The Rugby League World Cup semi-finals are done. Australia thumped Samoa 44-12 and the Kiwis ran over Tonga 34-10, which sets up a trans-Tasman decider at Suncorp on Sunday.

Phoenix Trinidad is joined by Zero Tackle’s Magdalena Murdoch, The Leaguie and coach Lee Addison to unpack it all. Did Samoa lose to the refs or to their own ill-discipline? Was Shaun Johnson out of line? Is it time for a new Samoa coach? And is Kalyn Ponga the most in-form fullback in the game after his comeback from a broken arm?

Plus: the IRL’s new great-grandparent eligibility rule, reports the 2030 World Cup is heading to the USA, Lee’s Coach’s Corner on the Kiwis’ defensive weak spots, and the panel’s final predictions.

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⬇️ RUNDOWN:

00:00 Intro

02:23 Aus def. Samoa

13:44 Kiwis def. Tonga

20:29 International eligibility changes

28:54 2030 RLWC in the USA

38:35 Coach's Corner: Kiwis

41:47 Aus vs. Kiwis Preview

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Recorded on 09/11/2026

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Phoenix Trinidad is joined by Zero Tackle writer Leo Twemlow, analyst Darren Parkin and Rugby League Coach Lee Addison to react to the final round of RLWC 2026 pool games.

We debate whether Tonga’s 20-18 win over Samoa at a sold-out CommBank Stadium was bigger than State of Origin. We also break down England’s first-ever World Cup group-stage exit and what’s gone wrong in English rugby league, relive Lebanon’s chaotic golden-point win over France, and ask whether a 10-team World Cup is a mistake.

Then it’s the Kangaroos: Australia beat the Cook Islands 66-6 but completed below 70%. Should it be Reece Walsh or James Tedesco at fullback? In Coach’s Corner, Lee looks at the numbers behind the Kangaroos and the Kiwis. We finish with previews of both semi-finals, Kiwis v Tonga in Newcastle and Kangaroos v Samoa at Allianz Stadium, plus the Ronaldo Mulitalo ban.

⬇️ RUNDOWN:

00:00 Intro

04:39 Number Up

06:38 Bigger than Origin?

16:01 Can Tonga win it?

17:57 England are OUT

24:59 Lebanon v France

29:11 Kangaroos v Cook Islands

33:03 Coach's Corner

36:54 Semi-final previews

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Recorded on 02/11/2026

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Zero Tackle’s Scott Pryde and Phoenix Trinidad run through the potential moves all 19 NRL teams could make from November 1 - assessing the players who could stay or go ahead of the player movement frenzy for 2028.

EDITOR NOTE: since recording this, Zane Harrison has re-signed until the end of 2029!The contract space moves FAST! Keep up to date with our with our contract tracker here:https://www.zerotackle.com/nrl/player-movements/

Recorded on 29/10/2026

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