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The 2005 rugby league Tri Nations series between the New Zealand Kiwis, the Australian Kangaroo side and the Great Britain Lions kicked off in Sydney in October and continued to the final in England. |
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| 2005 |
| New Zealand 38 v Australia 28
Kiwi boilover Telstra Stadium Sydney, Saturday 15 October 2005 Crowd 28,255 The Kiwis scored one of the biggest boilovers in the history of trans-Tasman league tests, upsetting Australia 38-28 in Sydney. It was the New Zealand league side's first win in Australia in 14 years and their first win in Sydney in 46 years. The Kiwis stormed out to a starting 18-0 lead in the first half, before the all-star Kangaroos struck back, scoring four tries in nine minutes before the halftime break. The teams went into the dressing rooms locked at 18-all. Australia went up early in the second half, before tries to Nathan Cayless and Nigel Vagana put the Kiwis back in the lead. They never looked back late in the game. Stacey Jones kicked seven goals while Clinton Toopi scored three of the Kiwis' six tries. For Australia Brent Tate scored two tries with Mark Gasnier, Andrew Johns and Matt King also crossing. Kiwis Brent Webb, Jake Webster, Paul Whatuira, Clinton Toppi, Manu Vatuvei, Nigel Vagana, Stacey Jones, Paul Rauhihi, Lance Hohaia, Ruben Wiki (capt), David Kidwell, Frank Pritchard, Louis Anderson. Interchange: David Faiumu, Roy Asotasi, Nathan Cayless, David Solomona _________________ Australia 28 v New Zealand 26 Aussies regain winning form Ericsson Stadium Auckland, Friday 21 October 2005 Crowd 28,500 Match Report Despite an awesome effort the Kiwis failed to clinch back-to-back victories over the Kangaroos, going down 28-26 at a wet and windy Ericsson Stadium. The Australian victory maintains their resilient 52-year record of never being beaten in consecutive tests by New Zealand. The Kiwis had a 16-8 halftime lead but Australia scored 3 immediately after halftime to go ahead and hold a margin to the final whistle. The first 10 miutes were tight and tense till the Kangaroos pounced on a Johns bomb and after a couple of frantic passes Darren Lockyer scored in the left hand corner. The Kiwis hit back with a test debut try to winger Jake Webster in the corner, followed by a brilliant try in the corner to Nigel Vagana. The Kangaroos came back following a couple of penalties and scored a well-worked try in the left corner to test debutant centre Matt Cooper. Then hooker Motu Tony powered over the line to core followed by Stacey Jones conversion to give the Kiwis a 16-8 lead at halftime. Classy second half tries to the Kangaroos speedy centre Mark Gasnier, Darren Lockyer, and Cooper's second saw the 8 point halftime margin spread turn in favour of Australia. Nevertheless the Kiwis finally lifted again with a second try to Jake Webster, but with 10 minutes to play fullback Anthony Minichiello powered through a couple of tacklers to score. Kiwi iinterchange David Faiumu set up a nail-biting finish with try from a quick enalty tap right in front of the posts to lock up a 28-26 scoreline. Kiwis 26 Tries: Jake Webster (2), Nigel Vagana, Motu Tony, David Faiumu. Goals: Stacey Jones (3). Kangaroos 28 Tries: Darren Lockyer (2), Matt Cooper (2), Anthony Minichiello, Mark Gasnier. Goals: Ben Kennedy (2). |
| New Zealand 42 v Great Britain 26
