BRAMPTON — Candice Scholten scored two tries as the Canada Ravens scored 30 second-half points to beat Ireland 36-6 on Sunday and finish third in a four-team Women's Rugby League World Cup qualifier.
No. 16 Fiji faced No. 17 Nigeria later on Sunday in the final at Terry Fox Stadium with the eighth and final spot at the 2026 World Cup in Australia and Papua New Guinea on the line.
Fiji beat No. 10 Canada 48-0 and Nigeria beat No. 8 Ireland 10-0 in Tuesday's semi-final match of the International Rugby League (IRL) Women's Rugby League World Series.
Australia No. 1, New Zealand No. 2, England No. 3, France No. 4, Papua New Guinea No. 5, Wales No. 6 and Samoa No. 12 have already qualified for next year's World Cup, which will also feature men. (IRL rankings are uneven because teams like Canada rarely compete in international tests).
The Ravens advanced to the four-team qualifier by defeating the 11th-ranked Hawks USA 40-8 in the Women's American Championship final last November in Jacksonville, Florida.
Canadian women competed at the 2017 and 2021 World Championships, but the qualifying process was more difficult this time around.
Rugby league is a lesser-known code of rugby that plays with 13 players instead of the 15 players found in rugby union. It's a physical game with powerful forwards and elusive defenders, each of whom pose a different threat.
Megan Pakoulis, Eleta Mitton, Lauren Mueller and Grace Campbell also scored for Canada. Caitlin Sears and Maddie Aberg combined for six conversions.
Tricia Doyle had Ireland's only try and Storm Cobain converted.
Down 6-6 after an error-filled first half, Canada took a 12-6 lead early in the second, taking advantage of a turnover deep on the Irish wing after two Irish players collided while attempting a shot. Mitton scored in the ensuing Canadian set.
Scholten then overcame three Irish tackles with a fine solo run down the middle to give Team Canada an 18-6 lead before Mueller ran 40 meters down the touchline following an Irish turnover midway through the half to make it 24-6 at the half.
Canada kept coming with tries from Campbell and Scholten.
Both teams threatened early in the game, but it ended with errors. But Canada took a 6-0 lead in the ninth minute when Pakoulis broke a tackle and scored to cap a set that included a brilliant break from defender Petra Woods.
Ireland had several sets deep in Canadian territory after Ravens errors, but the Canadian defense held in the first and Ireland punted the ball away in the second.
Ireland conceded a penalty midway through the first half after Canada was penalized for a tackle. A succession of Canadian errors and penalties halted the home side's progress and the Irish finally took advantage late in the half, leveling the score at 6-6 after Doyle kicked home.
Canada coach Matt Barron made one change to his starting lineup: Bethany Hofstetter made her debut. Mitton was dropped to the bench and Rebecca Kochuk was left out of the matchday squad after being knocked out on her debut against Fiji.
The Fijian team, which has eight players from Australia's elite National Rugby League Women's Premier League (NRLW), proved too strong in the semi-finals for Canada, whose only NRLW player was Pakoulis. Six of Fiji's 10 tries came after the 58-minute mark, with four coming in the final 10 minutes.
The Ravens will begin their next qualifying round at the end of next year with the American Championship. The 2028 World Cup will become an independent women's tournament. Barron plans to build an “elite training squad” ahead of a possible European tour in July, where he will play Scotland and Wales.
Canada has several professional players on its roster.
Pakulis finishes the season with the NRLW Gold Coast Titans, while Muller and Channie Crowl play in England for the London Broncos and St Helens respectively. Sears and Rachel Choboter play for New Zealand club teams.
However, preparing for a Ravens game is still a pay-for-play scenario, with players paying their own travel expenses for the tournament in Brampton.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 26, 2025.
