Centenary Test: New Zealand vs Australia

[Queenslander]

New Zealand Kiwis vs Australia Kangaroos
Sunday 14th October; Westpac Trust Stadium, Wellington; 4:00pm (NZ), 2:00pm (AEST)

vs

Referee:

Team Notes:

- Kiwis Coach Gary Kemble has confirmed six players will make their debuts for the Kiwis in the Centenary Test against the Kangaroos in Wellington next Sunday (October 14).

- In trimming his original 19-man squad, Kemble handed first test jerseys to wingers Luke Covell (Cronulla) and Taniela Tuiaki (Wests Tigers), halfback Jeremy Smith (South Sydney), prop FuifuiMoimoi (Parramatta) and loose forward Jeremy Smith (Melbourne) with Melbourne prop Jeff Lima included on the interchange bench.

- Named 18th man is Warriors back rower Louis Anderson and the 19th man is young St George Illawarra centre Chase Stanley.

- The selection means two players with the same name will appear in the same test side for the first time in New Zealand rugby league history – Jeremy James Smith in the No 7 jersey and Jeremy Jon Oscar Smith in No 13.

Kangaroos

- Cameron Smith will captain the Australian Test team against New Zealand on Sunday 14th October in Wellington.

- Manly fullback Brett Stewart, Cronulla duo Greg Bird and Paul Gallen, Melbourne duo Cooper Cronk and Ryan Hoffman and Newcastle's Kurt Gidley have all been selected for their Test debuts and Jarryd Hayne will play in his first Test after being in the squad for the Tri Nations last year without playing a Test

- Melbourne Storm youngster Israel Folau has been called into the Kangaroos side to replace injured Broncos centre Justin Hodges.

Teams

KRISNAN INU
LUKE COVELL
STEVE MATAI
PAUL WHATUIRA
TANIELA TUIAKI
BEN ROBERTS
JEREMY SMITH
ROY ASOTASI
DENE HALATAU
FUIFUI MOIMOI
SIMON MANNERING
FRANK PRITCHARD
JEREMY SMITH

Interchange:

DAVID FAIUMU
SHONTAYNE
SAM RAPIRA
JEFF LIMA

Coach: Gary Kemble

1 Brett Stewart (Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles)
2 Greg Inglis (Melbourne Storm)
3 Mark Gasnier (St.George-Illawarra Dragons)
4 Israel Folau (Melbourne Storm) for Justin Hodges (Brisbane Broncos)
5 Jarryd Hayne (Parramatta Eels)
6 Greg Bird (Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks)
7 Cooper Cronk (Melbourne Storm)
8 Brent Kite (Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles)
9 Cameron Smith, captain (Melbourne Storm)
10 Petero Civoniceva (Brisbane Broncos)
11 Nathan Hindmarsh (Parramatta Eels)
12 Ryan Hoffman (Melbourne Storm)
13 Paul Gallen (Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks)

Interchange:

14 Kurt Gidley (Newcastle Knights)
15 Willie Mason (The Bulldogs)
16 Steve Price (New Zealand Warriors)
17 Michael Crocker (Melbourne Storm)

Coach: Ricky Stuart

[hammer]

Hodges out, Folau in for Kangaroos
Courtesy of ABC Website

International call-up ... Israel Folau scored 21 tries in his debut NRL season with the Storm (Getty Images: Mark Dadswell)

Map: Brisbane 4000
Premiership-winning Melbourne Storm youngster Israel Folau has been called into the Kangaroos side to replace injured Broncos centre Justin Hodges for the one-off Test against New Zealand next week.

Hodges was ruled out earlier today with an ankle injury, and Australian selectors have confirmed that the 18-year-old Folau will take his place in the Kangaroos' backline alongside Dragons centre Mark Gasnier.

Folau's call-up caps an amazing debut season for the Melbourne centre, who equalled Matt Bowen as the NRL's leading try-scorer for the 2007 season with 21 four-pointers, also collecting the Dally M rookie of the year award before taking part in the Storm's grand final win over Manly on Sunday night.

He becomes the sixth player from the Melbourne Storm to be named in the Kangaroos side for next Sunday's match in Wellington, joining Cameron Smith (captain), Greg Inglis, Ryan Hoffman, Cooper Cronk and Michael Crocker.

The team is having its first training session in Sydney today.