Kiwis thump the Poms Loftus Park London Sat 29 Oct Crowd 15,568 The Kiwis defeated Great Britain 42-26 at Loftus Park in London, running in seven tries to four. Kiwi rookie winger Manu Vatuvei scored one try, while Brent Webb and Clinton Toopi dotted down twice, and Jake Webster and Paul Rauhihi once each. Stacey Jones had a flawless day with the boot, kicking all seven conversions before 15,568 fans including some vocal Kiwi supporters New Zealand 42 (B Webb 2, C Toopi 2, M Vatuvei, J Webster, P Rauhihi tries S Jones 7 goals) Great Britain 26 (P Johnson 3, K Senior, P Deacon tries K Sinfield 3 goals) at Loftus Road ________________ New Zealand 30 v England 22 Warrington 7 November 2005 New Zealand edged to an unconvincing 30-22 victory over an England selection in Monday morning's league match in Warrington. The New Zealand side has run in six tries to four, with Paul Whatuira, Manu Vatuvei, Henry Fa'afili, Shontayne Hape, Lance Hohaia and Jake Webster all dotting down. Locked at 12- all at halftime the score flattered the New Zealanders, with England up 22-16 with just 15 minutes to play. __________________ New Zealand 38 v France 22 Toulouse France 19 November 2005 Despite trailing 22-20 with 15 minutes to go the Kiwis rallied to kick home 38-22 against France. Iafeta Palea'aesina, David Kidwell, Shontayne Hape, Ali Lauiti'iti, Louis Anderson, Stacey Jones and Brent Webb scored tries for the Kiwis. Stacey Jones kicked four goals, Motu Tony kicked one Great Britain 38 v New Zealand 12 Kiwis hammered at Huddersfield 12 November 2005 Crowd 19232 The Kiwis slumped to a 38-12 defeat at the hands of a robust Great Britain side at Huddersfield. Boosted by the chances of making the Tri-series final the Poms stormed over the Kiwis scoring six tries to three to lead 26-nil at halftime. They tore the Kiwis defence to shreds with four first half tries. Brian Carney outpaced Clinton Toopi as he danced down the touchline to score his first then sprinted 70 metres for his second try in the first half. His teamates Paul Deacon, Stuart Fielden, Chev Walker and Keith Senior also dotted down. Jake Webster scored the Kiwis first try in the 49th-minute after Stacey Jones doubled around Ruben Wiki two tries for the Kiwis, while an Ali Lauiti'iti try and Webster's second touchdown gave the scoreline a touch of respectability to an an otherwise abject loss at the hands of an outstanding performance by the British Lions. Needing to avoid defeat by 18 points the Kiwis blew a golden chance to walk into the Tri-Nations final. Kiwis coach Brian McClennan admitted "We're pretty dejected and pretty disappointed in ourselves, we feel we've let ourselves down and let New Zealand down." Great Britain 38 Tries: Brian Carney 2, Stuart Fielden, Keith Senior, Chev Walker, Paul Deacon. Goals: Iestyn Harris 5, Paul Deacon 2. New Zealand 12 Tries Jake Webster 2, Ali Lauitiiti |
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| Kiwi coach Brian McLennan and captain Rueben Wiki |
| Australian coach Wayne Bennett and captain Darren Lockyer |
| Great Britain coach Brian Noble and captain Jamie Peacock |
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| NZRL | ARL | RFL | NZ Warriors 2006 | NRL | links | Tri Nations 2004 | Warriors 2005 |
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| Kiwi interchange David Faiumu scored |
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| Matt Cooper had an awesome debut at Ericsson scoring |
| Motu Tony scores in the Kiwis |
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| New Zealand Kiwis Tri Nations Squad Eight members of the Warriors team, Louis Anderson, Clinton Toopi, captain Rueben Wiki, Stacey Jones (out of international retirement), Brent Webb, Manu Vatuvei, Awen Guttenbeil, Lance Hohaia and Iafeta Palea'aesina (to join Wigan) have been selected to join the New Zealand Kiwis 2005 Tri Nations campaign at home and in England. The full New Zealand Kiwi squad : Jake Webster, Paul Whatuira, Shontayne Hape, Nigel Vagana, Paul Rauhihi, Motu Tony, David Kidwell, David Solomona, David Faiumu, Roy Asotasi, Iafeta Palea'aesina, Tony Puletua, Frank Pritchard , Bronson Harrison, Ali Lauitiiti, Robbie Paul, Joe Vagana, Willie Poaching, Nathan Cayless. |
