The 2022 Rugby League World Cup is well and truly in motion after another day of action that saw history made and the Kiwis get their campaign off to a solid start – although they didn't have it all their own way.
Italy 28 d. Scotland 4
This was expected to be the most competitive of the day's contests, although Italy hadn't played a competitive match in three years and Scotland had played just one game in that time – a draw with Jamaica.
Both teams started well and Scotland had the first genuine chance in the sixth minute when a frantic scramble close to the line saw Matty Russell first to the loose ball, but the try was denied by the video referee.
Within five minutes the Azzurri hit back when fullback Luke Polselli won the race to a Chaise Robinson grubber, and they were in again 10 minutes later after Dean Parata took on the line from dummy-half and sold a dummy to go through easily between the posts.
Italy were guilty of giving up the easiest of tries just moments later. Jack Campagnolo got the ball on a left-side shift and beat the defence, but despite the line in front of him he still opted to pass to Jake Maizen, who wasn't expecting the ball and let it go to ground.
Though Italy didn't cross again in the first half, Scotland went into the break a man down following the sin-binning of captain Dale Ferguson.
Italy capitalised three minutes after the break, with Maizen beating a number of defenders to score under a mountain of pressure. Within 10 minutes the winger was in again after a brilliant play from Polselli, picking up the ball at dummy-half before spinning and taking the short-side option for Maizen to collect his double.
The Italian winger did it all on his own when collecting his hat-trick, taking on the Scottish defence on his own 10-metre line, beating his man and running 90 metres to complete the first hat-trick of the tournament.
The Scots left it until the final five minutes to trouble the scorers, with Euan Aitken delivering a handy offload onto the chest of winger Lachlan Walmsley, who stepped past the on-rushing defence to score a late consolation.
ITALY 28 (Jake Maizen 3, Luke Polselli, Dean Parata tries; Jack Campagnolo 4 goals) D. SCOTLAND 4 (Lachlan Walmsley try).
Ireland 48 d. Jamaica 2
The Reggae Warriors made history with their first World Cup appearance, but they were left with little else to celebrate after a dominant display by Ireland in a 10 tries to nil victory.
The first 10 minutes was a tense affair but the Irish broke the deadlock 12 minutes in, with a simple right-side shift creating space for Louis Senior to go over untouched. Within three minutes they were in again in simple circumstances after lock and captain George King barged his way through soft defence for an easy four-pointer.
When Brendan O'Hagan went over from dummy-half on the next set, Ireland had scored three tries in less than 10 minutes for a 14-0 lead.
The Reggae Warriors were able to halt the relentless momentum for a while, but they would have been disappointed to concede again before the break, with Sydney Roosters half Luke Keary going on a lateral run before a quick shift that saw Ed Chamberlain go over untouched.
The Reggae Warriors finally troubled the scorers in the final stages of the first half, with a Kieran Rush penalty goal being Jamaica's first points at a World Cup.
But the 18-2 half-time score quickly blew out in the second half, with the Irish finding regular success up the middle of the field. The highlight of the onslaught was a remarkable try to Toby King following some individual brilliance from Keary and former Canberra Raider Harry Rushton and an impressive solo effort to James McDonnell.
The Irish ran in three tries in the final 10 minutes to boost the margin and help their points differential, which may come in handy for their all-important clash against Lebanon.
IRELAND 42 (Louis Senior 2, George King, Toby King, Brendan O'Hagan, Ed Chamberlain, Innes Senior, James McDonnell, James Bentley, Frankie Halton tries; Joe Keys 3, Chamberlain goals) D. JAMAICA 2 (Kieran Rush goal).
New Zealand 34 d. Lebanon 12
For all the action from the day's other clash between New Zealand and Lebanon - catch all the action as it happened by heading over to our live blog or checking out our full match report.
AS IT HAPPENED: New Zealand v Lebanon Live Blog
FULL REPORT: Manu magic helps Kiwis to victory over valiant Cedars
