The 2011 Rugby League Four Nations tournament (also known as the 2011 Gillette Rugby League Four Nations due to sponsorship by
Gillette
Gillette is an American brand of safety razors and other personal care products including shaving supplies, owned by the multi-national corporation Procter & Gamble (P&G).
Based in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, it was owned by The Gil ...
) was the third staging of the
Rugby League Four Nations
The Rugby League Four Nations (known as the Ladbrokes Four Nations in 2016, for sponsorship purposes) was a biennial rugby league football tournament run in partnership between the Australian Rugby League Commission, Rugby Football League and N ...
tournament and was played in
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
during October and November 2011, which was contested by regular contestants
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
, in addition to
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
, who had qualified for their first Four Nations by winning the
2010 European Cup. The tournament saw the return of international rugby league to London's
Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...
for the first time since 1997, with a
double-header played on 5 November 2011. Australia won the tournament, defeating England in the final at
Elland Road
Elland Road is a football stadium in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, which has been the home of Premier League club Leeds United since the club's formation in 1919. The stadium is the 14th largest football stadium in England.
The g ...
,
Leeds
Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...
, on 19 November 2011. The match was the last of the 17-year professional career of Australia's captain
Darren Lockyer
Darren James Lockyer (born 24 March 1977) is an Australian television commentator and former professional rugby league footballer. Lockyer was an Australian international and Queensland State representative captain, who played his entire profes ...
.
History
The 2011 tournament was the third of three
Four Nations series planned before the
2013 Rugby League World Cup
The 2013 Rugby League World Cup was the fourteenth staging of the Rugby League World Cup and took place in England, Wales, France and Ireland. between 26 October and 30 November 2013.
It was the main event of the year's 2013 Festival of World ...
, with the venues rotating between Europe and the South Pacific. There was no Four Nations in 2012 due to teams preparing for the
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
.
In addition to automatic inclusions Australia, England and New Zealand, Wales qualified for the tournament by defeating
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
in the final of the
2010 European Cup.
Referees
*
Phil Bentham
Phil Bentham (born 28 October 1971) is a Premier League football VAR coach and former English professional rugby league Referee & video referee. He was one of the Rugby Football League's full-time match officials since its inception in 2007. Re ...
*
Matt Cecchin
Matt Cecchin is an Australian former rugby league referee who officiated in the NRL between 2001 and 2021. Cecchin has officiated international matches at the 2011 Four Nations and 2017 World Cup, and domestic representative matches in all th ...
*
Henry Perenara
Henry Edward Perenara (born 16 June 1980) is a New Zealand rugby league referee and former professional footballer who represented New Zealand. He played as a , though he could also play in the . He is also the first NRL referee in history to s ...
Touch judges/Video Referees
*
Paul Holland
Paul Holland (born 8 July 1973) is an English former footballer who made over 300 appearances in the Football League for Mansfield Town, Sheffield United, Chesterfield and Bristol City and was capped two times for the England U21s, playing alon ...
(TJ)
*
Shane Rehm
Shane Rehm is a New Zealand rugby league referee. An international referee, Rehm has also controlled Auckland Rugby League, New Zealand Rugby League and Toyota Cup matches since 2009.
Playing career
Rehm has refereed in NSW Cup and Toyota Cup m ...
(TJ)
*
James Child
James Child (born 4 July 1983) is a former English rugby league referee. He was one of the Rugby Football League's Full Time Match Officials.
On 19 December 2022, Child announced that he would be stepping down as referee, ahead of the 2023 s ...
(TJ)
*
Ian Smith
Ian Douglas Smith (8 April 1919 – 20 November 2007) was a Rhodesian politician, farmer, and fighter pilot who served as Prime Minister of Rhodesia (known as Southern Rhodesia until October 1964 and now known as Zimbabwe) from 1964 to ...
(VR)
*
Ben Thaler
Ben Thaler (born 30 August 1981) is a professional rugby league referee and one of the Rugby Football League's Full Time Match Officials. He officiates in the Super League.
Background
Thaler was born in Normanton, West Yorkshire, England.
C ...
(VR)
Qualifying nations
Squads
Australia
Australian coach
Tim Sheens
Tim Sheens (born 30 October 1950) is an Australian professional rugby league football coach and former player. Head Coach of the Australia national team between 2009 and 2015, he has also been the head coach of National Rugby League (NRL) clubs ...
' touring squad was announced on 3 October: Of the twenty four players, twenty three were Australian born while one was Fijian born.
1 Replaced originally selected
Brett Stewart who withdrew due to injury.
2 Replaced originally selected
David Taylor who withdrew due to injury.
