English raid on New Guinean paradise
October 26th 2008 07:38
There was a solid reason behind Papua New Guinea’s inclusion in the super pool of the rugby league world cup.
Judging from yesterday’s performance against England in Townsville, it seems the New Guineans can indeed match it with the big guns of this presumed one sided tournament.
Led by none other than one of the world’s great mysteries in hulking forward Stanley Gene (no one can crack his age), New Guinea were wrecking havoc in the middle of the park early on against a tired but physical England pack.
Eventually though, credit must be given to the English.
This was a massive danger game for them in the context of their chances in this world cup. They simply had to win to gain some confidence ahead of defining matches against heavyweights Australia and New Zealand.
One man that would now have more confidence than he could wish for is England winger Lee Smith.
In his debut for ‘The Lions’ he scored a hat trick and this will do wonders for his belief when he confronts more enticing prospects on the flanks, such as Joel Monaghan and Manu Vatuvei.
England coach, Australian born Tony Smith was left satisfied with the result, and thinks this tough win will only credit his sides chances for the rest of the tournament.
New Guinea coach Adrian Lam however was left seething over a match defining decision which went against his team.
The ‘Kumals’ were on the verge of scoring a four pointer only for the referee to rule a forward pass in the movement.
If the try would have been allowed, New Guinea could have possessed a match winning ten point lead if the ensuing conversion was a success.
Despite the costly decision and the loss, New Guinea’s showing against the English will do wonders for rugby league back home.
Indeed New Guinea is the only nation in the tournament which has Rugby League as its national sport, and with almost 89 percent of the country watching back home, they would have been left very proud of the showing in skill and flair their national team possesses.
For England however, it’s a small step in the right direction in gaining lost rugby league redemption.
Their last performance in a world cup mirrored the financial disaster of the tournament itself. England in 2000 went out in the semi-finals courtesy of a thrashing against the Kiwis.
Although their win against the New Guineans will hardly put the world on fire, there will be sparks generated within the squad that could light up big time against their more fancied rivals.
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