Tri-Nations 06: Grand Final; Kangaroos vs Kiwis

[jenny]

lol yeah i set it for 8.55am kick off was about 9.15am, im pleased i got up for it, best game of the tri nations in my opinion.

Good stuff Lee! It was one of the Best games i have seen, Kept us on the edge of our seats thats for sure! Terrific Game..A real shot in the arm for Rugby League!

[jenny]

Sublime Lockyer sorely tested

*

Glenn Jackson
November 27, 2006
Page 1 of 2 | Single page
Sydney Morning Herald
Australia 16 NZ 12
Peerless ? Darren Lockyer raises the trophy after his decisive try in the final against New Zealand.

Peerless ? Darren Lockyer raises the trophy after his decisive try in the final against New Zealand.



AUSTRALIAN matchwinner Darren Lockyer played through the Tri-Nations tournament - not to mention Brisbane's surge to the NRL premiership - with a wrist injury that requires surgery.

After scoring the winning try in the 87th minute of the Tri-Nations final against New Zealand at Aussie Stadium on Saturday night, Lockyer made the remarkable revelation that he has been battling the painful problem for more than three months.

Lockyer suffered a tear to the transverse carpal ligament of his left wrist during the Broncos' round-23 clash with Melbourne, and has masked it ever since as he feared opposing players would target it.

"The next day [after the Melbourne game] I could hardly move my arm," Lockyer said. "I knew there was something up, so I had the scans and there was a tear in the cartilage. The doc said I could have the surgery then but I could try and play on."

From that point, the Broncos won every game bar one on the way to the NRL premiership and the Aussies did the same on the way to the Tri-Nations title as Lockyer pulled off a remarkable 2006 trifecta. "It didn't bother me too much during the games," Lockyer said. "Every now and then, it catches a bit when I put weight on the hand. The worst was trying to pass left to right. I knew if I really flicked the wrist, I'd feel it."

He will have surgery in December, allowing him to recover in time for the World Club Challenge against St Helens on February 23.

"I'm going to New Zealand for a couple of weeks," Lockyer said. "As soon as I come back, I'll get it done then I can start training about four weeks after that."

The injury adds a new twist to one of the most remarkable individual performances on record - something Lockyer himself described as "fantasyland". Initially written off as a top-line five-eighth following his controversial shift from fullback, Lockyer has since arguably overtaken Andrew Johns as the game's best player.

"What probably started the attitude was proving people wrong," the 29-year-old said. "The criticism was probably the best thing that could have happened to me."

Lockyer's achievement in captaining the Maroons, the Broncos and the Kangaroos to titles this season led to high praise from the only other man to do it - Allan Langer.

"It's been thoroughly deserved," Langer said. "He was criticised at the start of the year, but that's the sign of a champion - when they get criticised, the only way to shut them up is to go out and play the way he did.

[jenny]

Coaches sweat on sidelines
Monday, November 27, 2006

Bellamy rode the emotional rollercoaster during the Tri-Nations final [Click to

Source: The Courier-Mail

THE tension of Saturday night's Tri-Nations thriller was never more evident than in the Australian coaching box, where Ricky Stuart and assistant Craig Bellamy rode a rollercoaster of emotions.

At one stage Stuart told the equally volatile Bellamy to "shut up" as they strove to make the right calls in the pressure of a game that went into golden point extra time.

On another occasion Bellamy gave Stuart a hug when hooker Cameron Smith came up with a 40-20 kick in the 75th minute with the score 12-12.

"It was a bit nerve-racking," Stuart said. "We had to try to keep our heads and half the time I was trying to keep 'belly ache' (Bellamy) under control. He took over the mantle of head coach for a while."

Stuart, who will coach Cronulla next year, and Bellamy (Melbourne Storm) are close friends and former teammates at the Canberra Raiders. They are also passionate about Test football, and it showed on Saturday.

"Ricky told me to shut up," Bellamy said. "But we're still talking to each other.

"That 40-20 by Cameron was a huge play because in the 10 minutes before that I thought we had imploded. Cameron did that off his own bat. Ricky and I can't take credit."

After the match Bellamy spoke to his Storm players Smith, Greg Inglis, Matt King and Antonio Kaufusi (Australia) and Adam Blair (New Zealand) and urged them to capitalise on their experiences at Test level.

Bellamy said Inglis was destined for a leadership role at the Storm despite being only 19.

"We probably didn't see the best of him playing on the wing for Australia and I want to get him as close to the ball as possible at the Storm," Bellamy said.

"But whatever I do will be what is best for the team."

Bellamy also went out of his way to wish New Zealand veteran David Kidwell well in his new career at South Sydney after four seasons with the Storm.

Prop Petero Civoniceva was presented with the Harry Sunderland Medal yesterday as Australian Test player of the year, an award voted for by his peers.

[jenny]

The greatest Test of all

By Dean Ritchie

November 27, 2006 12:00
Article from: The Daily Telegraph


THE 2006 Tri-Nations series was supposed to be a failure, an example of a game that had stretched its year too far past the regular NRL season.
The fans' thoughts would be focused on our cricketers' fight to regain the Ashes as the days warmed well beyond the chilly temperatures normally associated with rugby league.

Even Australia's self-proclaimed national team, the Wallabies, were playing a series of matches against European nations, building up to their sport's World Cup next year.

The league players themselves would be jaded, as would all but the most diehard of fans.

Rugby league's massive spectator base had again been spoilt rotten by an outstanding domestic NRL and representative season. This international series was, the critics said, unnecessary icing on the cake.

