SYDNEY - Australian skipper Darren Lockyer added another record to his long list of achievements as the Kangaroos dusted off the cobwebs and Papua New Guinea to open their Four Nations campaign with a win at Parramatta Stadium yesterday.
Already the most-capped player and captain in the green and gold,
Lockyer surpassed Ken Irvine with his 34th test try, one of eight four-pointers the Kangaroos scored in a rusty effort.
There were seven different tryscorers with Willie Tonga grabbing a double, prodigal son Lote Tuqiri the only member of the Australian backline not to find the line as the Kangaroos fell short of covering the 52.5 points start offered by bookies.
It is a measure of PNG's standing in international league's pecking order that their best period of play was measured n by their ability to keep the Kangaroos quiet.
And so it was during a 30-minute period around the halftime break that the Kumuls kept Australia scoreless, with their energetic display aided by some poor handling from the hosts.
But the game was already over, with the Kangaroos beating the clock as they raced to a 26-0 lead before adding another three second-half tries.
Australia stormed out of the gates, with Billy Slater's opening try coming after Lockyer's kick had rebounded off the posts directly into his arms.
Brent Tate celebrated his test return with a try, but his afternoon ended early after he was taken from the field following a knock to his neck.
Gold Coast under-20s fullback Ryan Tongia had a moment he would rather forget when his attempt to prevent a 40-20 resulted in Cooper Cronk scoring a simple try, Tonga just as fortunate to score when another kick was fumbled.
When Brett Morris scored his ninth try in his sixth test, the Kangaroos were on to eclipse their 82-0 win over the Kumuls in 2000, but the visitors, via powerful centre Menzie Yere and David Loko, put some sting in their defence to disrupt Australia's rhythm.
The drought was broken with Cameron Smith's dart from dummy-half on 55 minutes with Tonga rounding out the avalanche with his second four minutes from time.
- AAP
