The Northern Express Herald

Kiwi Ferns v PNG: New Zealand top Rugby League World Cup group with big win over tough Orchids side

GOLD COAST, AUSTRALIA - OCTOBER 31: Mackenzie Wiki of New Zealand celebrates after scoring a try during the 2026 Women's Rugby League World Cup match between New Zealand Kiwi Ferns and Papua New Guinea at Cbus Super Stadium on October 31, 2026 in Gold Coast, Australia. (Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images) GOLD COAST, AUSTRALIA - OCTOBER 31: Mackenzie Wiki of New Zealand celebrates after scoring a try during the 2026 Women's Rugby League World Cup match between New Zealand Kiwi Ferns and Papua New Guinea at Cbus Super Stadium on October 31, 2026 in Gold Coast, Australia. (Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)
NZ Herald's Nathan Limm and Michael Burgess dissect the Rugby League World Cup, Te Kaha Stadium's heat issue and debate the Kiwis' best performers in the Cook Islands fixture.

Kiwi Ferns 40

Papua New Guinea 12

Another scare survived.

The Kiwi Ferns end the Rugby League World Cup pool stage with three wins from three, but they didn’t always make things easy for themselves.

A tough opening fixture against Fiji forced New Zealand to dig deep and show their class against adversity, while a dominant victory over France reminded the competition of how good the team truly is.

Papua New Guinea appeared to learn from the Fiji match and looked to put the Kiwi Ferns under pressure from the start.

The Black ferns had to come from behind to beat Papua New Guinea. Photo / Photosport
The Black ferns had to come from behind to beat Papua New Guinea. Photo / Photosport

An early Stacey Waaka try was quickly cancelled out by a four-pointer from Tia Molo and a conversion from Emily Veivers had PNG ahead after 10 minutes.

The Kiwi Ferns hit back through Mackenzie Wiki, but PNG retook the lead with a try from Elsie Albert.

The Kiwi Ferns also learned from their tournament opener and didn’t wait until the second half to stamp their authority on the match.

Kaiyah Atai ended the first half by bursting through a gaping hole in the Orchids’ defence, while Zahara Temara obliged with the conversion to give the Kiwi Ferns a two-point lead at halftime.

Otesa Pule started the second half off with a bang, taking the ball just inside her own half and using her strength and speed to stretch away from defenders and plant the ball for another try.

New Zealand stayed clinical and found plenty of freedom down their left flank to extend their lead against a PNG side that continued to show grit and determination throughout the match.

The Kiwi Ferns won all three of the pool games at the Rugby League World Cup. Photo / Getty Images
The Kiwi Ferns won all three of the pool games at the Rugby League World Cup. Photo / Getty Images

Wiki, Leianne Tufuga and two Abigail Roche tries put the game out of reach for the Orchids, while Temara found her range by slotting three second half conversions.

The Kiwi Ferns were heading to the semi-finals no matter the result, but a test like this from an improved Papua New Guinea side has provided an excellent tune-up for whoever comes next.

Keeping their opposition scoreless in the second half has shown how the team has slowly progressed throughout the tournament and thrown memories of their close encounter to the wayside.

Up next comes Samoa, who put in a strong 24-6 victory over England and an enormous 76-0 win against Wales in their pool games.

Kiwi Ferns 40 (Stacey Waaka, Mackenzie Wiki 2, Kaiyah Atai, Otesa Pule, Leianne Tufuga, Abigail Roche 2 tries; Zahara Temara 4 con).

Papua New Guinea Orchids 12 (Tia Molo, Elsie Albert tries; Emily Veivers cons)

HT: 14-12

Ben Francis is an Auckland-based reporter for the New Zealand Herald who covers breaking sports news.