Samoan players have broken down in tears as the country’s National Anthem was played before the start of their semi-final match against the Kangaroos on Sunday night.
Footage showed Samoan team members getting emotional as they proudly sung along while hundreds of the Pacific nation’s flags were held up by the crowd at Allianz Stadium in Sydney.
Some players were crying, with Ronald Volkman and Brian To’o in particular clearly emotionally overcome as Lapi Mariner, the father of player Deine Mariner, sang.
Australia’s National Anthem was performed expertly by opera and theatre singer Matilda Moran, but the reaction was a much more subdued affair, with many of the players not singing along.
The atmosphere soon became charged again, however, when the Samoans performed a fiery Siva Tau, the island’s version of the New Zealand Haka.
The spectacle ended with both teams staring down each other just inches apart on the field.
Samoan players, including Ronald Volkman, were overcome with emotion during the national anthem as they cried and sung along
Brian To’o has tears streaming down his face, though he might try to pass it off as the rain
Australian players were much more subdued during the national anthem
Both teams were vying for a place in the Rugby World Cup final decider with New Zealand next weekend.
However, it was Australia that led the game from early on with tries from Tom Dearden, Jacob Preston, Tom Trbojevic and Reece Walsh, who celebrated with a flamboyant on-field backflip.
Samoa fought back in the second half with a converted try from Stephen Crichton.
But two more converted tries from Reece Walsh, making it a hat-trick, appeared to seal the deal for the Aussies.
The score was at 38-12 to Australia at the 70th minute before Jack Bostock went over on the left to ram the win home thanks to an assist from Bradman Best in the 73rd.
A conversion took the score to 44-12 to Australia at the full-time siren, with Samoa unable to turn their pre-game passion into focused plays on the turf.
Lapi Mariner sings the Samoa national anthem ahead of the 2026 Men’s Rugby League World Cup Semi Final match between Australia Kangaroos and Samoa
Samoa perform the Siva Tao as Aussie players stare them down
An ecstatic Reece Walsh was awarded player of the match, revealing he was scolded for the showmanship in the changerooms.
‘I got in trouble at half time, but there was a bunch of kids, like all week at our hotel every morning. And every every time I seen them, they keep going, ‘can you do a backflip, can you do a backflip?’ So I put on a show for the kids.
‘Just having a lot of fun out there with this group of boys. And I feel like we’re just, we’re steady building. So it’s been good fun.’
Australia will take on the Kiwis in the Rugby League World Cup final next Sunday, November 15 at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane.
Reece Walsh celebrates with a backflip after scoring a try in the first half
Despite the passion from the Samoans, Australia was just too good
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