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Reece Walsh scored a hat-trick as Australia booked their place in the Rugby League World Cup final with a crushing 44-12 victory over Samoa.
Samoa went two points to the good courtesy of Stephen Crichton’s penalty but the Kangaroos ran in five unanswered tries before the break through Tom Dearden, Jacob Preston, Tom Trbojevic, Walsh and Bradman Best.
Crichton and Izack Tago both crossed the whitewash for Samoa but it did nothing to change the result as Walsh scored two more for his hat-trick before Jack Bostock finished off the scoring for the Kangaroos.
Australia will be looking to make it a fourth successive World Cup victory when they face 2008 winners New Zealand for the trophy in Brisbane next Sunday.
Australia’s women, meanwhile, survived a scare against Fiji to keep their quest for a fourth successive title on track. Abbi Church scored four tries as the Jillaroos eventually powered away to a 30-14 success, setting up their own final against New Zealand.
PA
