KEY POINTS:
After watching the Kiwis play three games in this World Cup and the two warm-ups before the tournament I have to say they have delivered to expectation in all bar the match against Australia.
The comeback from 24-6 down against England says plenty about their ability to get the game back on track when under pressure.
For my money, though, there are a couple of things that have to happen if they are to dominate England again this weekend and go on to be a serious threat to Australia.
Isaac Luke has to start the game at hooker, Nathan Fien has to start at halfback and Lance Hohaia must stay at fullback.
None other than the great Laurie Daley came out and said the Kiwis could not beat Australia with Thomas Leuluai at halfback.
I agree.
In the last six or seven tests he has played, Leuluai has failed to dominate or provide any incisive attacking threat to the opposition. That is not Leuluai's fault.
The selectors have consistently picked him at halfback when he has consistently shown he cannot make any impression, especially against the Aussies.
The injection of Luke from the bench last week and the substitution of Fien for Leuluai at halfback was the spark that turned the Kiwis' game and brought them 30 unanswered points and the victory.
Luke injected some go-forward and gave others options. It was the little men, Luke, Fien and Hohaia, that made the difference and for the Kiwis to beat England, secure a spot in the final and go on to compete with the Kangaroos, they have to make the change.
While the contrived draw at the World Cup has done nothing to enhance the credibility of the management of the game internationally, I have no doubt that nations like Ireland and Scotland, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga and Papua New Guinea have benefited from the exposure to the international stage.
At the start of this World Cup it did nothing to inspire me but upsets like Fiji beating France to make the semifinals this weekend have brought some sparkle to the tournament. There have been good crowds all round so hopefully it will make some money for the game.
Finally, to the Warriors who last week announced the re-signing of Stacey Jones on a one-year contract: this huge gamble can only go one of two ways.
Either Jones will reproduce the sort of form that saw him labelled the "Little General" and set records for appearances and points-scoring, which is what all league fans hope for.
Or he will find that three years out of the top league competition in the world at age 32 is too long, that he cannot recover the past and the experiment will blow up in his face as well as the club's.
Jones' legacy in New Zealand is such that it does not matter what the outcome is.
It will never tarnish what he has already achieved and he is too great a player to have a black mark against his name.
