Australia vs. New Zealand Preview

This weekend sees the match that we've all been waiting for. PNG are barely on the radar, as are England. Australia vs. New Zealand should be an absolute cracker. The Australian side entering this clash is:

1. Darius Boyd
2. Brett Morris
3. Brent Tate
4. Chris Lawrence
5. Lote Tuqiri
6. Todd Carney
7. Cooper Cronk
8. Matt Scott
9. Cameron Smith (c)
10. Dave Shillington
11. Greg Bird
12. Sam Thaiday
13. Paul Gallen

Interchange (one to be omitted):

14. Dean Young
15. Petero Civoniceva
16. Tom Learoyd-Lahrs
17. Robbie Farah
18. Kurt Gidley

This game signals a number of changes that Sheens insists is form related. Sorry mate but Lockyer and Slater are 100% locked in for the final, injury permitting. Boyd and Carney are fantastic young players who will get the job done but quite frankly their time will come. The story is a little different with the number 4 jersey as I think Lawrence can legitimately seal his spot in the final with a cracking performance on the weekend. Tonga has had a fantastic season but so has Lawrence and the West Tigers connection out wide carries a bit of weight.

Matt Scott's inclusion in the starting line-up may very well signal a changing of the guard in terms of Props. Petero will forever be remembered as a workhorse that did Brisbane (and Penrith I guess), QLD and Australia well much in the same way Webcke is but his time is slowly coming to an end. Scott however is similar in the sense that he is a big lad who runs hard, never gives up and provides constant go-forward.

Time to take aim at the selection of Kurt Gidley again. For some reason a lot of fans have it in their heads that he is a brilliant fullback. Pro tip guys - if he was that good, why would NSW constantly play him out of position and have an overrated hack in his place? Let's assume he plays this weekend - are they going to sit out Dean Young and leave themselves short a big man on the bench? Or drop a legitimate hooking option in Farah and have Gidley cover Smith? It just boggles the mind to be honest.

Enough about selections, what can we expect from the match? The Aussies will need to brace themselves heading into Eden Park. I expect the Kiwi's to be ready to play and will come out strong as always. The first 20mins should lay the platform for the dominant side to bring it home but that being said, both teams have the strike power and endurance to make this a memorable game. Australia has a superior side across the park as far as I'm concerned however with blokes like Benji, Waerea-Hargreaves and SKD you can never be too confident.

Prediction? Let's see if I can get close again. Australia wins 20-18. Stay tuned in the coming days for a review and also a solid rant on Monaghan and the "Man's Best Friend" incident.