After a Kiwi performance that will hardly have the Kangaroos shuddering in their boots, New Zealand five-eighth Benji Marshall has called on his side’s big guns to pick up their act or cop a hiding in next weekend’s World Cup final in Brisbane.
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New Zealand booked a place in the decider last night with 32-22 win over a thoroughly underwhelming England, although the mood in the Kiwi sheds was far from jubilant.
Despite the hip hop music blaring out, there was plenty of soul searching among the New Zealand ranks as they gazed ahead to the final at Suncorp Stadium, where barring one of the biggest upsets in sporting history if Fiji topples Australia, they will meet the rampaging Kangaroos.
Too many mistakes and poor completions allowed England to keep themselves in the match last night, with the Kiwis only pulling away in the final minutes as they capitalised on one of the 20 English errors.
Marshall was a key figure as New Zealand raced to a 16-0 lead after 30 minutes but as they have done all tournament, the concentration lapsed and they allowed England to keep returning life-sustaining fire.
The Wests Tigers star was the first to put his hand up, admitting he took some poor options and would need to ratchet his game to another level if his side stands any chance of hoisting the Cup.
“I think we get too excited sometimes. Myself, I try to put on too many big plays. I did a few good things but I did a lot worse than good I think,” Marshall said.
“It was good to get away to a good start but we took our foot off the pedal. It was pretty hot out there. It was tough for us but it was probably tougher for them. We don’t have an excuse there but we’re going to have to be on our game next week.”
It wasn’t just Marshall who lost the plot at times. Fullback Lance Hohaia put down two easy bombs while halfback Nathan Fien, who kicked superbly in play in the first half, failed to control the tempo and put the English out of their misery as the match wore on.
Marshall called for his key players to carry the load in the final, a match his captain Nathan Cayless says will be approached with a “no regrets” attitude.
“Experienced players in key positions made silly mistakes tonight, myself included. We’ve got to try and minimise errors and stop putting pressure on ourselves,” Marshall said.
“A few key players tonight probably let us down, including myself.
“It’s gone now. I’ve got to pick myself up for next week. Look, I’m excited to make the final and get the win. It might not have been the greatest game but we’re in the World Cup final and we can make amends next week.”
New Zealand coach Stephen Kearney, when asked by a reporter about the areas they needed to improve, replied: “How big’s your pad?”
It wasn’t an exaggeration. If New Zealand turn over the ball to anywhere near that extent against Australia, it will be lights out on their Cup hopes.
“It’s a wonderful achievement to be able to contest next week’s final. But I was disappointed with a few aspects of our game tonight,” Kearney said.
“There’s a lot of areas where we need to improve tonight. I thought for 30 minutes in that first half, we showed what we were capable of. But as we all know, that’s not going to be good enough next week. That’s what’s got me a little disappointed.”
Cayless predicted a volley of verbal rockets from the coaching staff in the coming week, which includes Brisbane legend Wayne Bennett.
“It’s nice to be in the final but we’re going to have to play a hell of a lot better in the final than next week. I’m sure Steve will have his work cut out this week getting the game plan organised and getting up a few players,” said the Parramatta veteran.
New Zealand will await the verdict on the fitness of centre Steve Matai, who remains in doubt with a neck injury, although the pairing of Simon Mannering and Jerome Ropati, who scored two tries, was not lacking in spark.
As for England, after defiantly lining up to face the haka instead of forming another controversial team huddle, they misfired like a red coat with a musket full of wet powder.
Poor handling and an apparent gap in skills, which their coach Tony Smith attributes to the differing styles of play between the NRL and the Super League, has opened up a noticeable and worrying gulf between the codes in the rival hemispheres.
Smith said he was proud of his players and insisted Australian crowds hadn’t seen the best of the English talents, who promised much but delivered little on southern soils as they struggled with the slower pace of the game, especially on the ground and in the ruck.
“They put down some balls that they wouldn’t normally put down. A couple of players who don’t generally make errors came up with a few errors,” Smith said.
“We’re all a bit shattered at the moment. We wanted to do well in this tournament. We haven’t done as well as what we wanted to and that’s disappointing. We’re all shattered.”