3 Replaced originally selected
Glenn Stewart
Glenn Stewart (born 11 January 1984) is a former Australian professional rugby league footballer who last played for the Leigh Centurions in the Super League. An Australia international and New South Wales State of Origin representative , ...
who withdrew for compassionate reasons.
England
The England squad for the 2011 Four Nations: Of the twenty four players, twenty two were English born while one was New Zealand born and one Australian born.
Coach:
Steve McNamara
Steve McNamara (born 18 September 1971) is an English professional rugby league football coach who is the head coach of the Catalans Dragons in the Betfred Super League and a former professional player. He is a former coach of England, and a Gr ...
New Zealand
The Kiwis announced their 23-man touring squad on 4 October. Of the twenty three players, eighteen were New Zealand born while four were Australian born and one Tongan born.
Coach:
Stephen Kearney
Stephen Peter Kearney (born 11 June 1972) is a New Zealand professional rugby league football coach who until 2020 was the head coach of the New Zealand Warriors in the NRL and a former player.
A New Zealand national captain and second-row for ...
1 Replaced original replacement
Krisnan Inu
Krisnan Nevada Inu (born 17 March 1987) is a professional rugby league footballer who plays as a or er for the Leigh Centurions in the RFL Championship. He has played for both New Zealand and Samoa at international level. On 24 February 202 ...
who withdrew for family reasons. He replaced originally selected
Steve Matai
Stephen Matai (born 5 August 1984) is a New Zealand former professional rugby league footballer who played in the National Rugby League (NRL )from 2005 to 2016. A New Zealand national representative centre, he played for Australian club the Ma ...
who withdrew due to injury.
2 Replaced originally selected
Manu Vatuvei
Manu Mapuhola Mafi-Vatuvei (born 4 March 1986), also known by the nickname "The Beast", is a New Zealand former professional rugby league footballer and convicted methamphetamine importer who was both a Tonga and New Zealand international repres ...
who withdrew due to injury.
3 Replaced originally selected
Shaun Johnson
Shaun Johnson (born 9 September 1990) is a New Zealand professional rugby league footballer who plays as a or for the New Zealand Warriors in the National Rugby League (NRL) and the New Zealand Kiwis at international level.
He has played pr ...
who withdrew due to injury.
Wales
The Welsh training squad was named on 14 September. Of the twenty three players, nine were English born while eight were Welsh born and five Australian borns and one South African born.
Coach:
Iestyn Harris
Iestyn Rhys Harris (born 25 June 1976), also known by the nickname of "Welsh Wizard", is a former dual-code international professional rugby league and rugby union footballer who played in the 1990s and 2000s, and coach in rugby league in the ...
Gareth Thomas was originally selected in the squad, but retired with immediate effect in the week leading up to the tournament.
Venues
The games were played at venues in England and Wales. The tournament final was played in Leeds.
Results
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Standings
Final
Statistics
Top pointscorers
Johnathan Thurston broke the record for most points in a single tournament with his 56-point haul. The previous record of 42 was set in
2005
File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
by New Zealand's
Stacey Jones
Stacey William Jones (born 7 May 1976) is a New Zealand former professional rugby league footballer, who has been named amongst the greatest New Zealand has ever produced. He played as a , but he has also briefly played at during his disting ...
.
Pre-tournament matches
Before the series, England played a Test match against
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, New Zealand and Australia played a test in
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to:
*Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England
*Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England
*Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...
before heading to Great Britain, and
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
played
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
in Neath.
New Zealand were originally scheduled to play a Test match against the
Cook Islands
)
, image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg
, capital = Avarua
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Avarua
, official_languages =
, lan ...
on 7 October, however this was called off due to the unavailability of 29 frontline players.
Kiwis' league test against Cook Islands called off
''The Press'', 28 September 2011
Australia vs New Zealand
France vs England
Wales vs Ireland
References
External links
{{2011 in Rugby League
Rugby League Four Nations
Four Nations
Rugby League Four Nations
The Rugby League Four Nations (known as the Ladbrokes Four Nations in 2016, for sponsorship purposes) was a biennial rugby league football tournament run in partnership between the Australian Rugby League Commission, Rugby Football League and N ...
Rugby League Four Nations
The Rugby League Four Nations (known as the Ladbrokes Four Nations in 2016, for sponsorship purposes) was a biennial rugby league football tournament run in partnership between the Australian Rugby League Commission, Rugby Football League and N ...
Four
4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures.
In mathematics
Four is the smallest c ...
Four
4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures.
In mathematics
Four is the smallest c ...
International rugby league competitions hosted by the United Kingdom