# 1970 Rugby League World Cup final

The 1970 Rugby League World Cup final was the conclusive game of the 1970 Rugby League World Cup tournament and was played between Great Britain and Australia on 8 November 1970 at the Headingley ground in Leeds, England.

## Background

The 1970 Rugby League World Cup was the fifth staging of the Rugby League World Cup since its inauguration in 1954, and the first since the 1968 tournament. The tournament was held in the England from 21 October, culminating in the final between Great Britain and Australia on 8 November.

### Great Britain

    Scores and results list Australia's points tally first.
| Opposing Team | For | Against | Date | Venue | Attendance | Stage |
| Australia | 11 | 4 | 24 October | Headingley, Leeds | 15,084 | Group stage |
| France | 6 | 0 | 28 October | Wheldon Road, Castleford | 8,958 | Group stage |
| New Zealand | 53 | 19 | 31 October | Station Road, Swinton | 5,609 | Group stage |
Great Britain were undefeated going into the final.

### Australia

    Scores and results list Great Britain's points tally first.
| Opposing Team | For | Against | Date | Venue | Attendance | Stage |
| New Zealand | 47 | 11 | 21 October | Central Park, Wigan | 9,805 | Group stage |
| Great Britain | 4 | 11 | 24 October | Headingley, Leeds | 15,084 | Group stage |
| France | 15 | 17 | 1 November | Odsal Stadium, Bradford | 6,654 | Group stage |
Australia, France and New Zealand all finished with one win each. Australia advanced to the Final by virtue of a better for and against record.

## Match details

* 7 November 1970
| Great Britain | 7–12 | Australia |
| Tries: John Atkinson Goals: Ray Dutton (1) Field Goal: Syd Hynes | | Tries: John Cootes Lionel Williamson Goals: Eric Simms (2) Field Goal: Eric Simms |
* Headingley, Leeds Attendance: 18,776 Referee: Fred Lindop (Great Britain)
| Great Britain | Australia |
| FB | 1 | Ray Dutton |
| RW | 2 | Alan Smith |
| RC | 3 | Syd Hynes |
| LC | 4 | Frank Myler (c) |
| LW | 5 | John Atkinson |
| SO | 6 | Mick Shoebottom |
| SH | 7 | Keith Hepworth |
| PR | 8 | Dennis Hartley |
| HK | 9 | Tony Fisher |
| PR | 10 | Cliff Watson |
| SR | 11 | Jimmy Thompson |
| SR | 12 | Doug Laughton |
| LF | 13 | Mal Reilly |
| Substitutions: ||
| IC | 14 | Chris Hesketh |
| IC | 15 | Bob Haigh |
| Coach: ||
| Johnny Whiteley ||
| FB | 1 | Eric Simms |
| RW | 2 | Lionel Williamson |
| RC | 3 | John Cootes |
| LC | 4 | Paul Sait |
| LW | 5 | Mark Harris |
| FE | 6 | Bob Fulton |
| HB | 7 | Billy Smith |
| PR | 8 | John O'Neill |
| HK | 9 | Ron Turner |
| PR | 10 | Bob O'Reilly |
| SR | 11 | Bob McCarthy |
| SR | 12 | Ron Costello |
| LK | 13 | Ron Coote (c) |
| Substitutions: ||
| IC | 14 | Ray Branighan |
| IC | 15 | Elwyn Walters |
| Coach: ||
| Harry Bath ||
Having retained the Ashes against Australia during their 1970 Australasian tour, Great Britain were favourites to win the final, which would become known as the 'Battle of Headingley' due to its brutality. However it went completely against expectations as Britain failed to play any decent football despite overwhelming possession. The Kangaroos led 5–4 at half-time with a try to Australian three-quarter, Father John Cootes. They went on to utilise their meagre chances to the full, running out 12–7 victors. The game itself was an extended punch-up. The only surprise was that it took 79 minutes before anyone was sent off. Two sacrificial lambs, Billy Smith of Australia and Syd Hynes of Britain, were sent off the field in the last minute for what had been going unpunished throughout the game.
Great Britain, having been undefeated in the World Cup, felt that there should not have been a need to play a final, especially as they had already defeated Australia 11-4 at Headingley in the second game of the tournament.
   We beat them at Leeds in the group stages as well as beating France and New Zealand so we were confident but in the final we got our tactics wrong. We tried to physically knock them down but we should have played more football. John Atkinson had that altercation with Father John Cootes after the final whistle. Tactically we didn't play to our best. Maybe there was some complacency due to the Ashes win and the group stage games.
(Note: Although Reilly recalls a post-match incident between Atkinson and Cootes, what actually happened was Australian fullback Eric Simms attempted to shake hands with Atkinson after the game, but was instead greeted with a headbutt by the frustrated Lions winger. This led to a wild post-match brawl between the teams that had to be broken up by referee Fred Lindop, his two touch judges, and the Leeds City Police.)