But right from the first moment, Australia, New Zealand and Great Britain showed that rugby league can matter on the international stage.

And if Willie Mason's remarkable tirade at the Kiwis as they performed the haka in the opening match was the perfect start for a game that thrives on controversy, Darren Lockyer's winning try was the crowning glory of a sport that celebrates the highest levels of fitness, strength and skill.

His runaway try in extra time capped one of the most extraordinary individual seasons rugby league will see, with club, Origin and now international glory.

And Saturday night's stunning extra-time triumph provided further evidence that no longer can Australian teams jaywalk to international glory.

It was a match memorable for the courage, strength and pride the 34 players from Australia and New Zealand displayed.

And two of the game's leading historians last night said Australia's epic 16-12 win will be remembered as the greatest Test match played on Australian soil.

There was Cameron Smith's remarkable 40-20, Willie Mason's bust and kick ahead on fulltime, the New Zealanders' sheer courage, Ruben Wiki's brute strength and Lockyer's late try.

Just two weeks ago Johnathan Thurston was controversially dropped from the Kangaroos side, but on Saturday night he made the break that set up the win.

A huge section of the 27,325 crowd chanted "Kiwi", which was then shouted down with the chant of "Aussie".

It was noisy and it was fun. It showed international rugby league still has some kick.

And it showed once-and-for-all that Sydney loves rugby league ? even if it is November.

League historians David Middleton and Ian Collis were asked to rank the five best Tests they had watched in Australia ? and both had little hesitation in putting Saturday night's match at the top of the list.

Collis, a statistician who has written five books on rugby league, rated Saturday night's match equal best with Australia's 19-14 win over Great Britain at the SCG in 1966.

And the pair's thoughts were supported by Cowboys and Blues coach Graham Murray.

The players agreed and Melbourne hooker Smith claimed the Test was tougher and faster than the NRL grand final.

Middleton said: "It was easily the most gripping and gladiatorial contest of the modern era.

"It fell short in a few areas such as ball-handling but you could not dispute the commitment and desperation of both sides."

The scores were locked 12-12 at fulltime before Lockyer's try in the 88th minute finally split the two exhausted sides.

"Saturday night was just amazing," Collis said.

"That match in 1966 had everything, it was one of those magic days, controversy, non-stop action.

"I always felt the '66 game was the best Test I would ever see. But this was equal."

There have been more memorable Test matches in England over the years but Murray cannot recall such a spectacle in Australia.

"I can't remember a better Test match that has been played here in Australia," he said. "It had everything.

"There were big hits, there was toughness, end-to-end footy, 40-20s, golden point, the lot."

Former Souths legend Ron Coote said he "hadn't seen too many better Tests".

"It was a great game ? there haven't been too many tougher Tests," Coote said.

"I'm not going to say it's the greatest ever played in Australia but it was a great game given the players have played so many games by this time of year. It's right up there." OTHER former players claimed the match would not be rated so high had it not entered golden point.

Former Australian forward Bob McCarthy rated the game "eight out of 10".

"But I always like the Tests of the past when the Pommies came out here. They were so skilful."

The final capped a successful, if at times controversial, Tri-Nations series, with ARL CEO Geoff Carr saying: "Both sides were running out of troops but just kept coming."

[jenny]

Fitting finale

By AAP

November 26, 2006 12:00am
Article from: The Sunday Mail (Qld)



ANDREW Johns may come out on top in most bar-room debates over the world's best rugby league player, but Darren Lockyer supporters can now feel they have at least one ace up their sleeve when the topic swings back to league this off-season. An indisputable fact... 2006, the year of Lockyer.

The Brisbane five-eighth could not have scripted a better ending to his greatest season - scoring the winning try in Australia's 16-12 golden-point victory over New Zealand in the Tri-Nations final.

No footballer in the history of rugby league has achieved what the Australian, Queensland and Brisbane Broncos NRL skipper has managed this year with last night's triumph capping a remarkable captain's treble.

Having already guided Queensland to a memorable State of Origin series win and then Brisbane to the NRL title, Lockyer added the Tri-Nations trophy to his collection.

Only Allan Langer has achieved a similar captain's three-peat, in 1998 guiding Brisbane and Queensland to glory and then capping the year by captaining Australia to victory in the Trans-Tasman series.

Lockyer's team success this year, however, came with individual glory.

On Monday he was crowned international player of the year, becoming just the second player since the award's inception in 1985 to win a second Golden Boot.

Champion Newcastle half Johns, who retired from international football after this year's Anzac Test, was the first player to claim a matching pair of boots.

Lockyer, though, will also go down as the first Golden Boot recipient to win a Tri-Nations - now in its fourth edition.

It was only earlier this year critics were still questioning Lockyer's merits as both a five-eighth and leader.

After a gruelling 35-game season that ranks as his finest in 10 years of elite level football, Lockyer has firmly put that debate to bed.

[Future Star]

wow - Locky has an injury and still manages to be the best. hes a true star :guit:

But, imagine what it would've done to the broncos and australia if he injured himself further! i cant...i just cant :')

[davo]

A GAME I WILL NEVER FORGET !!!!!!! BOTH TEAMS PLAYED THEIR ****S OFF AND NOT MUCH BIFF, PLAYED AT PACE AND PHYSICAL AS, COULD OF GONE EITHER WAY, WELL DONE AUSSIE,( this year kiwis will a force in years to come) ANY WAY WELL DONE..!!!!!!!!! :win: