RLWC Final 2013 - Australia vs. New Zealand

[Saints1]

Venue: Old Trafford
Time: 2:30pm
TV: BBC Sports/Premier Sports

Might as well get the ball rolling with this seeing as the whole of the rugby world is talking about the last minute antics of the Kiwis and the All Blacks this weekend!

I really can't wait for this, I'll be there. I bought my tickets in June which is a very good job because it's almost a sell out.

 

[Rhyer]

It'll be a good game but does anyone actually expect NZ to win? Australia are too good and NZ are off form. Australia by 10+ is my prediction.

 

[Jaguares]

The final will be the day of my birthday! So the kangaroos are the favorites, right? I'll watch the game

 

[Saints1]

It'll be a good game but does anyone actually expect NZ to win? Australia are too good and NZ are off form. Australia by 10+ is my prediction.

Me.

I think they'll defend their crown in a tight match.

 

[james5000]

It'll be a good game but does anyone actually expect NZ to win? Australia are too good and NZ are off form. Australia by 10+ is my prediction.

I don't expect them to win but I think they will win. We need a few changes to the team and to tighten our defence a great deal.

Aussie have not conceded a try since their opening game of the tournament, thats a monumental effort even considering the teams they have played.
Aussies attack is even better than their defence, they are rightfully the favourites for the ***le.

 

[Sam Owen]

It'll be a good game but does anyone actually expect NZ to win? Australia are too good and NZ are off form. Australia by 10+ is my prediction.

Yeah I do and you're right Im sure it'll be a good game. They (the Kiwis) have the players to do it so I expect them to do it.

I agree with you that the Roos are too good and if the Kiwis win next week, Austrailia would still be the best League team in the world.

I know I might come across confusing but thats what I think

 

[Saints1]

I know exactly what you're getting at. The Aussies have the best squad but the Kiwis know how to beat Australia in big one off matches. 2008 RLWC was not a one off, Kiwis have won other finals in the past ten years at Australia's expense.

 

[RoosTah]

The Kiwis played some truly awful footy against England on the weekend - they didn't produce a decent 5th tackle option until the second half and generally had a high error rate. That said, they do have a pretty impressive side, and these days I try not to take anything for granted against the Kiwis as they always lift against us.

I'm still expecting Australia to win though, as I suspect that the England match will have taken quite a toll on them physically and emotionally (SBW reckons it was the toughest game of footy he's ever played in), so it may be hard for them to get up again and they will have to play a lot better to beat an Australian team with strike weapons all over the park. They're definitely going to struggle in the centres (Goodwin is barely 1st grade quality) and with Sheck likely out, they will find finishing a bit of a challenge too. Meanwhile, Australia now may have Slater back, and their only major problem seems to be how to accommodate all the talent in their backline.

 

[FlukeArtist]

The Kiwis are going to get a total and utter shellacking this weekend.

We will be lucky to get within 12 points of the Roos.

 

[UilamOsa]

We will win.

The desire and lessons from the England game will carry through.

We will need to drop one of our bigger props for Sam Moa. We need to get rid of Taylor. Kearney needs to do what he planned (or what Wayne Bennett planned) in 08 and have someone constantly harass Jonathan Thurston.

They need to shore up their left side defensive edge. Johnson needs to stop kicking out of hand. Maybe even rely on Isaac Luke to do more kicking from dummy half.

It's a one Ref system, and likely to be a SL ref, so they will need to get in their faces and make a mess out of the ruck area. The Pommies outgunned our pack in almost every facet of play - so hopefully that will lift them to new heights.

 

[Sam Owen]

Kearney should pick this team

1. Locke
2. Vatuvai
3. Inu
4. Whare
5. Shek
6. Foran
7. Johnson
8. Matulino
9. Luke
10. Bromwich
11. Pritchard
12. Williams
13. Mannering
14. Glenn
15. Moa
16. Kasiano
17. Eastwood

 

[RoosTah]

Sheck and Prichard are currently both under injury clouds - that could be a worry. Agree with you on the centres though - the Kiwis will be creamed through there if they persist with Goodwin.

Really looking forward to the game, but I have a feeling New Zealand played their final a week early with that effort.

 

[Saints1]

That may well be the case, but do you not worry that the Kangaroos might suffer from having gone a month without a competitive game?

 

[RoosTah]

That may well be the case, but do you not worry that the Kangaroos might suffer from having gone a month without a competitive game?

A little bit. There's always the danger the Kiwis will be the more battle hardened, but it's not like the Kangaroos boys won't know what to expect. At the end of the day I think that this time their class will just be too much - even with the likes of SBW in their ranks.

 

[Saints1]

Only five days to wait. I'm counting the hours. It's been a brilliant tournament and I hope the final matches suit. With a New Zealand win of course!

 

[RoosTah]

Hahaha I figured you guys would be going for the Kiwis. I actually did a bit last time around, but now with them utterly dominating us in Union I can't bring myself to support them over us in League... they just enjoy it too much! I'm not quite that way with England though - in League I sort of hope you guys will win in spite of absolutely hating the English Union team. Maybe that's because we're still pretty competitive with you guys in Union (though by rights England should be like the All Blacks - have way more resources both in terms of players and finances than anyone else by a mile).

 

[Saints1]

England RL would compete with Australia and New Zealand more often if we had a competent governing body. In the forwards we are the match of either - but in the centres and in the half backs the gap is a decade wide, if not longer and those are key positions.

 

[TRF_melon]

It looks like Slater may be fit for the final.

If he comes back, it will be at fullback with Inglis slotting back in to the centres and Tate either dropping out of the 17 man squad all together or taking the bench spot from Josh Papalii.

At this point in time I'd honestly prefer to retain the lineup we had against Fiji, regardless of whether or not Slater is fit.

Who knows how long his knee would last? Would the risk be worth it? If Tate was to be picked on the bench, that would be fine, otherwise Corey Parker or Cherry-Evans would have to go out there with Inglis shifting back to fullback, should Slater re-injure his knee.

 

[RoosTah]

I honestly hope Tate is dropped... Jennings, Hayne and Cherry-Evans are all better players.

 

[james5000]

It looks even more likely Slater will be fit for the final.

Slater
Morris
GI
Hayne
Boyd
Thurston
Cronk

Pretty epic backline all right, I was hoping they would overlook Hayne for Tate. Looks like the Aussie selectors are getting it right when it matters.
Hayne is a rep superstar, he's never had a bad rep game. I know some people think he underperfom's for the Eels but he's still there best player on a weekly basis. The bloke isn't superman he can't do it all himself (he can be pretty close though ala 2009 Eels run). You put any other player in his place at the Eels and they would still get the spoon.

I haven't changed my mind on the Kiwi's team but I was thinking what are your guy's thoughts on Frank Paul Nu'uausala?
I love his passion for the Kiwi's he's a really strong runner and hits at 110%, he does provide good impact. He has a relatively low error rate.
My problem is he gets a bit ****ly and he's becoming a liability when he gets a bit too fired up. Kearney loves him but i'd take Moa over him at the moment. Moa is pretty similar to FPN but he doesn't let his emotions get the better of him.