By Chris W.B

It's come down to this epic clash. The best two teams in season 2002/2003 meeting in a fitting battle. Both had to overcome some obstacles on their way here- and now both get a chance to pen their name in the ASRL history books alongside the other great sides.

RUN TO THE FINAL- NEW ZEALAND
New Zealand were unfortunate enough to draw the reigning premiers in their first game, and found themselves outplayed by a side with plenty of finals experience. Missing the week off, New Zealand then made ammends by winning a tight game against Perth. The major semi final saw New Zealand annihilate Manly- setting up this showdown.

RUN TO THE FINAL- CENTRAL
The Phoenix, like their fellow grand finalists, met stiff opposition when they were upset by the fast finishing Perth Taipans. They followed New Zealand's example in the second round- knocking the reigning premiers out in style, before soundly beating the Gold Coast Crusade.

THE BIG GAME
It was on. The biggest clash on the ASRL calendar saw two non-NSW teams battling it out for the third consecutive year. In his return game, Clinton Schifcofske got things underway.

It was an opening of bold statements, as both sides sought to show their dominance. Scott Sattler dealt the first blow, cutting through some feeble defence on a big line break. New Zealand weren't to be daunted, Brett Hodgson literally forcing Gorden Tallis into touch with an upending tackle that shook the stadium.

From the resulting set of six, New Zealand scored one of the fastest Grand Final tries in recent memory, Wairangi Koopu crashing over from fifteen out after Terry Hill misread the play. The try was converted by Graham Luana, and the Cougars lead 6-0 after only three minutes.

The Phoenix then had to endure a trying period of New Zealand attack, constantly put under pressure as the Cougars excercised smart kicking and dominant marker defence to pen the Phoenix in their own end. Despite the weight of possession against them, Central managed to get into New Zealand's end courtesy of a piggy back penalty. Jason Smith took a quick tap to crash over, but the ball was jolted loose in the tackle, and Central were denied a possible equaliser.

The Phoenix finally got on the board in the 21st, Schifcofske nailing a long distance penalty to reduce the margin to four. Despite the closeness of the scoreline, it had only been the sheer desperation of Central's defence that had kept them in the game- New Zealand having so much possession.

The last quarter of the first half seemed to be Central's, with Jason Smith and Scott Sattler dominating the usually undominatable Cougars' pack. Sattler and Smith both made several clean line breaks as the half drew to a close, but neither was given the support needed to convert breaks into points.

In the final five, both sides showed signs of tiring, after what had been a defensively intense first half of football. Whilst neither side had yet to flex its arms in attack, they had both certainly showed why they were the two best defensive teams in Premier League.

HALFTIME: Central 2 trail New Zealand 6

Central looked to be the better side as the second half started, Terry Hill and Lesley Vainakolo exploiting the well documented defensive weaknesses of Timana Tahu. He may have been player of the year, but there was little Tahu could do to contain the strength of the Volcano. However, it was New Zealand who were next on the board, dynamic captain/fullback Brett Hodgson outplaying his opposite number in a weaving run which saw Fifita Moala score out wide. Luana landed the difficult sideline conversion to make it 12-2 in the 46th.

It is rare to see a bench player have a big impact on a match when so many stars are on the field, but whilst Scott Sattler had dominated off the bench in the first half- it was Richard Peleasina who came into his own as the second half wound on. The big second rower continually showed speed remarkable for his side, making breaks simply through his acceleration and strength. Like Sattler and Smith in the first half, however, Peleasina continually found support lacking. Had any of New Zealand's backs chased, the game could've been put to bed with twenty remaining.

Peleasina was finally rewarded for his metreage in the 68th, Brett Hodgson streaking through onto his offload to race the remaining thirty metres untouched. A conversion would all but seal the game for the Cougars, but Luana surrendered to big game nerves and his attempt was embarassingly short and wide. At 16-2, the Phoenix would need a miracle to snatch a victory.

That miracle came in the 72nd minute, when referee Justin Hoy spotted a two on one rake which could easily have gone undetected. The penalty put Central on the attack, and the raging bull Gorden Tallis stamped his authority on the opposing forwards, carrying three over to score left of the upright. Schifcofske wasted no time converting, and it was game on at 16-8 with seven to go.

Tyler Durden's Grand Final proved nightmarish moments later, the young second rower dropping the kick-off and then missing a tackle that almost saw Wairangi Koopu snare his second. Schifcofske and Gregan combined to save the day, and once again the Phoenix were piggy-backed upfield through a penalty. Tallis' strength seemed unflagging, and even after a full 76 minutes of play, he still managed to draw three defenders before lofting a pass out wide to Vainakolo. The Volcano scored, and Schifcofske landed the tough conversion to have things set for a nail-biting finisher at 16-14.

New Zealand then weathered two intense and desperate sets of six as the Phoenix tried everything to cross the line. Orford's grubber forced a drop-out as the final minute ticked over, but the Phoenix were unable to find the miraculous final try, falling short of their premiership dream 16-14 after a final ten minutes remeniscent of last year's thriller.

FULLTIME
New Zealand Cougars 16
Brett Hodgson
Wairangi Koopu
Fifita Moala
Luana 2/3
def.
Central Phoenix 14
Lesley Vainakolo
Gorden Tallis
Schifcofske 3/3

PoM Points
Richard Peleasina...........3 (Best and Fairest)
Jason Smith...................2
Gorden Tallis..................1

The awarding of the Clive Churchill Medal had plenty of contention surrounding it, with many demanding that a Phoenix player be handed the award. The vocalisation of support for bad boy Gorden Tallis was amazing, but Peleasina was a deserving winner, and even offered to share the honours with the man who dominated for Central in the first half- Jason Smith. It was a true show of sportsmanship, and despite the heartbreak of such a narrow loss, the Phoenix and Cougars exchanged shorts and tales as the crowd began to filter out've the arena.

Where last year's Grand Final was spiteful, this had been played in the best of spirits, New Zealand defying its reputation as a violent side in an entertaining and close fought battle.