MANCHESTER - New Zealand rugby league coach Frank Endacott walked away from his last international yesterday just as popular as he was when he first came on to the scene seven years ago.
Manchester United soccer club's Old Trafford stadium, where the World Cup final was played, is also called the
Theatre of Dreams, but there was no fairytale ending for Endacott as Australia won 40-12 to take the cup home for another four years.
Endacott, however, was up-beat, gracious in defeat and accepting of the loss.
He was misty-eyed afterwards in the Kiwi dressing-room, which had an air of mourning about it.
But when he appeared from the room he put on a typically brave and chirpy face to the media.
"One more try early in the second half and I think we could have come back," he said. "But in the end they were just too good. They're a ruthless side and they made us pay.
"There are no excuses, we got beaten by a better side on the day.
"That Australian team are probably going to end up the greatest Australian side ever."
'We're all disappointed with the result, but I am immensely proud of each and every one of the players.
"Around 80 per cent of our team will be around for the next World Cup in 2004, so the future is in good hands."
The New Zealand Rugby League is likely to make a decision on Endacott's successor before Christmas, and Gary Kemble is the coach who is favoured inside the Kiwi camp.
Australian coach Chris Anderson said his team were one of the best to have left their shores.
"Frank Endacott would have been very proud of his boys," Anderson said.
"For 60 minutes they asked us the question. They really put it to us and he couldn't have asked much more than that.
"We had a lot of pressure on us. The whole tournament came down to this game.
"[Captain] Brad Fittler said before the match that if we lost, we would be failures.
"We didn't want to be the first Aussie side to go home losing the World Cup."
- NZPA
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