[Kelvinator]

funny that he pulled out of the jnr kangaroos with a shoulder injury but is right to play now.

[Super Cronk]

Apprently Smith rushed back to QLd today to visit his mum who is very sick. Some reports say that he will re-join the side later and will play this weekend...but you never know i guess.

Hope his mum gets better, best wishes to Smith and his family.

[jenny]

Australia prepares for hard slog

By Dean Ritchie
October 09, 2007

AUSTRALIA is preparing for a gruelling and grinding Test match this Sunday after being greeted in Wellington yesterday by gusting winds and heavy rain.
Winds in Wellington reportedly hit 100km/h, with coach Ricky Stuart already acknowledging the Test against New Zealand could be a slog.

"I think you will find it will be a real battle up front," Stuart said last night. "The conditions will attract that type of a game.

"New Zealand have picked a very powerful and physical side from their wingers right through to their front row.

"A bench always to me indicates how good a team is and I think New Zealand has chosen a very strong bench.

"We have to be physical but also play very smart."

New Zealand will be relying heavily on its hulking front row pair of Roy Asotasi and Fuifui Moimoi.

Fox Sports

[Queenslander]

Apprently Smith rushed back to QLd today to visit his mum who is very sick. Some reports say that he will re-join the side later and will play this weekend...but you never know i guess.

Hope his mum gets better, best wishes to Smith and his family.

Smith is now in New Zealand training with the squad before the game, so we will see Smith running on in the green and gold on Sunday!

[Capital_Shark]

2PM Sunday arvo? WTF? I expected a Saturday night. Sunday arvo sucks.

[Queenslander]

Six Kiwis to debut in Centenary Test

Written by: NZRL media release

October 10th, 2007 04:35 PM

Kiwis Coach Gary Kemble has confirmed six players will
make their debuts for the Kiwis in the Centenary Test against the Kangaroos in Wellington next Sunday (October 14).

In trimming his original 19-man squad, Kemble handed first test jerseys to wingers Luke Covell (Cronulla) and Taniela Tuiaki (Wests Tigers), halfback Jeremy Smith (South Sydney), prop FuifuiMoimoi (Parramatta) and loose forward Jeremy Smith (Melbourne) with Melbourne prop Jeff Lima included on the interchange bench.

Named 18th man is Warriors back rower Louis Anderson and the 19th man is young St George Illawarra centre Chase Stanley.

The selection means two players with the same name will appear in the same test side for the first time in New Zealand rugby league history ? Jeremy James Smith in the No 7 jersey and Jeremy Jon Oscar Smith in No 13.

There has been a previous instance of two players with the same name appearing in the same Kiwi side but it was in a tour match against Queensland in 1925. Jim O'Brien, a second rower from Devonport, had Marist prop Jim O'Brien as a team-mate (Marist, prop) in that match.

With two Smiths and four other new players, Kemble is excited about the prospect of fielding such a new-look side in such a significant test.

?We?re really happy with the players we have and the whole squad has come together well since we?ve been in camp,? said Kemble.

?This will be one of the most exciting tests in some time with so many players set to make their test debuts, not just in our team but in the Australian side as well.?

Of the New Zealand side that played in this year?s Anzac Test, only two remain in the backline ? Inu and Roberts. The other survivors are captain Roy Asotasi, the most experienced test player in the team with 17 appearances, hooker Dene Halatau, back rowers Simon Mannering and Frank Pritchard and interchange forwards David Faiumu and Sam Rapira.
Mannering was in the centres in the Anzac Test.

Centres Paul Whatuira and Steve Matai plus interchange utility Shontayne Hape are recalled after missing the Anzac Test. Matai and Hape were both involved in the Tri Nations campaign last year while the last of Whatuira?s 11 tests was last year?s Anzac Test.

KIWIS:

KRISNAN INU
LUKE COVELL
STEVE MATAI
PAUL WHATUIRA
TANIELA TUIAKI
BEN ROBERTS
JEREMY SMITH
ROY ASOTASI
DENE HALATAU
FUIFUI MOIMOI
SIMON MANNERING
FRANK PRITCHARD
JEREMY SMITH

Interchange:

DAVID FAIUMU
SHONTAYNE
SAM RAPIRA
JEFF LIMA

[Super Cronk]

Cant wait for this game. Mainly to see how Cronk handles rep footy.

