Update: The Kangaroos on tour

by Jeff Rogg

As the USA Tomahawks prepare for their historic match on November 30, their opponents, the Australia Kangaroos, have been staying busy with the Tri-Nations competition. Their tour opened on October 16 in North Harbour, Auckland, New Zealand, where the Kiwi and Aussie sides fought each other to a 16-16 standstill. Aussie skipper Darren Lockyer stood out, along with Shane Webcke, Anthony Minichiello, and Clive Churchill Medalist Willie Mason.


Next it was onto Loftus Road, England on October 23, where the Kangaroos decided to change their fortunes. The match looked like it would be another close one with the Kiwis up 12-8 at the half. Darren Lockyer traded Man-of-the-Match honors with a rib injury as he came off the field sometime into the second half having scored the first of four unanswered tries for the Aussies in the second half. The Kangaroos’ pressure in the second half gave them a convincing win, 32-12, over the Kiwis.

With an injured Darren Lockyer, Danny Buderus took over the role of Kangaroos’ skipper for their first match against the Great Britain Lions in Manchester on October 30. The Aussies started fast out of the gate, but Great Britain fired back actually going ahead 8-0, until just before the half when Willie Mason barreled his way through the defense to give the Aussies only a 4 point deficit going into the second half. The Kangaroos looked like they would need wings to soar out of this one, but one wing in particular, Luke Rooney, proved to be their savior. He put down one try in the 49th minute to even the score at 8-8. With the seconds ticking down in the last minute of the game, center Willie Tonga picked up an errant pass from the Brits and sent Luke Rooney off to the corner to touch down the game-winning try.

The Kangaroos will face the Lions again on November 13th at Wigan and this match should be another thriller. The Kangaroos will sorely miss Lockyer, but will welcome back Craig Fitzgibbon who also injured himself in the second game against the Kiwis. Who knows how this tour will affect the Aussies as they make their way across the Atlantic to the U.S? On the one hand, they will be sore from some bruising matches in this Tri-Nations series. On the other, they will have sufficiently warmed up and will be looking to end their tour with a win when they take on the USA Tomahawks. Stay Tuned!

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