Rugby League: Frantic defence saves the Kiwis

By CHRIS BARCLAY in HUDDERSFIELD

HuddersfieldnteThe Kiwis had to rely on a Herculean defensive effort and Great Britain squandering four gilt-edged opportunities in the final three minutes to escape with a draw in a frenetic second test yesterday.

Great Britain had ample chances to pot a series-levelling field goal as they lay siege to the tourists' line, but incredibly managed only one long-range attempt as frantic Kiwis defence panicked the home side into costly errors as the clock wound down.

Three times Great Britain were in prime position for a one-pointer, but it was left to halfback Paul Deacon to let fly with a hopeful 43m effort as the hooter sounded.

It drifted left, leaving the Kiwis with a 1-0 series lead heading into what promises to be a nailbiting finale in Wigan on Sunday.

Despite being outgunned in possession and territory, the Kiwis clung to a 14-12 lead near the end after veteran Ruben Wiki powered through four defenders to score in the 66th minute.

But with two minutes remaining, Great Britain captain Andy Farrell levelled the scores with a 30m goal after Kearney was penalised for stripping the ball from replacement Danny Orr.

That spurred Great Britain to a grandstand finish as they swiftly muscled deep into Kiwis territory from the restart to leave a passionate crowd of 23,604 at McAlpine Stadium sensing a first victory over the New Zealanders since 1993.

However, twice dummy-half passes failed to find Deacon as a desperate Kiwis defensive line charged up to pressure the Brits into fumbles.

Then new hooker James Lowes, in his first test for five years and first game for a month, was the Kiwis' saviour when he went for glory with a grubber kick close to the line, leaving Deacon screaming for the ball in front of the posts 10m out.

The Kiwis scrambled the ball dead and Lowes conceded after the game he should not have chipped, although his actions were not publicly castigated by the Great Britain management.

"What threw the lads off most is they [the Kiwis] were sprinting up to get the kicks and the guys were seeing gaps for tries," said Farrell, who produced an inspirational display in his record-breaking 20th test as skipper.

"There was a lack of composure, but we can't do anything about it."

Upbeat Kiwis coach Gary Freeman was relieved Great Britain did not squeeze home.

"They should have done. They had tons of ball and we were courageous in our defence.

"We would have loved to have wrapped it [the series] up, but we didn't. We live to fight another day."

The Kiwis jumped out to a 10-0 lead after the first quarter through well-engineered tries to wing Francis Meli and second-rower Stephen Kearney.

A classic bust from centre Clinton Toopi and a one-handed offload set the scene for Meli's opener in the 12th minute.

Five minutes later the Kiwis were into double figures after Keith Senior was pinged for obstructing Henry Fa'afili as he chased a high ball, the only time a bomb influenced the game.

From the penalty restart the Kiwis edged infield, allowing skipper Stacey Jones to drift wide before flicking an inside pass to Kearney, who brushed aside Deacon's attempted tackle and steamed 10m to score between the posts.

Great Britain grabbed the ascendancy for the rest of the half and were finally rewarded on their sixth consecutive set in possession.

Man-of-the-match Paul Sculthorpe, who recovered from a thigh injury to play five-eighth, finally found a way through the determined defence when he got outside Jones and floated a one-handed pass off balance to Leon Pryce, who strolled over unmarked seven minutes from the break.

The Kiwis led 10-6 at halftime, but had a narrow escape just before the break when Jones struggled to bat a Deacon kick over the dead-ball line.

Martin Gleeson forced the ball, but video referee Gerry Kershaw correctly ruled the centre was out of play when he touched down.

Gleeson would not be denied and scored his first test try when Meli spilled a close-range Lowes' grubber in the 49th minute to give Great Britain a 12-10 lead.

Great Britain lost abrasive second-rower Adrian Morley before kick-off after he failed to recover from a bout of flu, but he was hardly missed.

Jones admitted the New Zealand dressing-room was muted after the game.

"We played dumb, we could have put them away earlier. But looking back at it we've got to be happy to get out with a draw.

"We knew the field goal was coming."

- NZPA