North Macedonia national rugby league team

North Macedonia
Team information
NicknameThe Lions
Governing bodyMacedonian Rugby League
RegionEurope
Head coachAaron Zammit
CaptainJames Mirceski
Most caps10 Players (3)
Top try-scorerJayden Gouganovski (3)
Top point-scorerJayden Gouganovski & James Suleski (12)
Home stadiumForshaw Park
IRL ranking33rd
Uniforms
First colours
Team results
First game
North Macedonia 8-40 Poland 
(Forshaw Park, Sydney, Australia; 21 October 2023)
Biggest defeat
North Macedonia 8-40 Poland 
(Forshaw Park, Sydney, Australia; 21 October 2023)
World Cup
Appearances0
Official rankings as of December 2024
Rank Change Team Pts %
1  Australia 100
2  New Zealand 86
3  England 84
4 1  Tonga 63
5 1  Samoa 54
6 1  Papua New Guinea 53
7 1  Fiji 44
8  France 30
9 2  Serbia 23
10  Cook Islands 22
11 1  Netherlands 22
12 5  Wales 18
13 2  Malta 17
14 6  Ukraine 13
15 1  Greece 12
16 7  Lebanon 12
17 4  Italy 11
18 2  Ireland 9
19 1  Jamaica 8
20 1  Czech Republic 8
21 2  Chile 8
22 3  Scotland 7
23 4  Philippines 7
24 7  United States 7
25 1  Poland 5
26 2  South Africa 5
27 5  Germany 5
28 3  Norway 5
29 4  Brazil 4
30 4  Kenya 4
31 10  Canada 4
32  Montenegro 4
33 2   3
34 15  Argentina 3
35 5  Albania 2
36  Bulgaria 2
37 7  Ghana 2
38 9  Nigeria 2
39 5  Turkey 1
40 3  Cameroon 1
41 2  Japan 1
42 4  Spain 1
43 1  Colombia 1
44 1  El Salvador 0
45  Russia 0
46 1  Bosnia and Herzegovina 0
47 3  Hong Kong 0
48 3  Solomon Islands 0
49 8  Vanuatu 0
50  Niue 0
51 1  Latvia 0
52 2  Denmark 0
53 2  Belgium 0
54 4  Estonia 0
55 9  Sweden 0
56 12  Morocco 0
57 9  Hungary 0
Complete rankings at INTRL.SPORT

The North Macedonia national rugby league team (nicknamed the Lions) represent North Macedonia in international rugby league football competitions.

In October 2022, a North Macedonia team took part in the New South Wales Rugby League Harmony Nines tournament and won the emerging nations competition.[1] North Macedonia applied for membership of the International Rugby League and were awarded observer status in April 2023.[2][3] In October 2023, the Nines team repeated it success in the Harmony Nines tournament[1] and a week later North Macedonia made its full international debut against Poland.[4]


Competitive record

Below is table of the official representative rugby league matches played by Macedonia at test level up until 18 February 2024:

Team First Played Played Win Draw Loss Points For Points Against Last Meeting
 Chile 2024 1 0 0 1 22 36 2024
 Malta 2024 1 0 0 1 18 22 2024
 Poland 2023 1 0 0 1 8 40 2023
Total   3 0 0 3 48 98  

Results

Date Team 1 Score Team 2 Competition Venue Report
21 October 2023 North Macedonia 8–40  Poland Friendly Forshaw Park, Sydney, Australia [4]
4 February 2024 North Macedonia 18–36  Chile Friendly Forshaw Park, Sydney, Australia [5]
18 February 2024 North Macedonia 18–22  Malta Friendly Forshaw Park, Sydney, Australia [6]


References

  1. ^ a b "Lions roar again at Harmony 9s". NSW Rugby League. 14 October 2023. Retrieved 4 March 2025.
  2. ^ "Slovakia and North Macedonia apply to join International Rugby League". Inside the Games. 13 January 2023. Retrieved 4 March 2025.
  3. ^ "North Macedonia and Slovakia granted IRL membership". European Rugby League. 17 April 2023. Retrieved 4 March 2025.
  4. ^ a b "North Macedonia 8 40 Poland". European Rugby League. Retrieved 3 March 2025.
  5. ^ "North Macedonia 18 36 Chile". European Rugby League. Retrieved 3 March 2025.
  6. ^ "North Macedonia 18 22 Malta". European Rugby League. Retrieved 3 March 2025.