Australia 12
New Zealand 16
Split Enz got it wrong when it came to New Zealand's dramatic, last-minute 16-12 win over Australia last night.
For the Kiwi band, history might never repeat - but the Kiwis league team were able to emulate their achievements of two years ago on the same ground to take out
the 2010 Four Nations to back up the World Cup.
Australia could not capitalise on some shattering early advantage as New Zealand pulled together and consolidated their game plan to come back.
It was imperceptible at the start of the second half but, as the match wound on, the Kiwis got the better of the play and the decisions as the Kangaroos began to show signs of desperation. The control they had last week over New Zealand rapidly disappeared as self-confidence gave way to self-doubt.
New Zealand had 11 of the 17 starters who won the World Cup two years ago but at times that continuity looked like translating into more errors than points.
But they were able to beat Australia for just the second time in 14 tests after a bravura display by Benji Marshall - who had a guiding hand in all of the Kiwis' tries - ended in a madcap, marvellous Kiwi raid which saw Nathan Fien stroll over to seal the match and steal the Four Nations crown again.
"It is definitely awesome, it has topped off a fantastic year for myself personally [after winning the NRL grand final with St George as well]," said Fien. "To do it with the boys is special after what has been a long campaign over five weeks. We needed to reverse what we did last week because we were so disappointed. We did that tonight. It's outstanding."
You could not take away from the Kiwis spirit led by Jeremy Smith, Bronson Harrison and Adam Blair on defence and backed up by direction from Fien, Thomas Leuluai and Marshall on attack.
Fien's try to seal the match came from nowhere as the Kiwis threw the ball everywhere and anywhere to secure the tournament.
Billy Slater - who gifted the Kiwis the World Cup final in 2008 with a gross error - will be left with further nightmares after dropping a wayward Marshall bomb in front of the posts with five minutes to go. That gave the Kiwis the necessary impetus to drive for victory with the territory gained.
The Kangaroos produced a brutal defensive display in the first quarter. It took New Zealand until the middle 40 minutes of the match to assert any dominance.
The Australian line speed coming up at the Kiwis was brisk and the tackles shook. Sam Thaiday, Paul Gallen, Tom Learoyd-Lahrs and Brent Tate were among the hardest workers but it was the impact that rattled the New Zealanders.
Tate and Learoyd-Lahrs even gave away back-to-back penalties at one stage for their efforts on Simon Mannering but it was worth it. Smith gave some of it back but it was little consolation. The size of the Australian pack also told early on attack through props David Shillington and Matthew Scott who drove the Kiwi defence backwards - although the Kiwi line speed and vigour in the tackles was noticeably improved from last week.
The pressure told, however. Brent Tate pounced on a lazy pick-up from Lance Hohaia in the third minute as he went to scoop up a Darren Lockyer grubber. Hohaia got nothing behind the ball and, in cricket terms, it was the equivalent of letting one through to the fence for four.
From there the Kiwis looked vulnerable as Hohaia's early mishap was compounded by a host of other errors. Frank-Paul Nuuausala dropped a ball inside the Australian 20 metre line, Jason Nightingale was swamped in the in-goal by four defenders, Sam McKendry was crumpled by the Australian wall and Greg Eastwood spilt the ball in what was, at times, a whopping error rate. New Zealand made 15, Australia 13.
Australia could have been ahead at the break but New Zealand took a crucial opportunity with a flat (some might say forward) ball from Marshall to Shaun Kenny-Dowall who knows how to score at close range, as seen in the Roosters run to the NRL grand final.
As the second half wore on, so the Kiwis' belief grew and the Australians were having some difficulties covering them.
Issac Luke ran well from dummy half and the Kiwis in general picked up the speed of their game.
It was a low key lead in from New Zealand and they benefited from it. They lost the services of Junior Sau with the corked thigh he suffered earlier in the week. The resilient Simon Mannering moved to the centres and hard-running Ben Matulino started in the second row with Sika Manu slipping onto the bench. The haka had less venom too - as energy was conserved for the battle ahead.
There were a stack of injuries by the end of the first half. Tate went off with a suspected ruptured anterior cruciate ligament - the third time he has done that in his career - and Luke Lewis suffered a match ending ankle injury.
But the story of this test match was in that last-ditch, throw it anywhere passing rush that led the great Darren Lockyer (possibly in his last test?) to make an error that led to Marshall writing his name large on this tournament.
Fien's try led to a huge display of emotions from the Kiwis. There was emotion too in the Australian dressing room at halftime when Tate broke down with the news that he had suffered another career-threatening injury.
Tate was pictured in tears and word was passed that he had told his team-mates that he would retire - although that could prove to have been a spur of the moment reaction.
Tate has suffered terribly with injuries in recent years, including the neck problem in 2003. Since late 2007 he has undergone two knee reconstructions, suffered a serious hip injury that saw him miss the 2008 World Cup final and a fractured jaw.
"It's ridiculous," Tate told NRL.com recently. "You get to the point where you've had enough ... but the reason you do it is because you love it."
Australia 12 (B. Tate, B. Slater tries, C. Smith 2 goals) New Zealand 16 (S Kenny-Dowall, J Nightingale, N Fien tries, B Marshall 2 goals) Halftime: 6-6.
