Strong farewell for Shaun Johnson as Kiwis smash PNG

By Michael Burgess

Finally, some joy for the Kiwis in 2024.

After a difficult Pacific Championships campaign, the New Zealand side have finished with a flourish, smashing Papua New Guinea 54-12 on Sunday night in Sydney.

It meant Shaun Johnson could end his 35-test international career on a winning note, while rookie winger Casey McLean showed his promise with four tries and some eye catching touches.

The result won’t take away the pain of last week’s home defeat to Tonga, which meant they missed the Pacific Championships final but it was important to bounce back, while also sealing their place in the top tier of the competition for 2025.

The Kiwis were heavy favourites – with only one loss to Papua New Guinea, way back in 1986 – but the Kumuls can’t be taken lightly, given their improvement over the past decade.

Across the first half it was a much closer contest than the final margin indicated, with the advantage only 10-6 after 36 minutes, before two quick tries before halftime. That seemed to knock the stuffing out of the Kumuls and the Kiwis went on with the job, with six second-half tries.

McLean will grab the headlines and looks a special talent, with poise, pace and power, off the back of only six NRL games. Johnson was top-notch in his farewell match, showing his full range of skills and looking like he could play again next year, even if that has already been ruled out, as he contributed five try assists.

Fullback Keano Kini topped 300 running metres, while Joseph Tapine and Scott Sorensen were standouts in a strong forward effort. Jamayne Isaako also collected a hat trick.

Fullback Keano Kini topped 300 running metres, while Joseph Tapine and Scott Sorensen were standouts in a strong forward effort. Jamayne Isaako also collected a hat trick.

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McLean became the third youngest Kiwi in test history, after Will Warbrick was ruled out with a thigh injury, while fellow rookie Erin Clark was another late inclusion.

Unlike in the previous two weeks the Kiwis were quick out of the blocks, with a fourth-minute try, as McLean was found by superb long ball by Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad. Their second, seven minutes later, rewarded quick thinking by Peta Hiku and Johnson, before Jamayne Isaako sprung over.

The Kiwis then went slightly off the boil, as the Kumuls came back into the match. Sylvester Namo found a gaping hole near the posts for a try, before New Zealand dodged successive bullets. First, Kumuls’ hooker Liam Horne dived clean over the ball – chasing a perfect grubber – with no defender anywhere to be seen. A few minutes later the Kumuls were quickest to react to a wicked bounce from a Lachlan Lam yardage kick, with Rhyse Martin crossing, before the try was scratched for offside.

The Kiwis regrouped – off the back of strong defence – and needed Leo Thompson’s try in the shadows of halftime, from a smart Griffin Neame offload, following clever pickpocketing from Peta Hiku. If that was crucial, what came next was sublime, as Nicoll-Klokstad crossed off the last play of the half, after McLean found space down the sideline.

That gave a scoreline a vastly different sheen – from 10-6 to 22-6 – and the Kiwis continued the momentum after the break, with three tries to McLean in the space of 16 minutes.

The best was from an acute Johnson kick – as he reeled in a bouncing ball at full speed, while the others came from a precise Nicoll-Klokstad chip and a neatly delayed Johnson pass.

As the game lost some shape, Johnson created further tries for Isaako and Naufahu Whyte, while Robert Derby got a consolation for the men in yellow.

This article was first published on nzherald.co.nz and is republished here with permission