Even in a losing cause, Keano Kini has proven again he has the tools to dominate the NRL for more than a decade. On the international stage, faced with the juggernaut of Australia, the young Kiwi was fearless, classy and downright silky. In running for 254 metres in New Zealand’s 22-10 Pacific Championships loss to the Kangaroos, the 20-year-old made the rugby league world ponder how he began the year as the Gold Coast Titans’ third-choice fullback behind Jayden Campbell and the injury-plagued AJ Brimson.
Keano Kini was impressive in his New Zealand Test debut against the Kangaroos. Credit: NRL Photos More impressive was the way he bounced back from an early mistake, defending up in the line to give rival prop Lindsay Collins a clear passage to the tryline for the opening points. From his 16 Titans appearances this year, he registered more than 200 metres on 11 occasions – twice surpassing the 300-metre mark – and his meteoric rise is expected to force a reshuffle in the team, likely to keep Campbell at five-eighth and move Brimson to the centres.
“I don’t know how many carries Keano would have had, and he did well under the high ball. He’s a confident kid,” Kiwi coach Stacey Jones said. “That was one of the disappointing moments for us – the [Collins] try we gave there – but he doesn’t die wondering.
“He’s around the ball a lot, there are parts of his game we can improve on, it’s getting the balance right for him.” Kini was expected to retain .
