Dylan Brown's contentious try led New Zealand to a 24-18 victory over Samoa in Auckland.
A contentious try to star Kiwis five-eighth Dylan Brown has secured a 24-18 victory for New Zealand in Auckland, raining on Payne Haas' Samoan parade.
Billed as the battle of the big men, Haas' defection to Samoa - to line-up alongside Josh Papalii and Junior Paulo - headlined a heavyweight showdown against a Kiwis pack boasting James Fisher-Harris, Moses Leota, Joe Tapine, Naufahu Whyte and Nelson Asofa-Solomona.
The mammoth effort from the Broncos premiership winner Haas, to finish with 186 metres - the most metres of any forward on the field - was not enough to inspire Samoa to a win in the opening clash of the Pacific Championships. He also finished with a game-high 55 tackles.
Samoa winger Murray Taulagi was denied a decisive try, putting his foot into touch with his side trailing 16-12 late in the second half.