos (@Kangaroos) November 3, 2017
Matthew Armstrong emails in with, possibly, an answer to my earlier question. “I believe chanticleer is an archaic French translation of rooster. Sadly I don’t know this from the French I learned growing up in Canada, but from the fact that I used to frequent a drinking establishment called the Chanticleer that had a giant neon rooster above the door.” Drinking? Giant neon roosters? Sounds plausible enough to me.
Good news from the NRL earlier today: the long-running pay standoff has ended! Huzzah! In a deal labelled a huge win for everyone, players will receive a 52% pay rise and an allocation of $3.75m has been set aside for the women’s game. Open this guide for more details.
- Next year's salary cap will be set at $9.m and rise to $10m for the first time in 2022
- The players collect a 52% pay rise with 29.5% of projected revenue resulting in $980m income over the life of the agreement
- The salary cap will now be split across the top 30 players in each squad, with the average income to be $330,000 and the minimum at $100,000
- The NRL will have access to players' private records in the most serious of integrity matters
- Players will have a bigger say on matters of integrity throughout the game
- An injury hardship fund will be available to those forced into premature retirement, replacing the career-ending injury insurance scheme
- Players will be given more time off during the week to pursue professional and personal development outside the game
- An allocation of $3.75m has been set aside for the elite women's game
(Half interesting) factoids: France is one of only four nations to have played at every Rugby League World Cup since the tournament’s inception in 1954. Sacré bleu! That said, they haven’t progressed past the group stage since the 1960s. They have found a way to beat Australia 13 times out of the 59 games this pair have played; the Kangaroos have won 44, with two games drawn, including the last 15 – a run that stretches back to 1978.
The teams
Some late mail on the Australian lineup: James Maloney has been ruled out of the running to “deal with a private matter”, according to the Kangaroos. The Cronulla player, who had initially been given the nod to replace Cooper Cronk, left camp last night to head back to Sydney. There’s inevitably some speculation his departure has to do with reports surfacing of an NRL player swap with Penrith’s Matt Moylan but, as Cronk has just said on the telly, it’s a private matter and that link can’t be made.
Jake Trbojevic is out with that pulled pectoral muscle of his, but his brother, Tom is in to take his national team bow. Turbo Tom is one of four debutants tonight, with Reagan Campbell-Gillard and Cameron Munster also starting, the latter as a late replacement for Maloney, while Felise Kaufusi will come off the bench. Josh McGuire gets the chance to start in Jake’s absence while Cronk (hooter), Dane Gagai, Boyd Cordner and Matt Gillett are rested. Valentine Holmes comes back in after the briefest of absences to replace Maloney.
For France, Olivier Arnaud has been named at centre and Remy Marginet at five-eighth. Captain and St Helens halfback Theo Fages will once again be one to watch, along with last weekend’s standout performer, Bastien Ader.
Australia: 1. Billy Slater 2. Tom Trbojevic 3. Will Chambers 4. Josh Dugan 5. Josh Mansour 6. Michael Morgan 14. Cameron Munster 8. Jordan McLean 9. Cameron Smith 10. Reagan Campbell-Gillard 11. Wade Graham 12. Tyson Frizell 13. Josh McGuire. Bench: 15. Felise Kaufusi 16. Aaron Woods 17. David Klemmer 18. Valentine Holmes.
France: 1. Mark Kheirallah 2. Fouad Yaha 3. Bastien Ader 4. Olivier Arnaud 5. Ilias Bergal 6. Remy Marginet 7. Theo Fages 13. Jason Baitieri 17. John Boudebza 10. Julian Bousquet 11. Benjamin Garcia 12. Benjamin Jullien 15. Mickael Rouch. Bench: 8. Maxime Herold 9. Eloi Pelissier 14. Thibault Margalet 16. Romain Navarrete.
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Preamble
Hello, welcome one and all. If last week’s tournament opener between Australia and England was considered pre-match to be a nailed-on victory for the Kangaroos, you can presumably put your house, its contents and the kids’ future education on the result of tonight’s game against France going the host nation’s way.
As it turned out last Friday night, Mal Meninga’s men were pushed hard by Burgess, Graham et al and the final scoreline flattered slightly once Josh Dugan’s tattooed legs had pumped the rest of his body the best part of the length of the pitch to ice victory late on in Melbourne.
To Canberra, and GIO Stadium, and with another week in camp with his charges though, Meninga should have been able to iron out any of the deficiencies that came to light in his team’s first outing and impose themselves on the French from the outset – something they were unable to do against the English seven days ago.
If they can, France, aka les Chanticleers (a word that interests me but sadly one which I’ll never know the meaning of as a popular online translation service unhelpfully translates it as “les Chanticleers”, cheers Google), are facing a swift exit from the competition, having failed to beat Lebanon in their opener at this very same venue. A pointless campaign for Aurelien Cologni’s team looms as a very real possibility.
Anyway, we’ll have more of an idea of that as the evening progresses. Feel free to get in touch at any point with any thoughts on the game or, even better, some illumination of the exact meaning of “les Chanticleers”. You can get me on email (mike.hytner@theguardian.com) or on Twitter @mike_hytner. Kick-off is at 8pm in the nation’s capital, that’s 10am in Paris and 9am in the UK.
Mike will be here shortly. In the meantime, here’s what we learned from last weekend’s opening round of fixtures:
