Isaiya Katoa makes mockery of Wayne Bennett call as Kiwi loss exposes Michael Maguire truth

Isaiya Katoa's match-winning moment for Tonga against New Zealand on Saturday night would have created unwanted flashbacks for Wayne Bennett after the former Dolphins coach's brutal decision to drop the young half backfired at the end of the NRL season. Katoa iced the match-winning field goal to give Tonga a 25-24 victory over the Kiwis and set up a showdown with Australia in the Pacific Championship final.

The 20-year-old showed maturity well beyond his years to nail the clutch kick at such a pressure point of the game, while more experienced heads Shaun Johnson and Jamayne Isaako fluffed their chances for New Zealand. It was a brilliant bounceback for Katoa after he struggled - particularly with his kicking game - against the Kangaroos two weeks ago.

And it was another reminder to Bennett that he made the wrong call to drop him from the Dolphins' starting team for the final two games of the NRL season. Katoa had a brilliant season for such a young halfback, and showed he's got a long career ahead of him.

The 20-year-old was instrumental in getting the Dolphins to within a whisker of playing finals footy, but Bennett inexplicably dropped him for the team's two most important games of the season. Katoa was benched as the Dolphins thrashed the Broncos in the penultimate round of the season, before being axed altogether for the final game against Newcastle.

Bennett went with Sean O'Sullivan and Jake Averillo in the halves for both of those games, after Katoa and Kodi Nikorima had been the preferred choice all year. The 40-6 win over an awful Broncos team gave Bennett false confidence that he'd made the right call, and it was exposed when they lost 14-6 to the Knights to miss the finals.

The Dolphins looked rudderless against Newcastle and missed the attacking spark that Katoa and Nikorima provided all season. And Bennett copped plenty of backlash in the aftermath of the loss, with many believing his changes cost the Dolphins a spot in the finals. Katoa's heroics on Saturday night in front of a massive crowd showed Bennett the 20-year-old was the man for the job. But as they say, hindsight is 20-20.

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New Zealand's exit highlights truth about Michael Maguire

Meanwhile, New Zealand's loss came after a woeful performance in the first half and showed the remarkable job Michael Maguire did during his time in charge. Maguire coached the Kiwis for two years and led them to an extraordinary triumph in the Pacific Championships last year when they shocked Australia 30-0 in the final.

It showed how good Maguire can be as a coach, but the marriage ended on somewhat bad terms when New Zealand officials sent him packing because he wanted to coach NSW in State of Origin. Maguire wanted to do both roles concurrently (as they're both part-time jobs and don't overlap), but Kiwi officials wanted someone to focus full time on the Test job.

Kiwi legend Stacey Jones has since taken over, but hasn't managed to keep the momentum going that Maguire created. After their stunning victory in the final last year, the Kiwis lost 22-10 to Australia last weekend before their loss to Tonga on Saturday night eliminated them from the competition.

The back-to-back losses show what a remarkable job Maguire did in 2023, and will fill Brisbane Broncos fans with plenty of confidence. After steering NSW to victory over Queensland in Origin, he has since taken on the full-time role of Broncos coach in the NRL. Time will tell if he can continue his recent success on a week-by-week basis.