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With shades of the World Cup semi-final at Wembley, New Zealand again fell over the line and all but ensured their place in the final of an international tournament.
Blasted by the rock hard and intelligent defence of the Samoans, the Kiwis bumbled their way through a display that was as far from their first round efforts against the Kangaroos as can possibly be.
And yet they won.
The common consent will be that the Samoans deserved to win the match. And given the commitment and energy that they showed – not to mention the fact that they led the entire match until the final few minutes – one could argue the case well.
However, New Zealand deserved to win and here is why. A match lasts 80 minutes and the Samoans were good enough to create and hold a lead for 75 minutes, but they weren’t good enough to put the Kiwis away.
New Zealand have learnt to hold on. Samoa have learnt that you have to be on the ball for the entire match when up against a top tier nation. Despite the aberration of their ignominious World Cup capitulation, New Zealand are just that.
But a word for Samoa. Their performances thus far in this tournament have legitimised the value of their presence on the international stage. As match commentator and former New Zealand international Darryl Halligan said, these men are proud and want to represent their country, their cultures and their families.
But pride and passion is often never enough on the big stage. One also needs professionalism. The Samoans have showed enough of the latter that given more time, the upset that will eventually come will no longer be a surprise.
To ensure that this occurs, the Rugby League International Federation has to work out a way to encourage Pacific Island talent to represent their nations rather than be swept up in the economics of serving Australian or New Zealand interests.
But that is fodder for a future article.
For now, let us simply sit back and enjoy what has been a thoroughly enjoyable first three matches of Four Nations 2014.
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