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| Australia, NSW & Sydney Roosters fullback Anthony Minichiello the 2005 winner of the Gillette Golden Boot |
| 19-year-old Warriors & New Zealand winger Manu Vatuvei is ecstatic after outjumping his opposite Brent Tate to score the first of his 2 tries in the Kiwis 24-0 win over Australia in the Tri Nations final. Vatuvei won the Gillette 2005 international newcomer-of-the-year award |
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| Final New Zealand 24 v Australia 0 Kiwis crush hapless Kangaroos in a historic victory Elland Road, Leeds Saturday 26 November 2005 Crowd 26,534 The New Zealand league team won the Tri-Nations tournament after thrashing the hot favourites Australia 24-0 in the final at Leeds. In the same awesome spirit as the Grand Slamming All Blacks who stormed through the UK undefeated against Wales, Ireland, England and Scotland under captain Tana Umaga so did the Kiwis outplay and out defend the Aussies under their captain, man of the match and 50 test hero Rueben Wiki. The Kiwis victory came from 3 key ares. Rueben's captaincy; he led a massive team effort that defended with pride and maintained discipline for the full 80 to shut down and restrict the Kangaroo attack right across the field. This was Kiwis first series win against Australia since 1978 and the first time in 20 years that New Zealand have held Australia scoreless in a test match. In 1985 at Carlaw Park Auckland, New Zealand beat Australia 18-0. The second area was the inspiring presence of Stacey Jones, in stark contrast to the Aussies loss of matchwinner Darren Lockyer and gamebreaker Andrew Johns. Back in England just a day before kickoff following the birth of his son in NZ, Stacey showed the way forward in attack setting up the big plays that resulted in 3 of their 4 tries. Stacey also slotted 1 conversion and 3 penalty goals. The third key factor was their pride and self belief - mana, a greater desire to win. Against an error-riddled Australia the Kiwis ramped up 4 tries, the first to centre Paul Whatuira in the 4th minute off a Stacey bomb. In the 21st minute rookie Manu Vatuvei outjumped Brent Tate to score his first try off a pinpoint Stacey bomb then after a Kidwell intercept he finished off a slick passing rush to corner his second try in 26th minute. Stacey posted 2 penalty goals to put the Kiwis up 16-0 at halftime. In the second half fullback Brent Webb extended New Zealand's lead to 22 points with a converted try in the 52nd minute followed by a penalty to Stacey to deliver a crushing 24-0 win over an Aussie team that struggled to counterattack. The Kangaroos made 20 handling errors and only completed 17 of 32 sets, while New Zealand completed 32 of 43 sets. While acknowledging that the Kiwis, under coach Brian McClennan, had formulated a simple game plan and executed it almost to perfection, Kangaroo coach Wayne Bennett said his side never had a chance after completing just 49 per cent of its sets of possession. In contrast, the Kiwis made just one error in the first half and enjoyed nine more sets of possession. "We just lacked a lot of discipline with the football and the penalties we gave away in the first half," Bennett said. "Their first three tries came off two penalties from us giving them field position and a lost ball coming out of our 30-metre zone. We didn't give ourselves a chance, we never put ourselves in the game and they played tremendously well. The disappointing part, I suppose, is that we just didn't make it a contest, they were in control all game Louis Anderson, Hape, Asotasi, Kidwell, Faiumu and Motu Tony all had strong games as did the whole team who played for each other. Coach Brian McLennan the coaching staff and the whole