Jillaroos and Kiwi Ferns Meet in Women's Rugby League World Cup Final

Australia's Jillaroos and New Zealand's Kiwi Ferns contest the Women's Rugby League World Cup final on Sunday 15 November, at Lang Park in Brisbane. The Guardian is running live coverage of the match.

In rugby league, each team gets six tackles to move the ball forward before it must hand possession over. Teams score by carrying or kicking the ball over the opponent's line, and the final is a test of patience as much as pace.

Neither coach has made late changes. New Zealand name the same 17 players who beat Samoa 32-0 in the semi-final in Newcastle. Australia made one change from their semi-final win over Fiji. Jesse Southwell comes in at five-eighth, replacing Jocelyn Kelleher. The five-eighth is the playmaker who sits just behind the halfback and often decides whether the team runs the ball or kicks it, so the switch changes how Australia's attack can look.

The two sides have met in each of the last three World Cup finals, and the Jillaroos have won all three. The wider head-to-head points the same way. In 12 meetings with the Kiwi Ferns before this game, Australia lost only once, in 2023.

The Ferns have a title of their own to point to, though. They last won the World Cup final in 2008, when they beat the Jillaroos 34-0 at Lang Park. That is the same ground where Sunday's match will be played.

Where does that leave the two teams? Australia start as the side that has usually come out on top against New Zealand. The 2008 result shows the Ferns can win big on this ground. Whether that history carries any weight on the day is a question only the match can answer.

The final is a chance for one side to add to a run of finals wins, and for the other to end a long gap. Check the Guardian's live blog for the result as it unfolds.