Despite the furore surrounding the availability of key players such as Jeremy Smith, Frank Pritchard and Issac Luke, the Kiwis still have what it takes to repeat last year’s World Cup heroics against a Kangaroos side desperate to regain some lost pride.
Although Pritchard has been officially ruled out of the Anzac Test this Friday night, his replacement in Sika Manu was a part of the same New Zealand seventeen that caused chaos to Australia’s standing as the most dominant league nation.
He, along with the rest of the Kiwi squad, will be hell-bent on providing proof that last triumph at Suncorp Stadium was no fluke.
What makes this year’s Anzac Test so appealing is the fact that New Zealand’s key players are all performing well for their respective NRL clubs.
Benji Marshall has had his finest start to a season since 2005, which has seen the Tigers claw themselves out of games which they should have lost.
With the added responsibility of captaincy, expect the Tigers half to really flourish on the back of a Kiwi pack that is even stronger than last year’s winning unit.
Rabbitohs’ captain Roy Asotasi will only bolster a Kiwi pack that already counts on premiership winning forwards Jeff Lima and Adam Blair.
Greg Eastwood and Bronson Harrison will form a Kiwi second row that has enough creativity to provide Marshall and Nathan Fien with second man play options which will severely test the Australian defence.
Harrison, in particular, has probably been the form second-rower in the NRL this season, despite the fact he is playing for an underachieving Raiders outfit that sit second last on the ladder.
He currently leads the NRL in offloads, beating fancied rivals Feleti Mateo and Anthony Tupou.
Probably the only question marks surrounding the Kiwi test team is in their backline, which only makes do with the explosive form of Warriors winger Manu Vatuvei and the efficient dummy half running of Sam Perrett.
Players such as Jason Nightingale, Iosia Soliola and Jerome Ropati have failed to show enough form this season that will trouble a star studded Kangaroos backline, headed by Golden Boot winner Billy Slater.
It was a big surprise to see Tigers winger Taniela Tuiaki left out of the Kiwi squad, considering he has been in much better form than fellow winger Nightingale.
Despite the limited potential of New Zealand’s backline, the Kiwis’ should have enough confidence and belief from last year’s heroics to know they are in with a good chance of causing another ‘upset’ against the Kangaroos.
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