RWC 2011 Semi Final Preview - Australia v New Zealand | Thebigtip

Two nations with a sporting history stretching back more than a century, a home team playing at a supposedly impenetrable fortress, a couple of suspect first five-eighths and a pair of rival coaches whose legacies could be cemented on the outcome of this one game.

Not to mention a country of four million with its heart set on ending a 24-year drought at the global tournament. It sounds like the sporting equivalent of a soap opera, but these are just a few of the ingredients brewing this week in the lead up to the World Cup semi final between the All Blacks and the Wallabies on Sunday night.

Beyond all the hype, hopes and hysteria however, there is a game of footy to be played. It is a contest between two teams possessing supremely talented backlines, but both teams will know that the real battle is to be won up front.

Australia held their nerve to beat fellow SANZAR members South Africa 11-9, in what was a hugely physical quarter final in Wellington, despite having the ball for less than half the game. It was an outstanding defensive effort from a team not usually known for the strength of its pack. The Wallaby win was spearheaded by a red-hot performance from openside flanker David Pocock, who gained plaudits not only for his high tackle count but also for his work at the breakdown, where he succeeded in slowing down the South Africans’ ball all evening. This weekend he will lock horns with some of the best in the business, in All Blacks’ loose forward trio Richie McCaw, Jerome Kaino and Kieran Read. The outcome of this tussle will be crucial to the hopes of both sides.

New Zealand too were severely tested in their 33-10 quarter final victory over Argentina. Los Pumas kept the men-in-black try-less for sixty minutes but a solid display of goal kicking from halfback Piri Weepu ensured the kiwis were always well ahead of their South American rivals.

Key Players:

New Zealand are all too familiar with the game-breaking abilities of Wallaby inside pair Will Genia and Quade Cooper. The two combined to dash the hopes of the Crusaders in the Super 15 final at Suncorp Stadium back in July and reprised their double act for the national side two months later to deny the All Blacks another Tri Nations crown. Cooper was missing in action for large periods against the Springboks but his coach Robbie Deans will be counting on him to create some of his characteristic magic if the Wallabies are to progress to the Final.

Unlike Cooper, Australian skipper James Horwill had a massive game in the quarter final. He muscled his way over for the only try of the match, but it was the 26-year old’s leadership that really shone through. The question is, can he rally his troops for another big effort so close on the heels of the last?

With Dan Carter gone, no one is more vital to the All Blacks’ finals hopes than Piri Weepu. In the superstar pivot’s absence, halfback Weepu shouldered the responsibility of steering the Black Ship against Argentina, and did so brilliantly. He also calmly slotted seven of his eight kicks at goal. He will need to play another blinder or two if the New Zealanders are to break their World Cup hoodoo this time around.

Colossal blindside flanker, Jerome Kaino has been, arguably, the player of the tournament to date. He has defended like a human dump truck for the past five weeks and made hundreds of yards with ball in hand. A few big hits or a couple of those barnstorming runs from Kaino and Deans might find that his star first-five has again gone in to hiding.

Verdict:

This is a game that will be won in tight by the team who is most able to build pressure and take their opportunities. South Africa failed to capitalise on their good work in Wellington but the Kiwis look that much more clinical and should win the forward battle. Graham Henry’s men must be wary, however, of another first-half lapse like the one in Brisbane, where they were blown away by a Wallabies outfit that were simply more passionate. A moment of genius from the Australian backline notwithstanding, the All Blacks should close it out.  New Zealand by 7+