After being embarrassed at the last World Cup, New Zealand will be keen to atone immediately when they meet a feisty Lebanon team with plenty of NRL talent.
Best Bet
Not the easiest betting proposition but the Kiwis do look the bet at the big line.
It is hard to overstate how humiliated New Zealand were last World Cup on home soil, being eliminated at the quarter final stage. Plenty has changed since then, notably coach David Kidwell being sacked and replaced by the hard-nosed Michael Maguire.
The results under Maguire tell a story. The Kiwis were very impressive in putting Tonga to the sword this year 26-6 while they won two Tests against Great Britain on home soil.
Lebanon covered every game last World Cup and do bring a talented backline led by Mitchell Moses but there is a big worry about how the pack will contain such an aggressive New Zealand pack.
The Kiwis will get a platform and they have a spine that should be able to take advantage of same.
Same Game Multi
Jahrome Hughes scored 12 tries in 21 games this year and has two four-pointers in four international appearances.
Dylan Brown comes off his best tryscoring season where he scored 11 tries in 28 games.
Value Bet
Brandon Smith is always in the mix to score when he plays hooker. He has 11 tries in 37 games as a starting rake including two in eight games when donning the black and white.
