Hugh McGahan: Much-improved showing inspires belief in team

Shaun Johnson. Photo / Getty Images

A much better performance from the Kiwi team yesterday against a Kumuls side that can best be described as enthusiastic.

New Zealand were more complete in all aspects of their play and I am sure Stephen Kearney will be a happy coach today.

From the outset, New Zealand showed the class that many have claimed they possess. The halves, Kieran Foran and Shaun Johnson, were on their toes from the first play and maintained that throughout. This permeated through the rest of the team and not once did we see the hesitation and indecision which was evident through the patchy periods of their opening two games.

The lead was also provided by Sonny Bill Williams - offloading at will - but more importantly he carried the ball twice in the first five sets of the game. Jesse Bromwich continually makes good metres in heavy traffic with footwork traditionally possessed by backs. He always falls forward on his carries to produce quick play the balls for Isaac Luke to take advantage if the opportunity is there.

Speaking of Luke, Kearney and his coaching staff need to wrap him in cotton wool or quickly find an alternate replacement. Now that Thomas Leuluai has re-injured himself, this substitute is in doubt on this campaign.

Better defences will restrict the room that Luke has found so far and flow-on options from his line breaks will reduce. Luke is in outstanding form and the quarter-final game needs to see him be rested at some stage and in my opinion it needs to be in the final 20-25 minutes s of that game.

This fixture will see the Kiwi team play either Italy or the United States and by this stage of the game, the result should be secured.

The forwards are in great shape and who to leave out is the headache the coaching staff faces - nice. With Leuluai out, Johnson is locked in with his combination with Kieran Foran and both maintained their intensity.

The problem position of centre has been secured by the two who played against the Kumuls, Dean Whare and Bryson Goodwin. Both are defensively sound and can compete in attack when opportunities present themselves. Krisnan Inu has more power in attack but defensive frailties will cost him a start. Josh Hoffman at fullback is a given and opens another debate as to why the Brisbane Broncos chased both Ben Barba and Anthony Milford.

Previously I have spoken of the consistency of the Kiwi team - or, more accurately, their inability to be consistent. Despite the two tries scored by PNG, this team finally put together a performance which indicates improvement, both in structure and mental resilience.

PNG did not test the Kiwi team enough to upset their rhythm but New Zealand's ability to resist drifting into risky offloads and flashy plays, especially after jumping to a 24-point lead early, proves they can do it.

Their structure and intensity persisted which pleased this critic enough to turn off his television with a smile and a sense of belief.