Kiwis can look forward to tour

Press, 28 July 1989, Page 40

Kiwis can look forward to tour

For the third time in the last decade a New Zealand rugby league team can look ahead to a tour of Britain and France with a fair measure of confidence in spite of having lost to Australia in the preceding home season. Although conceding experience, size and combination, the Kiwis improved markedly as the Lion Red series advanced. After last Sunday’s World Cup qualifying match at Mount Smart Stadium in Auckland, spokesmen from both camps predicted a prosperous future for the young squad. Inevitably there was disappointment that the Kiwis should produce such an error-ridden display in the second match at Rotorua after having forced the Australians into making so many mistakes that an upset was possible. It was a similar situation last Sunday. New Zealand at last breached the seemingly impenetrable Australian defence to draw level in the final quarter. The tourists were deary under pressure. But the Kiwis did not have the composure to capitalise on the situation. Panic set in. Field goal opportunities were taken in desperation instead of with deliberation, a few basic blunders were to prove fatal, and the remarkable Mai Meninga and the brilliant young Bradley Clyde conspired to complete an Australian clean sweep.

In 1980 the Kiwis, coached by Ces Mountford and captained by Mark Graham, lost twice at home to Australia before drawing test series in both Britain and France. Five years later New Zealand was unlucky to lose close encounters at Brisbane and Auckland before demolishing the Australians at Carlaw Park. With the highly rated coach and captain partnership of Graham Lowe and Mark Graham, the Kiwis again had a tied series in Britain before easily accounting for a poor French squad. The 1989 Kiwis, with Tony Gordon, under duress from critics of his coaching methods, and Hugh McGahan at the helm, should again be too skilled for the French. The tests against the British at Old Trafford, Eiland Road and Central Park promise to rank with the most memorable between the two nations. Britain’s players are still glowing from their third test defeat of Australia at Sydney last year, still smarting from the narrow loss to the Kiwis at Christchurch which cost them a place in the 1988 World Cup final. Ellery Hanley, Shaun Edwards, Andy Gregory, Garry Schofield, Steve Hampson, Martin Offiah, Joe Lydon and Hugh Waddell, all likely opponents of the Kiwis, have been stamping their class on the New South Wales premiership. So, too, has Andy Cur-

rier, a virtually anonymous figure after joining the 1988 Lions as a midtour replacement Tall, fast alert to every attacking chance, and a prolific goal-kicker, Currier has been a revelation with Balmain. Yet Bob Fulton, the Australian coach, bestowed favouritism upon the Kiwis to overcome that array of British talent in October and November. “The Kiwis will be very strong on their tour,” said Fulton. Both Mr Gordon and McGahan fell into step with that line of thinking. They were adamant the 17-man squad which assembled in Auckland last week should be kept intact. With Phil Bancroft and Tony Iro likely to be recalled, and Adrian Shelford and Shane Cooper eligible for the whole tour

By

JOHN COFFEY

(not just the tests, as in the cases of Dean Bell and Kurt Sorensen), there are precious few places open to other New Zea-land-domiciled candidates. Apart from the embarassing 20-2 half-time score in the first test at Christchurch, as the Kiwis struggled to find any team-work, this month’s series was quite evenly contested. In no other 40minute period did the Australians out-score their rivals by more than six' points, or one converted try. Had there been a “man of the series” award among the Kiwis it would surely have been won by the fullback, Darrell Williams, who was most responsible for preventing the Australians achieving comfortable wins at Rotorua and Auckland. Williams has undergone major surgery on both knees, the second operation forcing him out of last year’s World Cup final. Those setbacks have not inhibited him. “If Darrell Williams hadn’t played for the Kiwis in the series we would have scored another six tries. He had another superb game today,” said Mr Fulton last Sunday. “He was the best player we came up against on tour,” added Mr Fulton, who had Williams in his

1987 premiership-winning Manly-Warringah club side in Sydney. But old loyalties had nothing to do with his bountiful praise. Williams had in fact confounded Paul Vautin, Kerrod Walters and Greg Alexander in one-on-one situations in Christchurch, caught Meninga from behind at Rotorua, then stopped Gary Belcher and Clyde just out from the Kiwi goal-line last Sunday. As if that was not enough, Williams was the vital middle man between McGahan and Gary Mercer when Mercer touched down to tie the totals in the third test. “It’s just part of the job, it’s got to be done,” was Williams’s modest summation. “I worry more about the ones I miss than the tackles I make.” Williams, aged 25 and nearing the completion of his initial three-year contract at Manly, admitted that another knee injury could end his career. It takes extreme courage to involve oneself as physically as Williams, knowing that the next tackle, the next sharp turn could end his footballing days — not to mention the heavy “hit” from Wally Lewis which had Williams “seeing birds for a while.” “Darrell’s all-round performances in attack and defence have been firstclass,” said McGahan. “A team gets a big lift when there is someone at the back playing so well.” Yet McGahan believes

Williams could be even more effective on attack as the Kiwi hope to encounter a less professional defensive pattern on their tour. The results apart, there were many positive aspects of the trans-Tasman tests. Uppermost among them was the resolve of the Kiwi forwards not to allow their mammoth and mobile markers to overrun them. Brent Todd, McGahan, Sam Stewart and James Goulding all played above their weight in the face of great odds, with the unheralded Goulding perhaps deserving most credit for also overcoming the problems of a four-year absence from international rugby league and a switch from second-row to prop. Gary Freeman was clearly a little rusty after his long layoff and should be a more commanding

figure on tour, Tony Kemp had a very good second test, and both Mark Elia and Gary Mercer proved they should have been the first-choice wings throughout the series. The disappointments were the British-based backline trio of Kevin Iro, Cooper and Tony Iro. They appeared to be moving at a pace somewhat slower than team-mates and opponents used to the speed of Sydney football. Cooper was too easily isolated by Lewis, and the Iro brothers were guilty of numerous fumbles until Kevin Iro had a better third game after being relieved of the goal-kick-ing duties. Duane Mann’s busy work-rate ensures that he will go to Britain as the top-ranked hooker, and Kelly Shelford did enough at Auckland to keep him ahead of Cooper in the stand-off half ratings. Shelford was also the best of the part-time goal-kick-ers in the tests; Bancroft is the logical second scrum-half and the specialist kicker in his appearances. “I think by next year we will have a very formidable side,” said Mr Gordon. That time scale might have to be brought forward by a few months if the Kiwis are to defend their proud record of not having lost a series in Britain since 1965 and to return home with two valuable World Cup points.

Darrell Williams, the outstanding Kiwi player in the transTasman rugby league tests, surrounded by three Australian players, Steve Roach, Wally Lewis (No. 6) and Sam Backo (No. 8).