I think the aussies will just demolish the kiwis tho....i expect a belting and a half.

[jenny]

Kiwis under pump against Roos: Gidley

October 10, 2007

Kangaroos utility Kurt Gidley believes the New Zealand rugby league team is under immense pressure to lift the country's spirits after the All Blacks were knocked out of the Rugby World Cup.

Gidley has been selected on the Australian bench for Sunday's Test match against the Kiwis at Wellington's Westpac Stadium, one of seven debutants in coach Ricky Stuart's new-look side.

New Zealand have picked a monster pack, led by skipper Roy Asotasi, and Gidley expects a physical tussle with some added spice after the All Blacks - who arrived home on Wednesday - suffered a surprise quarter-final defeat to France.

"All the games I've watched in the past (between Australia and New Zealand), it's always a pretty physical game," Gidley said.

"No doubt it's going to be like that again and being a home game for them, they're going to be nice and fired up.

"They've probably got the rest of the country's weight on their shoulders to try to win this game after the All Blacks got knocked out."

Gidley's Newcastle Knights suffered through a turbulent 2007 NRL season, including the retirement and subsequent drug-taking confessions of favourite son Andrew Johns and a lowly 15th-place finish on the ladder.

But Gidley relished a switch to fullback and was given plenty of freedom by Knights coach Brian Smith, a move which led to his first Origin call-up and a spot in the original Kangaroos train-on squad.

He then did enough in camp to earn a spot in Stuart's final 17-man squad.

"After a disappointing year for the club it was a nice way to finish the season off being picked in the team and playing my first Test," Gidley said.

"It's all fallen into place. I'm glad I stayed behind and trained with the train-on squad and did the work and got picked in the team.

"I think the move to fullback definitely suited me the most this year and I really enjoyed playing there.

"Being picked for my first Origin game and then this has been a great year for myself."

Gidley expects to see time at five eighth or hooker on Sunday, but his versatility could prove a real asset for the Australian team, particularly if they suffer any injuries.

Australia have won the past five clashes against the Kiwis dating back to the 2005 Tri Nations final, but Gidley believes there is little between the two sides.

"I think the game's getting more equal around the world," he said.

"With New Zealand and England it's starting to get a bit tighter these days, especially Australia and New Zealand games.

"It's not as black and white as it used to be."

Everyone made it through a wet training session in Wellington for the Australian side, which is a short $1.36 favourite with SportsTAB to New Zealand's $3.

? 2007 AAP

[jenny]

Chalmers takes aim at 'pale Kangaroos'

October 11, 2007

The head of the New Zealand rugby league claims the current crop of Kangaroos are a pale imitation of Australian sides of recent years, setting the scene for a fiery trans-Tasman Test on Sunday.

NZRL chairman Andrew Chalmers said he found himself "chuckling" at reports the Australians had picked a side capable of taking the fight up to the Kiwi forwards, claiming the Kangaroos would be exposed at Westpac Stadium this weekend.

Injuries have forced the Australians into blooding eight debutants against the Kiwis, and Chalmers believes they may not be able to handle the heat at what is affectionately known as 'the cake tin'.

"In recent years Australian teams have had that formidable look about them, dripping with super, super, super talent," Chalmers said.

"I think when you look at this team it's not as formidable as in recent years.

"It's a very classy side, but in my opinion they're a bit vulnerable."

Chalmers took aim at the Kangaroos pack, and in particular claims that it contained a little more mongrel with the inclusion of the likes of Willie Mason and Michael Crocker coming off the bench.

"I was in Sydney after the grand final and was diligently reading all the press and chuckling away to myself," he said.

"There just seemed to be this common theme that the Australians were picking a side that was going to muscle up and come over here and do the business and make it a tough, physical encounter.

"Well we'll see how tough they are on Sunday won't we?

"I think they're vulnerable and we're going to find out how tough they are."

The Australians have enjoyed a quiet preparation in cloud-covered Wellington.

Their only hiccup has been a desperate search for an alternative training venue after their initial choice was deemed unsuitable following recent rain.

But they resisted the urge to take a nibble at Chalmers' bait.

"If Andrew says that, that's the way he sees it," veteran prop Steve Price said.

But former skipper Gordon Tallis, who was in Wellington for a special luncheon involving the two teams and New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark to celebrate 100 years of rugby league in New Zealand, rubbished the outburst.

