Lebanon beat Malta 26–10 after a level first half
Lebanon beat Malta 26–10 on 26 September 2026. Get the half-time score, try scorers and ranking status of their first senior women’s meeting.
Lebanon beat Malta 26–10 on Saturday 26 September 2026, scoring three unanswered second-half tries after the teams went into half-time level at 10–10. The women’s senior international took place at Collegians Sports & Performance Centre, listed by International Rugby League as Sydney, Australia. IRL’s official match record confirms the result and half-time score.
| Team | First half | Second half | Full-time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Malta women | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| Lebanon women | 10 | 16 | 26 |
The second-half figures are calculated from the official half-time and full-time totals. Lebanon’s winning margin was 16 points.
How Lebanon pulled away
Malta opened the scoring through Mackenzie Cassar in the seventh minute. Lebanon responded with tries from Amirah El-Abdallah in the 12th minute and Zoey Leigh Saba in the 13th.
El-Abdallah was sinbinned in the 36th minute for a professional foul. Annalise Xerri crossed a minute later, helping Malta reach the interval at 10–10. Lebanon then took control: Audrey Salma Nadaya-Harb scored in the 47th minute, Eden Alexsandra Melham in the 62nd and Saja Rifei in the 78th. Malta did not score again. The European Rugby League report, published on 27 September, describes Lebanon as dominating the second period.
Try scorers and goals
The IRL scorecard records:
- Malta: Mackenzie Cassar (7), Annalise Xerri (37). Cassar kicked one goal from two attempts.
- Lebanon: Amirah El-Abdallah (12), Zoey Leigh Saba (13), Audrey Salma Nadaya-Harb (47), Eden Alexsandra Melham (62), Saja Rifei (78). Nadaya-Harb kicked three goals from five attempts.
Those tallies reconcile with the final score: Malta’s two tries and one goal produced 10 points; Lebanon’s five tries and three goals produced 26. Thomas Inness of Australia refereed the match.
What the match counts as
This was Malta and Lebanon’s first senior women’s international against each other, played for world ranking points—not either nation’s first women’s international. The ERL preview dated 24 September reported that Lebanon had previously played three matches since 2017, all against Italy, while Malta had faced the Philippines in 2022 and 2023.
Lebanon coach Sam Ayache linked the fixture to developing younger players for the 2030 World Cup qualifying process. His reference to 2030 concerned preparation for qualifying; IRL lists this fixture under Senior International Matches (Women).