Australia dismantle Samoa to reach World Cup final
On a fractious night in Sydney, it was no surprise to see Reece Walsh at the centre of the action – for better or worse.
The full-back scored three of Australia's eight tries as they beat Samoa 44-12 to reach a 16th successive men's Rugby League World Cup final.
His two second-half tries helped keep a burgeoning Samoa comeback at bay, while his first-half effort demonstrated his skill and showmanship.
On 32 minutes, Walsh administered the harshest of punishments on Samoa for the smallest amount of defensive laxity, racing through the tiniest gap on the left to score.
In front of approximately 40,000 spectators, the Kangaroos' number one celebrated with a backflip.
It was the kind of celebration you expect from a man once christened by Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter V'landys as "the Justin Bieber of rugby league" and "charisma on steroids".
But while thrilling the fans, it gives kittens to those in charge. Walsh lost his boot during the flip; when sitting down to put it back on, TV commentators fretted he had injured himself.
Australia coach Kevin Walters pointedly said there would be no backflips in the second half during a half-time interview – and indeed Walsh reigned himself in.
"That's just Reece," Walters told the post-match media conference. "He always brings up something you don't expect.
"The backflip was no different. Impressive though. He did it for some sick kids. They all asked him to do a backflip if he scored a try, so you can't really be against that when he's putting a smile on kids' faces."
Walsh has scored five tries in three matches at this tournament
More concerning for Walters will be the mistakes Walsh made as he got swept up in the feverish atmosphere.
Two minutes before Walsh's first try, Samoa's Stephen Crichton appeared to have grounded to close the score to 16-6 after Francis Manuleleua had beaten the Aussie full-back to a high ball.
A slow-motion replay led to the debatable conclusion Manuleleua had knocked on. Whether the correct call or not, it was a massive let-off for Walsh.
Samoa began to lose their heads soon after, with a major flashpoint coming after Walsh was ruled to have been dangerously tackled. It was Walsh himself who instigated the ruck after the incident.
Walsh quickly responded after both Samoan scores, keeping them at arm's length while scoring his first international hat-trick.
He needed to after the first one, as Crichton did get his try in the second half after Walsh dropped a bomb.
Magic and mistakes go hand in hand, which is the risk Walters has taken by preferring Walsh at full-back to James Tedesco - who was player of the match as he helped Sydney Roosters win last month's NRL Grand Final.
"That's Reece," Walters repeated when asked about the errors. "He brings great stuff to the team.
"His catching of the high ball, it's difficult and sometimes you don't get a hold of them. He didn't tonight but it's not really anything we've got too much concern with."
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Walsh and Kalyn Ponga are set to duel again after a thrilling battle in the opening game
Victory maintains Australia's 100% record at this tournament, with 170 points scored across four matches.
Their last defeat at a World Cup was against New Zealand in the 2008 final. They have won 22 consecutive games since then, winning the past three tournaments.
To avoid a repeat of 2008 when the meet the Kiwis in Brisbane next Sunday, they will need Walsh at his best to deal with the returned Kalyn Ponga.
New Zealand full-back Ponga, who battled on for 20 minutes with a broken arm in their thrilling 24-22 opening game defeat by Australia, remarkably returned for the semi-final against Tonga on Saturday and produced a man-of-the-match display.
In that opener back on 15 October, Walsh delivered a superb try-saving tackle on opposite number Ponga during the first half before scoring with a sensational 60-metre burst to lay the platform for the Kangaroos' last-gasp victory.
That was despite the fact that, in the run-up to the World Cup, Walsh had not played for eight weeks because of an ankle injury.
Afterwards he was vomiting in the changing room because of the effort, according to Walters. He may need to plunge those depths again.
"We all know Kalyn," said Walters. "He's a world-class player; he showed that last night.
"For the players, it's been about what we can do as a team. If we get that right, I'm happy with that."
Samoa reached only their second ever Rugby League World Cup semi-final
For Samoa, a second successive World Cup ends in defeat by Australia, after being beaten 30-10 in the final four years ago.
The two nations have met six times, with Australia winning all six.
But this one hurt more. Samoa clearly felt they could win, as their ultra-aggressive Siva Tau war dance pre-match proved – getting right in the Australian faces, even forehead to forehead in some cases.
But they were aggrieved by some debatable refereeing decisions, including two disallowed tries – Crichton in the first half, then Hamiso Tabuai-Fidow denied with 10 minutes to go after contact between Manuleleua and Liam Martin was deemed illegal.
It bubbled over shortly before the break, when Spencer Leniu was sin-binned for dissent by Australian referee Adam Gee.
"You guys saw the game. You report on it," was Samoa coach Ben Gardiner's terse response to questions about the decisions.
On whether his side cost themselves with a lack of discipline, he said: "I'm not quite sure.
"On the back of some of the penalties that were given, we just didn't react very well. There was one thing into another and then a try. It made it difficult to be able to fight back from that.
"And then to be down by 18 points, 20 points at half-time, to chase back from that... I thought we did well in the second half to fight back.
"But then again, we scored a try and gave up another one straight away. We bounced off too many tackles in that early period, missed too many tackles in the game in general.
"That had nothing to do with the emotion. That's a Test match, that's what you do. It's physical, there's push and shove, stand your ground."