team were estatic about this uplifting joyous victory. New Zealand 24 Tries: Manu Vatuvei 2, Paul Whatuira, Brent Webb. Goals: Stacey Jones 4. Australia 0 Halftime Kiwis 16-0 NEW ZEALAND Brent Webb, Jake Webster, Paul Whatuira, Clinton Toopi, Manu Vatuvei, Nigel Vagana, Stacey Jones, Paul Rauhihi, Motu Tony, Ruben Wiki, David Kidwell, Shontayne Hape, Louis Anderson. Interchange: David Solomona, David Faiumu, Roy Asotasi, Ali Lauitiiti Kiwis Stats Top Tacklers Wiki 26, Kidwell 25, Anderson 23, Tony 23, Rauhihi 19 Top Hitups Wiki 24, Kidwell 16, Asotasi 15, Rauhihi 14, Webb 10 Top Linebreaks Webb, Tony, Vatuvei Top Offloads Wiki 3, Faiumu 3, Lauitiiti 2, Vatuvei 2, Asotasi AUSTRALIA: A Minichiello; M King, M Gasnier, M Cooper, B Tate; T Barrett, C Gower, P Civoniceva, D Buderus capt, J Ryles, L O'Donnell, C Fitzgibbon, B Kennedy. Interchange C Wing, M O'Meley, Mason, S Pryce. |
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| 2005 Gillette Tri Nations Tournament Crowd Sat 15 Oct Australia 28 v New Zealand 38 Sydney 28,255 Sat 21 Oct New Zealand 26 v Australia 28 Auckland 28,500 Sat 29 Oct Great Britain 26 v New Zealand 42 London 15,568 Sat 05 Nov Great Britain 6 v Australia 20 Wigan 25,004 Sat 12 Nov Great Britain 38 v New Zealand 12 Huddersfield 19,232 Sat 19 Nov Great Britain 14 v Australia 26 Hull 25,000 Final Sat 26 Nov New Zealand 24 v Australia 0 Leeds 26,534 |
| NZRL | ARL | RFL | NZ Warriors 2006 | links | Tri Nations 2004 | Warriors 2005 |
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| Kiwi captain, 50 test hero and man of the match Rueben Wiki |
| led by Wiki the Kiwis started with an awesome haka |
| gamebreaker Stacey Jones flew from NZ back to the UK 24 hours before the final. He threaded the nail with 2 bombs that resulted in2 tries in the Kiwis 24-0 upset. Here he gets a kick away from Roo's loose forward Ben Kennedy |
| second rower David Kidwell had a huge impact on the tight plays in attack & defence. He intercepted from the Kiwis 30 metre line. The attack played field position Stacey shifted it wide then Vatuvei scored in the corner. |
| Kiwi coach McLennan's gamble on Hape's mobility in the tight plays around the rucks and in defence paid huge dividends. |
| here it is folks |
| determination shows on 20 year old Louis Anderson who like his teamates played his heart out |
| Kiwi prop Roy Asotasi congratulates fullback Brent Webb on his brilliant second half try below |
| Vatuvei is surrounded by his teamates after his 2nd try |
| Ali Lauitiiti, Wiki, Motu Tony & Shontayne Hape |
| Kidwell, Hape, Vagana, Solomona, Anderson, Tony, Asotasi, Wiki, Webster, and Whatuira |
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| Kiwi rookie winger Jake Webster blocked and outbustled his opposite and Melbourne Storm teamate Matt King |
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| * Benji Marshall (above left) picked up the NZ Rookie of the year. * his West Tigers teamate and Kiwi centre Paul Whatuira was awarded the NRL player of the year. * recently signed to Penrith from the Canterbury Bulls Chris Newton was named the Bartercard Cup Player of the Year. * Kiwi Fern 17 year old Rona Peters was named the best womens player. * Sam Rapira was names the best Junior player |
| Kiwi coach Brian McClennan was named coach and personality of the year |
| Kiwi captain Ruben Wiki (left) was awarded the New Zealand Rugby League Player of the Year, at an awards dinner in Auckland a few days after returning from the UK. A week earlier Wiki led the Kiwis to a stunning 24-nil victory over Australia in the Tri Nations final. Wiki is also the most capped Kiwi after posting 50 tests for New Zealand. |
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| Rugby League Awards 2005 |
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