2008 World Cup debut best moment for Kumul centre

CENTRE David Mead says one of the greatest moments of his representative career was when he debuted for the Kumuls in their 2008 Rugby League World Cup match against England.
Speaking to Papua New Guinea Rugby Football League chairman Sandis Tsaka on Fulltime Reserve, the Kumul centre said it would have been a dream debut had it not been for a forward pass in the lead-up to his try.
“I still remember the whole thing that night (in Townsville, Australia),” Mead said.
“I thought it was a flat pass. John (Wilshire) passed it and it was on line. It would have helped us go on to win the game but it wasn’t to be.
“But I still enjoyed my debut.
“Obviously, a win would have been nice.”
Mead was only 18 and was playing in the Under-20 National Youth Competition (NYC) with the Gold Coast Titans when he got called up by then Kumuls coach Adrian Lam. PNG were placed in Pool A with Australia, New Zealand and England.
Against England, the Kumuls led 16-12 at halftime, thanks to tries by Rod Griffin, Jason Chan and George Keppa.
Momentum was building for PNG in the second half as the Kumuls continued to play with a lot of heart, which kept England on the back foot.
But the forward pass in the 48th minute swung momentum in England’s favour, allowing the European heavyweights to go on and claim a 32-22 victory.