League: McClennan rues 'avalanche Australia'

The Kiwi's team management and New Zealand Rugby League bosses meet today to review the disappointing test loss in Brisbane and plan for the June 27 contest against Great Britain, but no great fallout is expected.

Focus will be on ensuring the availability of players, that there are no repeats of the passport problem that eliminated David Solomona, and seeing where the build-up programme can be improved.

The NZRL and coach Brian McClennan want to take some NRL players to the game at Knowlsey Rd in June to strengthen the team and some for the experience, blooding them for the Tri-Nations.

Taking the positive from the 50-12 loss on Friday night, McClennan said they had broadened their base of players by two with both debutants David Fa'alogo and Tame Tupou proving they were test material with good games.

The Everest theme they used to inspire team spirit and endeavour had worked, he said. "We just got hit by an avalanche. It didn't come down to lack of effort, it didn't come down to who was most motivated, we just got outplayed."

One day 21-year-old Benji Marshall and 20-year-old Sonny Bill Williams would have as much experience as 32-year-old Andrew Johns and 29-year-old Darren Lockyer. "You have to win it in the ruck and they got that area. We fatigued and ran out of juice."

Of selections and the use of Williams, Marshall and Nigel Vagana who had little game time before the test, McClennan said: "I'm happy with the team we went in with, we were always a little underdone and we knew that. The effort was there. If we had our time again we wouldn't change things. They tried very, very hard and I'm proud of them."

Of the loss of captain Ruben Wiki at the last minute, he said they would not make excuses. "Nathan Cayless played outstandingly well."

But clearly Wiki's withdrawal with a hamstring injury did take sting out of them. When the team returned to their hotel after the last training run the mood was sombre as players learned he could not take part, the first sign of any unease all week.

Wiki said that during the week he went "from zero to 95 per cent" in terms of his chances of playing and was bitterly disappointed not to lead the team. "I did everything I could to get on the field."

In the end he withdrew himself by lunchtime on the day.

"We get another crack in October," he said. "If the boys could play tomorrow they would."

As to the loss, the Australians made the 1 per cent plays better, he said, the Kiwis hadn't controlled the pace of the game and the Australians set a better defensive line. "They controlled their emotions better than us and we're going to concentrate on reversing that."

New Zealanders living in Australia recalled the days of old when the Kiwis would win the fight and lose the game and called Friday a 2-0 win, because we laid out two of theirs in Ben Kennedy and Karmichael Hunt but they didn't lay out any of ours.

Hunt couldn't play for the Broncos against Newcastle yesterday after being concussed when hit by Frank Pritchard. The Penrith club recommended that Pritchard plead guilty to a careless high tackle charge so he did, receiving 94 demerit points and so falling under the 100-point ban that would have removed him from the Panthers game against North Queensland. And Cowboys and Kangaroos second rower Luke O'Donnell is out for a month with a rib injury, further testament to what was a brutal game at Suncorp Stadium on Friday night.

"The score doesn't typify the physical side of it, the toughness," said Kangaroos coach Ricky Stuart. "It was a very, very tough game especially in the first 30 minutes. It was a brutal game."

Before the game they were asked: were they going to be the ones intimidating or the ones intimidated by the opposition's aggression, were they going to out-enthuse or be out-enthused.

Their skipper Darren Lockyer said the Hunt KO changed the game. They knew immediately that their fullback would be taken off. "We lifted after that." The score was 20-12.

Then Nathan Hindmarsh and Timana Tahu got two quick tries and the game was gone from the Kiwis, Lockyer shifting to fullback and scoring two himself.

NZRL chairman Sel Bennett said they had lost an opportunity and made things a bit harder for themselves by the size of the deficit. They would have another opportunity at the St Helens ground and had to look to that rather than dwell on the loss.

"We feel we can further broaden our base of players with the game up there."

His take on the Anzac game: "I don't think we judged the intensity of it - they really set out to belt us. And Ruben going out at the last minute knocked the boys around all right."