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NZ 34 Lebanon 12
NZ - K Bromwich, Hiku, Brown, Manu, Rapana & Asofa-Solomona tries; Rapana 5 conversions
Lebanon - Mansour & Miski tries; Moses 2 conversions
Second half
40th minute - Lebanon have the ball with seconds left. Moses chips ahead for Mansour, but it dribbles into touch, as the siren sounds.
NZ win, but that's not a convincing performance for the world No.1.
39th minute - Hiku kicks ahead and Lebanon are trapped behind their line, although they do seem to have reached the field of play and Moses challenges.
Replays show the ball was eventually lost, so Kiwis have one last crack before fulltime. From the scrum, Manu tries to find a way through and there's another obstruction - their third in a row.
38th minute - Kiwis win a scrum on their own 10 and roll towards halfway. NAS offloads in a tackle and Marshall-King steals another 10 metres.
37th minute - Lebanon are pressing again, but throw a forward pass to Miski.
36th minute - Huge clearing kick from Moses puts Lebanon hot on attack.
35th minute - Kiwis are running rampant, but they're called for obstruction again.
34th minute - Kenny Bromwich finds Manu with a back flick pass and Manu throws a long pass to Mulitalo with the line open, but Atkins calls them back for obstruction.
33rd minute - Lebanon can't clear their half and Moses has to kick from deep. Mulitalo runs the ball back towards halfway and Niukore eventually reaches Lebanon territory.
32nd minute - Manu offloads to Kenny Bromwich, who can't reach the tryline and eventually Lebanon weather the storm.
31st minute - Eventually Lebanon spill the ball in the shadow of the posts and Kiwis come away from their goal-line. Mulitalo splits the defence with a long run, but can't find support.
30th minute - Lebanon threaten down the left, but a Kiwis hand knocks the ball loose for another set. Kiwis defence holds.
29th minute - Karaz runs deep on the left and Lebanon are looking for their third try, but an offload loses metres.
27th minute - Nikora penalised for a no-arms tackle and Lebanon go on attack. Kiwis strip the ball, but knock on in their own territory.
26th minute - Marshall-king makes his Kiwis debut, Kenny Bromwich reaches halfway, Brown chips ahead on the last, but Lebanon defuse the threat, with Nicoll-Klokstad chasing.
25th minute - Moses kicks from his own half and Manu catches under his posts.
24th minute - Kiwis throw a wild pass that misses Mulitalo by a mile and goes into touch with the line beckoning.
23rd minute - Moses kicks off long... too long and dead. Kiwis have the penalty on halfway and kick to the Lebanon 10.
21st minute - TRY to Rapana
While everyone is trying to figure out why Doueihi was ejected, the Kiwis kick into Lebanon half and Rapana cuts back against the grain for a simple try. Rapana pulls his conversion across the posts for his first miss of the night, NZ 34-12
20th minute - Doueihi kicks off short again, but Manu has the ball. Atkins has sent Doueihi off the field and Lebanon are now a man short.
17th minute - TRY to Manu
Doueihi kicks off again and Foran is under the ball. Niukore reaches halfway and the Kiwis are rolling forward.
Manu chips over his marker, regathers and evades the defence to score. Incredible individual play. Rapana converts, NZ 30-12
14th minute - TRY to Brown
Kiwis rolling towards halfway and Manu breaks into Lebanon territory. He staggers a few more meters, before finding Brown running in support up the middle of the park to score.
Rapana converts, NZ 24-12
13th minute - Lebanon into Kiwis half and run on the last tackled. Mansour kicks and Lebanon recover, but offload forward.
Desperate defence from NZ.
12th minute - Veteran Robinson exits the Lebanon red zone and they get a set restart.
11th minute - Kenny Bromwich runs within metres of the line and Nicoll-Klokstad runs from dummy half. Tapine goes close, then Niukore is stopped short, before Foran is tackled on the last.
10th minute - Manu wins a penalty for head contact in the tackle and Kiwis enter Lebanon half.
Ninth minute - Kiwis kick off again, Lebanon reach halfway and Manu struggles with another towering kick from Doueihi.
