Australia v Samoa: women’s Rugby League World Cup – live

Key eventsnowGOAL! Australia 6-0 Samoa (Kelleher 12')1m agoTRY! Australia 4-0 Samoa (Chapman 10')49m agoTeam list: Samoa55m agoTeam list: Australia1h agoPreambleGOAL! Australia 6-0 Samoa (Kelleher 12')Kelleher has clearly been practicing her goal kicking after converting just 1/7 in the grand final, she slices that one over the black dot!TRY! Australia 4-0 Samoa (Chapman 10')Off the back of that penalty, the Jillaroos swing the ball from one side of the field to the other, creating an overlap and putting Chapman over in the corner.10 mins: First real chance for the Jillaroos, as they get within 10m of Samoa’s tryline, but Aiken makes an error with the kick, she just kind of misses it with her foot? Samoa are immediately on the charge downfield and put up a great kick that Upton tries to shepherd into touch, but it stubbornly sits up in goal and she has to pick it up an run. But run she does and makes great ground. The Jillaroos put on some quick play the balls to catch Samoa off guard and get another penalty.8 mins: Despite the field position, Samoa can’t hold on to the ball and make a handling error, to give Australia a scrum deep in their own half. Now it’s the Jillaroos who get a penalty – this is quite a lot of penalties already in less than 10 minutes of football.6 mins: The Jillaroos then give up a penalty for interference in the ruck – they are giving up a lot of field position early in this match. That’s followed by another penalty on the third tackle of the next set and referee Kasey Badger has some stern words for the Jillaroos.4 mins: A decent set by the Jillaroos, but they didn’t make as much territory as they would have liked. Samoa are attacking strongly and manage a couple of half line breaks and get into good field position, but the kick goes into touch over the sideline. Kelly makes an error early in the next set and Samoa get the ball 30m out.2 mins: A minor mix up on the kick off from Samoa, but they pick it up on the bounce and Samoa immediately pick up a penalty – though I’m not sure anyone on the field is clear what it’s for. A good first set for Samoa, finished with a good kick, but it’s well taken by Chapman.Australia has kicked off and we’re underway!A number of the Samoan players are tearing up during the anthem – what a special moment for them to be able to represent their country on the world stage.The players have completed their final warm ups in the change rooms and are now entering the field, ready for the pre-match ceremony.I was reading earlier about Jess Sergis playing in a ‘milestone match’ today and discovered that milestone was… 15 Tests for the Jillaroos. It really shows how little international rugby league there is – especially for women – that this is considered a milestone.I don’t know about you, but I’m very excited to see Jocelyn Kelleher’s debut for the Jillaroos tonight. Her kicking game in the NRLW grand final was sensational and she really put Brisbane on the back foot with the pinpoint accurate bombs she was putting up. I’m looking forward to seeing what she does tonight.And if you want to catch up on the action from last night’s opening game on the men’s side of the draw, have a read of Angus Fontaine’s match report.If you’re coming into this game pretty fresh, here’s something I prepared earlier on the women’s tournament and the rapidly closing gap between nations.Team list: Samoa1. Destiny Mino-Sinapati 2. Mercedez Taulelei-Siala 3. Monica Tagoai 4. Sarina Masaga 5. Freedom Crichton Ropati 6. Tailah Fuimaono 7. Pauline Piliae-Rasabale 8. Annette Nuuausala 9. Mary-Jane Taito 10. Laikha Clarke 11. Evania Isa’ako 12. Ivana Lolesio 13. Leilani Wilson Interchange: 14. Evelyn Roberts 15. Fanua Rimoni 16. Amber Hall 17. Jasmine FogaviniTeam list: Australia1. Tamika Upton 2. Jaime Chapman 3. Jessica Sergis 4. Isabelle Kelly (c) 5. Julia Robinson 6. Jocelyn Kelleher 7. Tarryn Aiken 8. Millie Elliott 9. Olivia Higgins 10. Simaima Taufa 11. Kezie Apps 12. Shaylee Bent 13. Olivia Kernick Interchange: 14. Keeley Nizza 15. Keilee Joseph 16. Tiana Penitani-Gray 17. Ellie JohnstonPreambleMegan MauriceHello and welcome to the opening game for the women’s competition at the Rugby League World Cup. The men set the stage last night, with an epic opener and now its time for the women to show the world what they can do.While the Jillaroos are heavy favourite for this game, don’t underestimate Fetu Samoa. With eight members of the Gold Coast Titans NRLW team in their squad, they will have some strong connections and plenty of passion.The Jillaroos are looking to back up their 2022 World Cup win by taking out the trophy on home soil, and while they are confident they have the team to do it, they are wary of the rapid improvement of other nations.“We are here with the mindset that we are going up against tough teams, everyone has been in an NRLW system,” said coach Jess Skinner, speaking to nrl.com.“It’s going to be a lot tougher for us this year, but we are up for the challenge. I am really excited to see what Samoa does in this World Cup - what they did to the Kiwis in the last Pac Champs was very exciting.“We know from experience that Samoa brings a massive crowd, and a sea of blue. It might not feel like a home game at times but we want to make sure there is green and yellow amongst them too.”It’s sure to be a fascinating battle at CommBank Stadium in Sydney tonight, so let’s get into it!