Rugby League: Death or glory - and no bleating afterwards

By Peter Jessup

Only one thing is certain about tonight's Tri-Series final between rugby league world champions Australia and heavyweight contenders New Zealand.

If the Kiwis lose, they won't be wringing their hands about the wringing of their testicles and there will be no need for legends in the game to come forth and tell the side to harden up.

There will be nothing in the points gap tonight. God - and his mate de Beer - forbid, but a drop kick may be the decider.

Both sides have everything to play for and everything to lose, and should either be in any doubt about what happens to losers they need look no further than the gloomy restaurant staff who have been serving them meals under the black pall of depression left by the All Blacks' failure.

For the Kiwis it is a matter of credibility, putting the opposition away in a series instead of going 1-0 up and 1-2 down. The national side have not taken series honours for 46 years, the Aussie tourists beaten 2-1 in 1953, and that on the back of a 2-1 series win across the Tasman the previous year.

And though the Kiwis have said they are reluctant to shoulder national honours on behalf of the rah-rah boys who have gone soft, they are.

The Australians, meanwhile, do not want to be remembered as the side who broke a 21-year series-winning streak, the last loss particularly vivid for coach Chris Anderson, who was playing on the wing when France scraped home 2-0 on the back of refereeing bias against a side tired after touring England.

World Cup places are at stake for Anderson and others. Should they lose there will be the same rolling of heads the All Black squad face when they step off the bird home.

The game promises white-hot fever from the first tackle as the forward packs go out to dominate. The Kiwis have a one kilo a man advantage weight-wise, with slightly more international experience on their side.

Both back rows sport great ball-players. There is, perhaps, an advantage for New Zealand in having Australia's Brad Fittler at lock in that the tackling he will have to do there might stifle his running game. But they lose nothing with Matthew Johns at standoff.

Both teams will try to run the ball regardless of conditions, both confident they have line-breakers out wide.

Team trainings this week have been intense and efficient in both camps, with concentration on no dropped balls. And in the end the difference could be just that - a knock-on, a dropped ball or an intercept.

There is nothing between the two sides, but the Kiwis have been in camp in Auckland for four weeks building a tremendous team spirit while the Kangaroos have flown here, to Brisbane, their homes and back here again.

"We've had a great preparation, they mastered the conditions well today [training at Ericsson in the filthy weather], there are no injuries, we're fit and raring to go," said Kiwi coach Frank Endacott.

"There'll be no excuses afterwards. We've done everything right and now it's down to playing 80 minutes."

The Australians spent a boring day in their hotel yesterday after the planned golf outing was cancelled due to galeforce winds and heavy rain, some taking to tenpin bowling instead. They ran at the match venue last night. They, too, are injury free, Rodney Howe's knee and the ankle he will have surgery on next Monday both cleared by the medics.

Englishman Russell Smith is again the referee, Anderson this week batting away a query about whether he was happy with the appointment with the comment he would be happy if the penalty count does not go six-to-one against.

Supporters can fax the Kiwi team on Auckland 379-8554.