League: Luke not so lucky as Kiwis suffer killer blow

Dene Halatau will take the place of suspended hooker Issac Luke in the test against Australia on Friday. Photo / Getty Images

BRISBANE - The stunned Kiwis have a solitary training session to adjust to life without Issac Luke after the National Rugby League's (NRL) judiciary swung the test match further in Australia's favour last night.

Former Kangaroos forwards Ian Roberts and Bob Lindner, along with fellow panelist Mal Cochrane, took just 15 minutes to find Luke guilty of a grade one striking charge after a 30-minute hearing in Sydney.

It left accomplished 14-test Wests Tigers hooker Dene Halatau with the No 9 jersey for tomorrow's Suncorp Stadium test (9.45pm NZT), having only been summoned to camp as cover on Tuesday. The Kiwis have their final session at the match venue late today.

They were confident South Sydney's Luke, represented by top Sydney lawyer Geoff Bellew SC, would beat what appeared a minor charge from an incident with Gold Coast and Kangaroos forward Anthony Laffranchi.

Laffranchi said on Tuesday he "didn't read much into" Saturday's incident and appeared surprised the dynamic hooker was cited. Luke, who was yesterday named to start his seventh test, was "devastated", said team spokesman Richard Becht.

"From the New Zealand Rugby League camp, we certainly view the punishment as harsh but, be that as it may, it's done, we'll move on, we have a test match to prepare for," Becht said.

It was a further setback for the world champions in a disrupted week as they bid to go back to back against the Kangaroos.

Captain Benji Marshall (corked thigh) ran freely for the early part of training yesterday but still didn't appear at full stretch throughout, while back-rower Jeremy Smith (ankle sprain) sat out training but spoke confidently of being fit.

Before the Luke decision, coach Steve Kearney spoke of the Kiwis riding the confidence boost they gained from the 34-20 World Cup final win at the same venue last November.

"That self-belief was certainly a quality that (former assistant coach) Wayne Bennett brought to the group. You get that belief through the way you prepare," Kearney said.

"There's some wonderful players wearing the Kiwi jumper and if they play to their potential I'm sure they'll do a good job."

The news got better for the Kangaroos last night, with winger Darius Boyd cleared to play and star fullback Billy Slater rated "99 per cent certain" after rolling his ankle at Tuesday's training.

"He's responded really well to treatment ... unless something untoward happens over the next 24 hours I'm pretty confident he'll play," team physio Tony Ayoub said.

The hosts, with 12 returnees from the World Cup final defeat, have played down any revenge mission as they quietly go about their business under new coach Tim Sheens.

"Our focus is on improving on the World Cup final. We all feel we've got a gameplan to beat the Kiwis but it's about going out and executing it properly which we didn't do in the final," hooker Cameron Smith said.

- NZPA