Australia soared to a 13-3 win over the Philippines on the final day of the 2026 Asia-Pacific Men’s Lacrosse Championship to claim the gold medal and wrap up a dominant campaign in Wellington, New Zealand.
Japan took the bronze medal by fending off New Zealand, 9-5, earlier in the day in a tightly contested affair.
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Australia won its first Asia-Pacific Men’s Lacrosse Championship since 2007, when it bested Japan in a battle of U21 squads, and its fourth overall. The Philippines earned a medal in the championship for the first time ever, while Japan extended its medal streak to ten.
Australia’s five-game undefeated campaign at the championship featured the best scoring offense and best scoring defense with an average of fewer than four goals allowed per game. Sunday’s final was another lockdown effort from the Aussies with just 17 shots on goal allowed, and an impressive 15-save outing from goalkeeper Kody Watts.
Japan and New Zealand locked horns in a defensive battle that was 3-3 at halftime. Japan led 6-3 in the third, but New Zealand rallied to cut it to 6-5. In the fourth however, Japan outlasted the resilient effort from the hosts to find three goals in the final five minutes. Kuroda Kenshiro scored five, including the late effort to restore a two-goal lead.
Hong Kong, China earned its second win of the week against China by a 19-6 decision and seven points from Corbyn Tao.
The top four finishers – Australia, Philippines, Japan and New Zealand – all qualified for the 2027 World Lacrosse Men’s Championship in Japan with a 16 team field. Korea, Hong Kong, China and China all earned spots for the 2027 World Lacrosse Men’s Championship Division II in Wroclaw, Poland.
Statistics from the event are available at worldlacrosse.sport/APMLC26 and replays are available of all games on WL TV for free after 24 hours of the conclusion of the event.
Points Leaderboard
Komine Takuma, Japan: 18 goals, 4 assists
Corbyn Tao, Hong Kong, China: 16 goals, 3 assists
Matthew Wood, Australia: 14 goals, 2 assists
Kuroda Kenshiro, Japan: 14 goals, 1 assist
Komatsu Yuto, Japan: 8 goals, 7 assists
Lachlan Walker, Australia: 7 goals, 8 assists
Save Percentage Leaderboard (min. 15 saves)
Kody Watts, Australia: 35 saves, 74%
Edward Lie-A-Cheong, Hong Kong, China: 59 saves, 60%
Daniel Morris, Philippines: 48 saves, 59%
Fujii Kaisho, Japan: 40 saves, 57%
Zhuoran Xu, China: 39 saves, 49%
Australia
13
Top Performers
Kody Watts, 15 saves, 88% save percentage
John Stubbs: Four goals
Matthew Wood: Three goals
Highlights
Japan
Top Performers
Kuroda Kenshiro: Five goals
Fujii Kaisho: Nine saves, 64% save percentage
Okamoto Neo: Seven face-off wins, 64% win percentage
Highlights
Hong Kong, China
19
Top Performers
Corbyn Tao: Six goals, one assist
Ka Ho Geoffrey Tsoi: 17 face-off wins, 68% win percentage
Haydn Cheung: Two goals, three assists
Highlights