# Tonga stuns England, puts hosts on World Cup brink

> Tonga's 30-12 victory over England at the Rugby League World Cup leaves the English facing elimination for the first time.
- Title: Tonga stuns England, puts hosts on World Cup brink · Abc
- Summary: Tonga's 30-12 victory over England at the Rugby League World Cup leaves the English facing elimination for the first time. Tonga beat England thirty twelve…
- Keywords: tonga rugby league, england rugby league, rugby league world cup, kristian woolf, perth, mate ma'a, news, politics, Tonga, stuns, England, puts
- Source: Abc — https://abc.net.au/news/2026-10-18/tonga-getting-better-and-better-after-england-world-cup-win/107280336
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: tonga rugby league, england rugby league, rugby league world cup, kristian woolf, perth, mate ma'a, news, politics
## Tonga beats England thirty twelve
Tonga defeated England thirty twelve at the Rugby League World Cup in Perth on Saturday night, with His Majesty King Tupou VI and Crown Prince Tupouto'a 'Ulukalala among the sellout eighteen thousand three hundred and…
## Woolf praises Tongan defence
Coach Kristian Woolf said Tonga's defence was outstanding. We got more and more confident. What I liked the most was the way we defended; we put ourselves under pressure a couple of times, but our…

> We got more and more confident. What I liked the most was the way we defended; we put ourselves under pressure a couple of times, but our defence was outstanding.
## Tonga's tries seal the win
Stefano Utoikamanu scored in the first half to give Tonga a ten nil lead at the break.Haumole Olakau'atu scored twice and Tolutau Koula once as Tonga pulled away.
## Woolf hails depth and quality
Woolf said Tonga has shown depth and quality after beating a tier-one nation. The experience young players and more experienced players have gained over three or four years has been outstanding, he said.

> We've got depth and quality, and we can go and do something with it now.
## England faces historic elimination
England has never failed to reach the final four at a Rugby League World Cup. This defeat puts Brian McDermott's team likely to fall short for the first time, given the competition format.
## England must win remaining games
England must beat France on October twenty fourth and Papua New Guinea on October thirtieth and hope other results go their way to finish in the top two of the combined six team Pool B…
## Samoa's big win raises the bar
Samoa opened its campaign with a seventy eight four win over France. This leaves England needing to post massive wins in its remaining two games to stay alive in the tournament.
## Key takeaway

Tonga beat England thirty twelve at the Rugby League World Cup, putting England on the brink of missing the semifinals for the first time in the tournament's history.