Sixth minute - TRY to Miski
Lebanon shift the ball left and Miski has the overlap to dive over in the corner. Kiwis rocked early in the second half and Moses converts, NZ 18-12
Fifth minute - Kiwis penalised for stripping the ball in a tackle and Lebanon take the tap metres from the tryline.
Fourth minute - Doueihi kicks early from his 40 and finds touch inside the Kiwis 20 - big kick and Lebanon have great field position.
Third minute - Kiwis struggling the exit their territory, but Kenny Bromwich eventually reaches halfway for Foran to kick high, Doueihi underneath.
Second minute - Kiwis turn the ball over and Lebanon are hot on attack early in the second half, but they give the ball back with a forward pass.
First minute - Michael Maguire is gesticulating wildly from the coaching box, pulling Papali'i off and putting Nikora back on, as the Kiwis kick off.
Lebanon reach halfway, but Tapine drives them back. Doueihi torpedoes a kick towards Manu, who has to scramble to cover.
Halftime
40th minute - Moses kicks long and Mulitalo dances from his own red zone. Smith throws a looong pass to Hiku and Kiwis enter Lebanon half, but Manu's speculator bobbles into touch, as the halftime siren sounds.
39th minute - Cedars clear a scrum near their own line, but struggle to make ground.
38th minute - Lebanon win a scrum deep in the Kiwis half, but spill the ball in midfield.
Kiwis are quickly into Lebanon half, with NAS diving and passing acrobatically, but Papali'i loses the ball, trying to offload with the tryline beckoning.
37th minute - Lebanon win a penalty in the tackle and Moses's kick clears his half. Tapine has blood pouring from his nose, after copping Big Nasty's head to the face, and leaves the field.
36th minute - Kiwis have position and plenty of tackles in hand. They're knocking on the door again, but Manu is kept out.
Bromwich tries to put Mulitalo over, but Foran's kick is taken under the posts by Doueihi.
35th minute - Niukore has a big run with his first touch and Manu has the ball stripped, but wins a penalty.
34th minute - Lebanon cross halfway and make ground down the right, but Moses' kick is gathered by Brown, who finds Manu off the ground.
33rd minute - Another big run from Tapine, who crosses halfway. Foran kicks high and Hiku is first on the scene, but knocks on.
32nd minute - Doueihi kicks high, but slightly longer this time. Kiwis control the ball, but there's a scuffle behind the play, involving Big Nasty again.
Artkins rules play on.
30th minute - TRY to Hiku
Kiwis win first set restart of the game and Tapine runs deep into Lebanon half, before offloading to Papali'i. Manu dashes and Hiku takes the next run from dummy half to score.
Rapana makes the conversion looks easy, NZ 18-6
29th minute - Big NAS puts in a swinging arm in a tackle and exchanges words with his opponent afterwards. Only one winner there.
Moses kicks across the field, but Mulitalo is safe.
28th minute - Foran kicks high and Kiwis get a hand to it again, bouncing for Brown, but ruled a knock-on.
27th minute - Lebanon wander back to halfway, slowing the game down. Doueihi kicks high and short again, but Rapana is wise to the tactic and grabs the ball.
Manu reaches halfway and Tapine rolls forward.
24th minute - TRY to Asofa-Solomona
Short dropout from Doueihi, but Rapana has the ball. Papali'i and Asofa-Solomona go close, before the big man gets a second bite from Smith's offload and capitalises.
Rapana converts from in front, NZ 12-6
23rd minute - From the tap, Manu almost reaches the line and almost offload. The ball shifts left, where Mulitalo can't find a way through.
Foran kicks through, Hiku taps it back into play as it goes dead, but Lebanon force for a dropout.
22nd minute - Smith runs from dummy half near the tryline, but he's held up in the tackle.
21st minute - Manu runs off the scrum, but Lebanon are offside. Fisher-Harris is stopped near the posts, but Brown cops a high tackle.
20th minute - Hiku reaches halfway and Kenny Bromwich straightens the attack. Nicoll-Klokstad beats a couple of tackles down the left, Foran kicks to Rapana, but Lebanon knock on and Hiku can't gather the loose ball.
Kiwis attacking scrum.
19th minute - Lebanon have the ball in their own territory and Moses kicks deep to Mulitalo.
18th minute - Foran finds Papali'i running underneath, Brown kicks to the corner and Mulitalo is first there, but Nicoll-Klokstad can't make anything of the offload.
17th minute - Papali'i wins a penalty in the tackle, after he's tipped on his head. Kiwis start again on halfway.
16th minute - Lebanon running deep into Kiwis territory, but they lose the ball in a tackle and NZ will have a chance to clear their line from a scrum.
15th minute - Jesse Bromwich strips the ball, but loses it back in the tackle.
14th minute - Brown kicks high and again Lebanon are nowhere near it. The ball bounces backwards and into touch in the Lebanon half.
13th minute - Moses kicks long and Mulitalo has the catch. Manu runs across field and Smith crosses halfway.
12th minute - Bullocking run from Smith and Kenny Bromwich reaches halfway. Brown kicks high and Mulitalo gathers, but Tapine's offload is cut off by Lebanon.
11th minute - Moses kicks to the corner for Mansour and it clears Mulitalo, who backtracks and drags Mansour into touch.
10th minute - Lebanon run from a scrum in their own 20 and then win a penalty for a tipping tackle by Tapine.
Ninth minute - Kiwis get a penalty and clear their half, but Jesse Bromwich knocks on. He wants to challenge, but he's already burnt it up.
Eighth minute - Doueihi kicks high and short again, and the Kiwis are called for knock-on. Bromwich challenges the decision, but replays show the ball bouncing off Manu, who picks up a leg knock in the contest.
From the scrum, Moses receives the ball and the tackle from Dylan Brown, and knocks on. The ball doesn't lie.
Sixth minute - TRY to Kenny Bromwich
Manu offloads to Smith near the tryline and the hooker finds Kenny Bromwich, who has enough momentum to roll on his back and score upside down. Rapana is on target with his conversion, 6-6
Fifth minute - Kenny Bromwich puts a kick through and chases, but Lebanon spill the ball and Kiwis are hot on attack.
Fourth minute - Moses kicks long to Manu, Jesse Bromwich reaches halfway and Tapine makes another 10 metres.
Third minute - Rapana kicks off long and Lebanon let it bounce.
First minute - Commentator Andrew Voss states: "The haka never fails to disappoint." Not sure that's what he meant, but ok.
England's Grant Atkins will referee this match and Lebanon will kick off.
TRY to Mansour
Doueihi kicks high into the air and short, and Lebanon recover the ball. They're quickly in the red zone, where Moses puts a kick through, the ball bobbles loose and Mansour dashes through to score.
There's some doubt about a knock-on from Lebanon, but the officials are happy to award the try. Moses converts and the Kiwis are behind early, LEB 6-0
7:24am - Jesse Bromwich leads the Kiwis out onto the field for anthems and the Kiwis haka.
7:10am - Some more bad news for the Kiwis, with prop Moses Leota a late scratch, after picking up a slight groin injury in the captain's run. Marata Niukore comes onto the bench, while veteran half Kieran Foran is promoted in the starting outfit, with Jeremy Marshall-King filling a dummy half role off the bench.
Earlier today, Ireland beat debutants Jamaica 48-2 in New Zealand's group, so they loom as early rivals in pool play.
Of course, another key man for Lebanon tonight will be coach Michael Cheika - the Aussie coach every Kiwi loves to hate, who has already beaten the All Blacks this year with Argentina. Can he mastermind a unique double?
*****
Kia ora, good morning and welcome to Newshub's live coverage of the Rugby League World Cup pool clash between NZ Kiwis and Lebanon at Halliwell Jones Stadium, the home of the Warrington Wolves.
On paper, the former champions and top-ranked nation in the world can ease into the tournament against a team that's never challenged any of the top-tier rugby league powers.
The Kiwis have a powerful squad - perhaps their best ever - and the pedigree to challenge Australia for the crown, even if they must meet the defending champions at the semi-final stage, as organisers try to line up a dream Kangaroos v England final at Wembley.
The talking points of the NZ selection are former Canberra Raiders fullback Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad in the centres and Jeremy Marshall-King - brother of Kiwis legend Benji Marshall - debuting in the halves, after Jahrome Huges was forced to withdraw with injury.
Scott Sorenson - nephew of Kiwis greats Dane and Kurt Sorenson - will also make his debut from the bench.
The most obvious threats from Lebanon would appear to be veteran winger Josh Mansour, and a dangerous halves pairing of Wests Tigers utility Adam Doueihi and Parramatta Eels maestro Mitch Moses.
TAB Odds: NZ $1.001, Lebanon $20
NZ: 1-Joseph Manu, 2-Ronaldo Mulitalo, 21-Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, 4-Peta Hiku, 5-Jordan Rapana, 6-Dylan Brown, 14-Kieran Foran, 8-Jesse Bromwich, 9-Brandon Smith, 10-James Fister-Harris, 11-Isaiah Papali'i, 12-Kenny Bronwich 13-Joseph Tapine
Interchange: 22-Jeremy Marshall-King, 16-Nelson Asofa-Solomona, 17-Briton Nikora, 3-Marata Niukore, 18-Dallin Watene-Zelezniak
Lebanon: 1-Jaco Kiraz, 2-Josh Mansour, 3-Joshua Maree, 4-Brad Morkos, 5-Abbas Miski, 6-Adam Doueihi, 7-Mitch Moses, 8-Kayne Kalache, 9-Michael Tannous, 10-Elie El-Zakham, 11-Jaxson Rahme, 12-Charbel Tasipale, 13-James Roumanos
Interchange: 14-Antony Layoun, 15-Andrew Kazzi, 16-Reece Robinson, 17-Jalal Bazzaz, 18-Hanna E-Nachar
Kiwis coach Maguire issues World Cup challenge to star fullback Manu
By Reece Labuschagne
NZ Kiwis coach Michael Maguire has challenged star Joseph Manu to become the "best fullback" at the upcoming Rugby League World Cup.
Manu will line up at the back in a star-studded New Zealand side to tackle Lebanon in their tournament opener at Warrington on Monday.
With the likes of Australia's James Tedesco, Samoa's Joseph Sua'a'li' and England's Sam Tomkins knocking about, Manu faces stiff competition to live up to his coach's vision, but Maguire expects the Sydney Roosters star to be one of the tournament standouts, as the Kiwis look to win their first title since 2008.
"He's been excellent," Maguire said. "He could've probably played against Leeds, but we felt the timing of what we have, getting him right... was more important.
"I can't wait to see him play throughout this tournament. I think he's going to be a real star, along with a number of players obviously, but we all know what he's capable of and now he's got his opportunity at fullback.
"I know he loves playing fullback, it's something we've spoken about. He's just in a team with a few other handy players, so they play him as a bit of a dual-role there in clubland as a fullback.
"Now that he can actually own it, I think we're going to see some real good performances from Joey Manu.
"In my mind, he's a fullback. I'd like to see him become the best fullback in the tournament - that would be something nice for Joey to be able to achieve.
"I'm sure that he's ready to go."
While Manu's position at fullback is solidified, many of his Kiwis teammates can expect to shuffle around, as the World Cup progresses.
None more so than veteran Kieran Foran, whom Maguire will call upon on, off and around the field.
"He's going to be very handy for us," Maguire said. "Kieran can play in the halves, play as a No.9 and give Brandon [Smith] a spell.
"Also, too, you might even see him in the middle of the park at some stage, playing a different style that we want to play.
"Kieran gives us quite a bit of versatility and the thing for Kieran is his experience, just listening to him around camp.
"It's a fantasy story, his journey, but he's really taken on a leadership role in the group and he's great to coach, Kieran. You tell him once and he will just go about what he needs to, he rallies the boys around.
"To have someone of his experience in and around the players is excellent, but also as a player, we will be able to use him in a bit of a versatility role as well."
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