"(Nathan) Hindmarsh, (Petero) Civoniceva, Dallas Johnson, Willie Mason - are these guys soft? Come on," Tallis said.

"I'd never write any Test side off, ever.

"Games are never played on paper - it's going to be tough, every Test match is tough."

Price, who will return to the Test fold for the first time since Australia's embarrassing 2005 Tri-Nations final loss to the Kiwis, said everyone picked in the Kangaroos squad was up to the task.

"When you look at the guys that have been chosen, they've all got a fair bit of NRL experience so it's not as though they're just new on the block," he said.

"They've been around for a while and they've been given an opportunity through some injuries to players that would have probably been there like (Darren) Lockyer, (Johnathan) Thurston and those sort of guys.

"But they deserve the opportunity, it's not as though they're there because there's no-one else, they've been fighting over each other to get those spots.

"When there's still guys like Matty Bowen and Billy Slater and Matt Orford and Mark O'Meley not in the side - it's not as though they can't play."

The Australians have ditched a waterlogged Evans Bay Park in preference for Rugby League Park as their training venue, but even that is likely to be wet with persistent rain in Wellington all week.

Rain is expected to continue through to the weekend, which will only increase the likelihood of a forward-dominated slugfest on Sunday afternoon.

? 2007 AAP

[jenny]

Kiwis set up Folau-Tuiaki monster mash

October 11, 2007

Wingers aren't normally associated with size, power and brute force - but then again Kangaroos teenager Israel Folau and Kiwi man mountain Taniela Tuiaki aren't your average wingers.

The two Test rookies will go head to head in Sunday's trans-Tasman Test at Westpac Stadium after New Zealand coach Gary Kemble revealed he would shift left winger Luke Covell to the right where he will oppose another debutant in Jarryd Hayne.

"It's not really to combat Folau or anything, it's a comfort thing," Kemble said.

"Luke can adapt anywhere really whether it be right or left and Taniela's only ever played on the left.

"It's going to be great to see those two players (Tuiaki and Folau) go up against each other because the crowds love them.

"Both of them score tries, both are big, strong and powerful."

Tuiaki, who struck fear into opposition wingers as he catapulted his 188cm, 105kg frame into the fray, shared his time between the wing and the backrow with Wests Tigers this year.

But Kemble said he was unlikely to be shifted to the pack given the Kiwis have four forwards on the bench.

Kemble may also be reticent to move Tuiaki off the flank given he may be the only player with the size and speed capable of keeping Folau, who scored a club record 21 tries in his rookie NRL campaign with Melbourne, under control.

The Kangaroos say they have seen little sign of nerves from Folau during his time in camp, with most taken aback by the sheer magnitude of his frame.

"He's six foot four, 103 kilos and he's barely 18 - I'd hate to see him when he's 24, 25," said roommate Mark Gasnier, who will play inside Folau on the right edge.

Prop Steve Price said Folau's stunning introduction to the NRL reminded him of the way in which former Bulldogs teammate Sonny Bill Williams burst onto the scene in 2004.

But having seen how Braith Anasta struggled with the burden of being tagged 'the next Brad Fittler', Price said comparing young players with former greats was both unfair and unrealistic.

"(Folau's) outstanding in his own right," Price said.

"He's Israel Folau. Sonny Bill Williams is Sonny Bill Williams and it was the same when Sonny came through - they're young and they've got to earn (the praise).

"Potentially they can be outstanding but potential is a bad word because they've shown at times they can be brilliant, but they've got to be able to do it every year for a long period before they can be known as greats of the game.

"Being only 18-years old, I think it's really bad to try compare him to Mal Meninga or Sonny Bill Williams or whoever it might be.

"I've found guys that have been compared (to great players) don't usually reach the heights because of the extra pressure.

"When Braith came through it was the next Brad Fittler - it's really hard on a young guy to be in that situation.

"I don't think Israel's a guy that gets caught up in it all ... he's just trying to be an 18-year-old kid living his dream."

? 2007 AAP

[Super Cronk]

Bring it on. Izzy will handle him WITH EASE.

[DIEHARD]

This is building as a huge match, I am just disappointed it isnt a series!

I'm looking forward to this a lot more than the Grand Final.

[jenny]

Will Fox Replay it?...We have to work!