AUSTRALIA winger Jack Bostock scored the third try of his debut to seal an epic win over a New Zealand side whose star recruit Kalyn Ponga went from starring to likely missing the rest of the tournament with a broken arm.
The green and golds repeatedly came from behind to win 24-22 before the biggest Test crowd in Sydney for 50 years.
And this time the spectacle lived up to the occasion and the audience as the World Cup opened in enthralling fashion at Allianz Stadium.
“Nice easy one to start you off with then,” referee Adam Gee said to video referee Chris Butler as the World Cup kicked off with a stunning try.
On four minutes, Jahrome Hughes kicked to the south-eastern corner of the stadium and Ronaldo Mulitalo flew high, tapping the ball down to Isaiah Papali’i.
Papali’i managed to slip the ball to centre Casey McLean, who touched down with his entire body outside the field of play – hence Gee’s comment to Butler.
Following the conversion, Mulitalo had a try disallowed after knocking on in-goal.
The Kiwis were rolling over the top of the home side but on 20 minutes, halfback Hughes pass was snatched out of the air by Australian debutant Jack Bostock who raced 90 metres to the holders’ first try of the tournament.
An injury to Mitchell Moses meant Reece Walsh took over goal-kicking duties and he missed, with Isaako adding a 25th-minute penalty goal for an 8-4 Kiwis lead.
Winger Mulitalo pulled off a thunderous hit on Kotoni Staggs not long afterwards but against all odds, the Aussies scored next in a mirror image from the other side of the field.
This time it was winger Tom Trbojevic snaffling McLean’s pass and going the same distance – 90 metres. This time fullback Walsh did manage to convert and we had the completely counterintuitive scoreline of Australia 10 New Zealand 8.
But the gaps between the incidents got smaller in the final five minutes of the half.
Centre Staggs knocked on as he attempted to ground Harry Grant’s kick for a try, Walsh pulled off a memorable trysaver on Kalyn Ponga, Staggs was sent to the sin bin for taking out Kodi Nikorima and Isaako tied things up at 10-10 for oranges.
With Staggs still in the sin bin after halftime, Ponga scored the first of his two second half tries to break the deadlock. But not long afterwards Ponga was injured with a forearm colliding with Cameron Munster’s head.
He would score another try before being forced off.
Firstly, Bostock got his second touchdown as he attached himself to a bomb and plummeted to Earth with it. Walsh’s conversion tied it up again.
Jamayne Isaako thought he had scored off a Trbojevic mistake, only for Papali’i to be ruled offside on the preceding kick chase.
Then Ponga, with his underwear on display, glided poetically through the left side Australian defence and stepped again before scoring what looked like it could be the match-winner.
Reece Walsh put paid to that idea with an amazing individual try from his own side of halfway.
AUSTRALIA 24 (Bostock 3 Trbojevic Walsh tries Walsh 2 goals) beat NEW ZEALAND 22 (Ponga 3 McLean tries Isaako 5 goals) at Allianz Stadium.Crowd: 41,255
Teams:
AUSTRALIA: Reece Walsh (Brisbane); Jack Bostock (Dolphins), Latrell Mitchell (South Sydney), Kotoni Staggs (Brisbane), Tom Trbojevic (Manly); Cameron Munster (Melbourne), Mitchell Moses (Parramatta); Pat Carrigan (Brisbane), Harry Grant (Melbourne), Tino Fa’asuamuali (Gold Coast), Jacob Preston (Canterbury), Liam Martin (Penrith, Isaah Yeo (capt, Penrith).
Reserves: Tom Dearden (North Queensland, Cameron Murray (South Sydney), Rueben Cotter (North Queensland, Keaon Kaloamatangi (South Sydney), David Fifita (South Sydney), Bradman Best (Newcastle).
NZ: Kalyn Ponga (Newcastle); Jamayne Isaako (Dolphins), Dane Gagai (Newcastle), Casey McLean (Penrith), Ronaldo Mulitalo (Cronulla); Kodi Nikorima (Dolphins), Jahrome Hughes (Melbourne); James Fisher-Harris (capt, Warriors)), Jeremy Marshall-King (Dolphins), Moses Leota (Penrith), Isaiah Papali’i (Warriors), Briton Nikora (Cronulla), Joseph Tapine (Canberra).
Reserves: Te Maire Martin (Warriors), Naufahu Whyte (Sydney Roosters), Erin Clark (Warriors), Xavier Willison (Brisbane), Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad (Warriors), Keano Kini (Warriors).
Referee: Adam Gee.
