The Rugby League World Cup is an international rugby league tournament which has been played at various intervals since 1954. Hat-tricks have been achieved 71 times at the tournament, 70 times with tries and just once with field goals. The first player to do this was Alex Watson, who achieved the feat for Australia against New Zealand in the inaugural tournament.[1] Players who have played for Australia have scored the most hat-tricks with 30 (29 tries 1 field goal), while Papua New Guinea representatives have conceded the most with 11 (all tries).
Hat-tricks are more of a common occurrence in the group stages, as the match-ups usually place higher-ranked teams against lower-ranked teams. Just ten hat-tricks have occurred in the knockout stages, six happening in the quarter-finals and four in the semi-finals. They have been scored by Bryan Fletcher and Robbie Paul in the 2000 tournament, Billy Slater and Johnathan Thurston in the 2008 edition, Jarryd Hayne (twice) and Brett Morris in the 2013 competition, Valentine Holmes (twice) in the 2017 tournament and Josh Addo-Carr in the 2021 edition.[2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]
Out of the 70 hat-tricks scored, seven people have achieved the feat twice, these being Ian Schubert, Billy Slater, Akuila Uate, Manu Vatuvei, Jarryd Hayne, Suliasi Vunivalu, Valentine Holmes and Josh Addo-Carr. 15 people have scored an additional try on top of the hat-trick. Holmes and Addo-Carr have scored five tries in a single game, whilst Holmes is the only player to score six tries in a single game. Four players have scored hat-tricks while being on the losing side, these being Bob Fulton, Ian Schubert, Damien Blanch and Chris Taripo.[9] [10] [11] [12] Billy Smith is the only player to score a hat-trick of field goals, doing so for Australia against France in the 1968 tournament.[13]
| Key | ||
|---|---|---|
| Player | The player who scored the hat-trick | |
| For | The team the player scored the hat-trick for | |
| Against | The team the player scored the hat-trick against | |
| Stage | The stage of the tournament at which the hat-trick was scored | |
| Result | The end result of the match | |
| Venue | The stadium and city where the match was played | |
| Date | The date the hat-trick was scored | |
| 4 | Player scored four tries | |
| 5 | Player scored five tries | |
| 6 | Player scored six tries | |
| Player | For | Against | Stage | Result | Venue | Date | Reference | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Group | 34–15 | Stade Vélodrome, Marseille | 7 November 1954 | |||||
| 2 | Group | 21–15 | Headingley, Leeds | 1 October 1960 | [14] | ||||
| 3 | Group | 38–14 | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | 8 June 1968 | [15] | ||||
| 4 | Group | 21–27 | Stade Gilbert Brutus, Perpignan | 29 October 1972 | |||||
| 5 | 4 | Group | 48–2 | Stade Chaban-Delmas, Bordeaux | 11 October 1975 | [16] | |||
| 6 | Group | 18–6 | St. Helen's, Swansea | 19 October 1975 | [17] | ||||
| 7 | Group | 27–12 | Odsal Stadium, Bradford | 25 October 1975 | [18] | ||||
| 8 | Group | 13–16 | Central Park, Wigan | 1 November 1975 | |||||
| 9 | 4 | Group | 52–0 | Stade Albert Domec, Carcassonne | 13 December 1986 | [19] | |||
| 10 | Group | 52–0 | Stade Albert Domec, Carcassonne | 13 December 1986 | |||||
| 11 | Group | 66–14 | Carlaw Park, Auckland | 10 July 1988 | [20] | ||||
| 12 | Group | 66–14 | Carlaw Park, Auckland | 10 July 1988 | |||||
| 13 | 4 | Group | 70–8 | Eric Weissel Oval, Wagga Wagga | 20 July 1988 | [21] | |||
| 14 | Group | 34–0 | Stade Albert Domec, Carcassonne | 3 December 1989 | [22] | ||||
| 15 | Group | 34–2 | Pioneer Oval, Parkes | 27 June 1990 | [23] | ||||
| 16 | Group | 40–6 | PNG Football Stadium, Port Moresby | 13 October 1991 | [24] | ||||
| 17 | Group | 66–10 | Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland | 5 July 1992 | [25] | ||||
| 18 | Group | 28–6 | Ninian Park, Cardiff | 9 October 1995 | [26] | ||||
| 19 | Group | 86–6 | Gateshead International Stadium, Gateshead | 10 October 1995 | [27] | ||||
| 20 | Group | 66–0 | Kirklees Stadium, Huddersfield | 14 October 1995 | [28] | ||||
| 21 | 4 | Group | 66–18 | Stade Sébastien Charléty, Paris | 28 October 2000 | [29] | |||
| 22 | Group | 38–12 | Craven Park, Hull | 29 October 2000 | [30] | ||||
| 23 | Group | 38–6 | Racecourse Ground, Wrexham | 29 October 2000 | [31] | ||||
| 24 | 4 | Group | 66–8 | Gateshead International Stadium, Gateshead | 1 November 2000 | [32] | |||
| 25 | Group | 76–4 | Knowsley Road, St Helens | 1 November 2000 | [33] | ||||
| 26 | Group | 66–10 | Headingley, Leeds | 4 November 2000 | [34] | ||||
| 27 | 4 | Group | 110–4 | , Hull | 4 November 2000 | [35] | |||
| 28 | Group | 110–4 | , Hull | 4 November 2000 | |||||
| 29 | Group | 58–18 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 5 November 2000 | [36] | ||||
| 30 | Group | 56–6 | Stadium Municipal, Toulouse | 5 November 2000 | [37] | ||||
| 31 | Quarter-final | 66–10 | Vicarage Road, Watford | 11 November 2000 | |||||
| 32 | Quarter-final | 54–6 | Wheldon Road, Castleford | 12 November 2000 | |||||
| 33 | Group | 32–22 | Willows Sports Complex, Townsville | 25 October 2008 | [38] | ||||
| 34 | Group | 20–22 | Parramatta Stadium, Parramatta | 27 October 2008 | |||||
| 35 | Group | 42–6 | Wollongong Showground, Wollongong | 1 November 2008 | [39] | ||||
| 36 | Group | 52–4 | Docklands Stadium, Melbourne | 2 November 2008 | [40] | ||||
| 37 | Group | 34–16 | Parramatta Stadium, Parramatta | 5 November 2008 | [41] | ||||
| 38 | 4 | Group | 36–24 | Newcastle International Sports Centre, Newcastle | 8 November 2008 | [42] | |||
| 39 | Group | 46–6 | Willows Sports Complex, Townsville | 9 November 2008 | [43] | ||||
| 40 | Semi-final | 52–0 | Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney | 16 November 2008 | |||||
| 41 | Semi-final | 52–0 | Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney | 16 November 2008 | |||||
| 42 | Group | 42–24 | Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington | 27 October 2013 | [44] | ||||
| 43 | Group | 32–14 | Spotland Stadium, Rochdale | 28 October 2013 | [45] | ||||
| 44 | Group | 42–0 | Kirklees Stadium, Huddersfield | 2 November 2013 | [46] | ||||
| 45 | Group | 38–4 | Craven Park, Hull | 4 November 2013 | [47] | ||||
| 46 | Group | 16–22 | Leigh Sports Village, Leigh | 5 November 2013 | |||||
| 47 | Group | 56–10 | Headingley, Leeds | 8 November 2013 | [48] | ||||
| 48 | 4 | Quarter-final | 62–0 | Racecourse Ground, Wrexham | 16 November 2013 | ||||
| 49 | 4 | Quarter-final | 62–0 | Racecourse Ground, Wrexham | 16 November 2013 | ||||
| 50 | Semi-final | 64–0 | Wembley Stadium, London | 23 November 2013 | |||||
| 51 | Group | 50–6 | PNG Football Stadium, Port Moresby | 28 October 2017 | [49] | ||||
| 52 | Group | 50–4 | Barlow Park, Cairns | 29 October 2017 | [50] | ||||
| 53 | 4 | Group | 52–6 | Canberra Stadium, Canberra | 3 November 2017 | [51] | |||
| 54 | Group | 74–6 | Rugby League Park, Christchurch | 4 November 2017 | [52] | ||||
| 55 | Group | 72–6 | Willows Sports Complex, Townsville | 5 November 2017 | [53] | ||||
| 56 | Group | 38–10 | Canberra Stadium, Canberra | 10 November 2017 | [54] | ||||
| 57 | Group | 28–22 | Waikato Stadium, Hamilton | 11 November 2017 | [55] | ||||
| 58 | Group | 64–0 | PNG Football Stadium, Port Moresby | 12 November 2017 | [56] | ||||
| 59 | 5 | Quarter-final | 46–0 | Darwin Stadium, Darwin | 17 November 2017 | ||||
| 60 | 6 | Semi-final | 54–6 | Brisbane Stadium, Brisbane | 24 November 2017 | ||||
| 61 | Group | 28–4 | Headingley Stadium, Leeds | 16 October 2022 | [57] | ||||
| 62 | 4 | Group | 84–0 | Coventry Building Society Arena, Coventry | 21 October 2022 | [58] | |||
| 63 | Group | 84–0 | Coventry Building Society Arena, Coventry | 21 October 2022 | |||||
| 64 | 4 | Group | 68–6 | MKM Stadium, Hull | 22 October 2022 | [59] | |||
| 65 | Group | 32–6 | Totally Wicked Stadium, St Helens | 24 October 2022 | [60] | ||||
| 66 | 4 | Group | 94–4 | Bramall Lane, Sheffield | 29 October 2022 | [61] | |||
| 67 | Group | 92–10 | Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough | 30 October 2022 | [62] | ||||
| 68 | 4 | Group | 92–10 | Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough | 30 October 2022 | ||||
| 69 | 4 | Group | 62–4 | Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington | 30 October 2022 | [63] | |||
| 70 | 5 | Quarter-final | 48–4 | Kirklees Stadium, Huddersfield | 4 November 2022 |
| Player | For | Against | Stage | Result | Venue | Date | Reference | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Group | 37–4 | Lang Park, Brisbane | 8 June 1968 |
| No. | Tournament(s) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
 | 2 | 1975 | |
| | 2 | 2008 | |
| 2 | 2008, 2013 | ||
| 2 | 2008, 2013 | ||
| | 2 | 2013 | |
| 2 | 2017 | ||
| | 2 | 2017 | |
| | 2 | 2021 |
| Hat-tricks for (tries) | Hat-tricks against (tries) | Hat-tricks for (field goals) | Hat-tricks against (field goals) | Hat-tricks for (total) | Hat-tricks against (total) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 30 | 0 | ||
| 11 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 5 | ||
| 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 3 | ||
| 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | ||
| 5 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 7 | ||
| 2 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 11 | ||
| 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | ||
| 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | ||
| 1 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 11 | ||
| 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | ||
| 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |