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New Zealand have thrown down the gauntlet ahead of their crunch Test with Australia next week by outclassing Samoa 50-0 at Eden Park in Auckland.
The Kiwis were dominant, with their fearsome forward pack to the fore to overwhelm a physical Samoan side that showed plenty of fight, but ultimately lacked in quality in attacking areas.
Michael Maguire’s team, on the other hand, had the strength and the skill.
James Fisher-Harris, in his first game as captain, raised the half century with a superb crash line try off the shoulder of Jahrome Hughes, while Briton Nikora and Nelson Asofa-Solomona scored similar tries with little regard for self-preservation.
“I was pleased with how they defended, that’s what we take forward,” said Maguire.
“We put a bit of pressure on ourselves in the first half, but the scramble that we had, the black jerseys coming into the picture, that’s probably the most pleasing thing.”
Hughes and Dylan Brown rekindled their World Cup partnership, Kieran Foran added guile after being elevated to starting hooker and in the centres, Joey Manu and Matt Timoko impressed.
Samoan boss Ben Gardiner was missing a few stars – Brian To’o, at the birth of his child, top of the list – and while he couldn’t fault the effort, was left rueing the lack of quality.
For the second week in a row, his team competed against the best but couldn’t generate the points. The final scoreline was certainly harsh, but the result was not.
“We weren’t good enough tonight,” said Gardiner.
“What we wanted to do was improve the start of the game, which I thought we did and competed there, but we just couldn’t go with them.
“The quality they have in their team – nothing against the guys we have, they have some experienced international football players so have played a lot of games at the top level and it’s another lesson for our guys tonight.”
If you were looking for a metaphor regarding what this match meant, the set that led to the Kiwis’ second had it all.
Timoko caught a kick and returned it was the utmost tenacity, then had the presence of mind to pass and send Jamayne Isaako flying down the wing. Sua Faalogo and Murray Taulagi had all the commitment in the world to chase him down.
Manu charged in, had the shirt ripped clean off his back, offloaded and, on the next play, charged it back again topless. To end, Tapine battered a Samoan defender out of the way, freed an arm and slipped a rampaging Hughes over.
It was a little bit razzle dazzle, plenty of heart and equal parts brutal and skillful.
That kind of contest was signposted well before the kick-off. International footy does a strong line in national anthems and war dances, but this was emotional stuff even by that standard.
Once the game began, the hits followed with the respective middles intent on leaving their mark.
The intensity of the context never really subsided, but the class of the Kiwis ensured that the competitiveness did, with an 18-0 lead always likely to be enough.
Madge will have got everything that he could have wanted out of this. Physically, any cobwebs that might have accumulated in the period between the NRL season and now have been dispensed with and mentally, any nerves among his younger cohort will have also been dispelled.
Creatively, the Kiwis had excellent moments from Hughes and Brown in the halves, Manu causing his regular chaos on the edge and Nicoll-Klokstad kicking in with creativity to go with his regulation defensive and yardage work.
They’ll see areas for improvement, of course, but the manner with which the spine worked collectively will please the coaching staff immensely.
Against Australia next week and the week after, it’s that invention that they’ll need. In the middle, the Kiwis are more than a match for the Kangaroos, and they gave a strong demonstration of it today.
The Penrith duo of Moses Leota and Fisher-Harris were exceptional and, when they’re tired, Nelson Asofa-Solomona comes on. Tapine at 13 is everything you’d want in a big-bodied, silky offloading lock.
All New Zealand could do to put down a marker would be to top what the Kangaroos did last week. They’ve done that and more.
When the Kiwis took the lead in the 14th minute, it was against the run of play. They had been pinned back by the Samoans, who were dominating the ruck and the field position. Crucially, however, they hadn’t scored or, really, looked like scoring.
New Zealand had added an extra creative figure into their spine by starting Foran at dummy half, but the Toa didn’t have that luxury.
Faalogo and Gordon Chan Kum Tong are talented but raw rookies, Daejarn Asi is a fringe first grader as a five eighth and a long way short of international class as a halfback.
Stephen Crichton was ranting and raving at every play, demanding the football, as if he knew that if something was going to happen, it would be him who was at the heart of it. Too often, it didn’t arrive and, by the end, he was back in the centres.
Against a defence as experienced as the Kiwis, the lack of experience and top-end quality in the spine was the obvious area of weakness. Jarome Luai’s absence was felt more than ever.
Samoa could compete in most areas of the field, but without that creative spark, they were never going to trouble the Kiwis.
We might end up looking at this year’s spine as the start of something special. Faalogo and Chan Kum Tong, if they progress as expected in the NRL, will be guys that Ben Gardiner can rely upon for years to come.
Ronald Volkman, who came off the bench here, is another with a lot of football in the top grade in front of him.
Throw in Luai and a returning Chanel Harris-Tavita and this looks very different. They’re not going to run out of middles and outside backs – and the spine will certainly get better.