KEY POINTS:
SYDNEY - Young and old, the Kiwis players insist they had no idea a triple bombshell awaited them in the dressing room after wrecking their bodies in a heartbreaking golden point Tri-Nations final loss here last night.
Not long after Kangaroos captain Darren Lockyer raced clear from a Johnathan Thurston break to score the try that broke giant Kiwis hearts 16-12, nine minutes into extra time, there was more wrenching to come.
First captain Ruben Wiki, then Kiwis tryscoring recordholder Nigel Vagana and finally little general Stacey Jones stood to address their wide-eyed subjects under the Aussie Stadium grandstand as the 27,325 crowd ambled away with double their money's worth.
"When I first came into the Kiwis my first two roomies were Ruben and Stacey. We've been around for a while but none of us knew the other was finishing today," Vagana told NZPA.
"I've kept it to myself and they kept it to themselves. It just worked out like that. We've come so far together and to finish up together, I guess, is fitting.
"Ruben got up and said his bit, I said mine and then Stacey said his.
"We didn't want to let the boys know (beforehand), we wanted everyone to concentrate on the game, prepare well and not make it emotional."
So ended an era, and a combined 139 tests worth of experience that helped carry the Kiwis to within a whisker of unthinkable back-to-back Tri-Nations titles.
An exhausted, emotional Wiki, 33, embraced his wife Santa, daughter Mackenzie and son Denzel on Aussie Stadium, then relayed the news to the league world.
"Family's more important to me and family comes first. I've had a great ride and it's time for me to step aside and let the young guys take over," said Wiki, the most-capped New Zealander with 55 tests.
"I'm going out a winner. I'm very proud of my boys and the coaching staff.
"We're one tight unit and I know New Zealand rugby league's in good hands, we've got some great kids coming through and the mana will carry on."
Jones, 30, mysteriously wouldn't discuss his retirement, while Vagana, also with a wife and young children, said his decision was made weeks ago.
He was confident he was leaving the Kiwis' backline in good hands with tryscorer Iosia Soliola, Shontayne Hape, Manu Vatuvei and Jerome Ropati, while superstar Benji Marshall was set to return from shoulder surgery.
Bench forward Frank Pritchard, who scored the first try and shone in general play, said the team were rocked by the news.
"It was a shock to the boys. The rest of us are going to have to step up now and take our chances with both hands," he said.
All three retirees will be back for club football next year -- Wiki at the Warriors, Vagana with South Sydney and Jones with French club Catalans Dragons.
Vagana -- a former teammate of Jones' at the champion St Paul's (Auckland) schoolboy side of 1993 -- said the Kiwis were disappointed but not shattered at the loss, knowing they had given their all as injuries ravaged them.
"It was right up there with the toughest test matches I've ever played.
"We took it down to the wire, we didn't nail them but at least when people come to a Kiwis-Aussie test they're not going to be assured of a result one way or the other."
The dressing room was a war zone, with Motu Tony still in la-la land, his left eye closed up and the size of a golf ball, after giant Willie Mason steamrolled him to the turf. He was carried off on a motorised cart.
Vatuvei was concussed after a sickening collision with Mark Gasnier; Steve Matai was still in agony with a shoulder injury and Nathan Cayless lay flat out on the physio's table having his face stitched.
The Kiwis hauled themselves onto the bus for their traditional post-match kava session, then delayed their departure today as manager Peter Leitch assembled them at a secret Sydney location for an end-of-season farewell. Emotion was certain to be dripping from the walls.
- NZPA
