Kidwell calls out Kiwi fans
David Kidwell has called out the New Zealand public to turn up in force as the Kiwis face the prospect of being drowned out on home soil in their biggest game of the World Cup.
The Kiwis coach has recalled experienced duo Thomas Leuluai and Simon Mannering, while opting for Kodi Nikorima ahead of Te Maire Martin at five-eighth, for Saturday’s much-anticipated clash against Tonga in Hamilton, which will decide top spot in Pool B and the evasion of the Kangaroos up until the final.
It will be Tonga’s secondstraight game at Waikato Stadium following last week’s impressive 32-18 win over Samoa, where the fervent fans from both countries combined to create one of the greatest atmospheres seen at a rugby league game in this country.
The venue is again expected to be a sea of red but Kidwell, perhaps in an indication of just how tough he expects the star-studded Tongans to be, had a message for those Kiwi supporters on the fence about heading along.
‘‘The boys are committed, they’ve been working hard, they deserve to see a lot of Kiwi fans for our game on Saturday night,’’ Kidwell said.
‘‘I watched the Tonga-Samoa game and it was great to see their passionate fans come out and support and I know the Tongan community is going to be there. I’m calling out the Kiwi community who is backing us, passionate about how we are playing our football at the moment to come out and support us in which is going to be our most challenging game of the tournament so far.’’
As if the stakes weren’t high enough, the match sees the Kiwis come face-to-face with the four players, led by Jason Taumalolo, who performed a last-minute U-turn to play for Tonga in the tournament.
But Kidwell wasn’t looking to add fuel to the fire. Taumalolo sent shockwaves through New Zealand rugby league last month when he announced just a day before the squad announcement that he would be playing for Tonga, without directly contacting Kidwell.
The coach was clearly hurt at the time but has since moved on. He said he would be willing to meet Taumalolo and fellow defectors David Fusitu’a, Manu Ma’u and Sio Siua Taukeiaho after Saturday’s game, although stopped short at inviting them into the dressing room.
‘‘We’ve had the focus on us and where our energy needs to be,’’ Kidwell added. ‘‘We’re nice and relaxed, we’re not tapping into any emotion or anything.’
After sitting out last week’s 74-6 thumping of Scotland, Leuluai and Mannering were obvious choices to start at hooker and second-row respectively.
Jordan Rapana also returns to the right wing while Dallin Watene-Zelezniak has been named on the left for his first start in front of his home crowd.
But by far the most contentious selection was Nikorima’s elevation over Martin in the halves.
After playing such a key role in North Queensland’s run to the NRL grand final, Martin was expected to be Shaun Johnson’s first-choice partner in halves when Kieran Foran was ruled out of the tournament.
But after having a game each to press their claims, Kidwell felt Broncos utility Nikorima offered more direction in attack.
‘‘We’ve gone with Kodi because we think he can direct the team along with Shaun and he has that little bit of X-factor about him,’’ Kidwell said.
"The boys are committed, they've been working hard, they deserve to see a lot of Kiwi fans for our game."
David Kidwell