Rugby League: A strange old night at the Cake Tin

By PETER JESSUP

Weird stuff, the NRL in Wellington.

The Warriors and Bulldogs drew the biggest club crowd of the rugby league season, 27,724, to a ground which neither call home.

The crowd turn out for a game they do not know, there being fewer than a quarter of the number in attendance who play in the capital.

Confusion follows with the transtasman anthems. The Warriors' Nat Wood tries hard for honorary Kiwi status, looking for the words to God Defend New Zealand printed in the air.

Real Kiwi Nigel Vagana stares at the grass in silence as the bulk of his team-mates are proudly heads-up for Advance Australia Fair.

The locals showed no national loyalty for the New Zealand Warriors for much of the Warriors' and the Australian premiership's debut in Wellington.

They amused themselves with Mexican waves, danced to the ear-splitting music.

In the style of true New Zealand fans, they went silent late in the first half when the Warriors were down 2-14 and needed backing. Best not to let on you're with the losers, eh?

There was good attack and defence in the second spell, but still little reaction.

Maybe they did not understand the subtleties. Maybe Jonah Lomu's Super 12 tryscoring on the same pitch the night before had raised expectations of similar exploits. But that was not to be for 74 minutes.

The Warriors were first to get over the opposition line in the second spell, but had the points ruled out by the video referee. While they mulled over their disappointment the Dogs came back, took advantage of an error, and scored.

It looked like the script anyone could have written, with disappointment coming all round.

Former Wellington rugby man turned Sydney league boss David Moffett was watching with the Warriors' boss, Mick Watson.

With eight minutes to go, Moffett told Watson: "You blokes will win this."

What was he on?

What went into the Warrior's water-bottles late in the game?

In the last six minutes they proved what we have always known in Auckland - that the Warriors can excite, entertain, score some of the best tries you will see all season.

The Wellingtonians finally adopted the Auckland side, and came alive with a Warriors chant. Three miracle tries and it was 24-24 and halfback Stacey Jones was lining up for the kick everyone thought would steal the game.

As it went off to the left, the balloon of expectation burst. There was a record-breaking collective heave of disbelief.

No one was more down than Jones.

Watson, well exercised as was the crowd after doing sit-stand-sit-stand repeats for the last minutes, went to the dressing-room afterwards to console the little general. Not that Jones was, or is, ever likely to be in line for the sack.

"I think it was a moral victory," Watson said of the draw against the Bulldogs, who were the early competition leaders. "Some of the young guys played really well."

Watson was more sweet than bitter at taking one competition point and not two, and the team sang their victory song in the dressing-room.

Jones had kicked goals from the sidelines. Missing the one that mattered from 30m iced off what was a very strange evening. But then, without his genius, they would not have been at 24-24.

The Dogs have a deal to play one game a year in the Cake Tin for the next three seasons. Everyone is likely to go back for another lick.