NZ v Fiji RLWC quarter-final preview, best bets & top odds

The Rugby League World Cup quarter finals continue this Sunday with the New Zealand Kiwis taking on the Fiji Bati at MKM Stadium in Hull.

Fiji started their World Cup campaign with a brave effort and defeat to the Australian Kangaroos before belting Italy and beating Scotland in their last start. The Kiwis also started slowing with a relatively narrow win over Lebanon before a big win over Italy and defeating Scotland in their last match. Will Fiji be able to continue their upward trajectory and take down the Kiwis in an upset win?

The Kiwis have made several changes from the side that beat Ireland with Isaac Liu moving into the centres for Peta Hiku, Isaiah Papali’i starting in the second row for Nelson Asofa Solomona and Dallin Watene-Zelezniak moving onto the bench. However, the Kiwis have named a very small bench rotation, which could change late with Scott Sorenson coming onto the bench. Jared Waerea-Hargreaves will miss this match due to a suspension.
For Fiji, Mitieli Vulikijapani comes onto the bench in place of Joseph Ratuvakacerivalu in an otherwise unchanged lineup.

READ: RLWC England v PNG quarter-final betting tips & best odds

New Zealand have been solid without being super so far in the World Cup. For the side that is ranked number one in the world at Rugby League, the case could be made a lot more would be expected of them in their past performances. Injuries have so far hampered their campaign and will continue to do so on Sunday against Fiji. They will win, but not by as large a margin as could be expected. The Kiwis should come away with a 21-30 point win over Fiji (+270).

Both the Kiwis and Fiji have sides littered with NRL talent that can score at any time. For Fiji, Sunia Turuva, Maika Sivo, Semi Valemei and Viliame Kikau have multiple ways in which they can score. Given the opportunity, Fiji can capitalise and if they give themselves the opportunity, this match will exceed the 49.5 total points line.

The Kiwi forward pack is stacked with workhorses that will do the tough work in the middle of the field to build the platform for New Zealand. Off the back of this, Jahrome Hughes proved last week against Ireland why he is one of the most dangerous running halfbacks in rugby league. Hughes scored two tries to go with three try assists and three line breaks in just 61 minutes. Hughes is a live chance of scoring two or more tries.

Key matchup: Joseph Manu v Sunia Turuva

The match up of the fullbacks will be brilliant to watch as the young exciting new talent Turuva continues his rise to rugby league stardom. Turuva put his name on the map during the NRL season when he scored two tries against PNG in Rep Round. Turuva’s total run meters are comparable to Manu’s, showing he does an enormous amount of work for Fiji from the back. What’s different is Manu’s impact compared to Turuva. Manu has an immense amount of tackle breaks, line breaks and try assists compared to Turuva. If Fiji are any chance of beating New Zealand, Turuva will need to bridge this gap as much as possible to lift his nation towards a possible win.

New Zealand vs Fiji RLWC quarter-final prediction

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