Noble ready for Kiwi clash

Great Britain coach Brian Noble is confident his side are fully prepared for their opening Gillette Tri-Nations clash against New Zealand on Saturday.

Noble is pleased with the way the team has gelled since arriving at their Sydney base and has been buoyed by their performances on the training pitch.

"I'm pleased with our training," Noble said. "We looked sharp and crisp and that element of familiarity is coming to the team. If the performances of the team that we've shown in practice are anything to go by, I think we're ready to play."

The Kiwis have had a bad start to their campaign, losing to Australia in Auckland and Melbourne but Noble insists that is not something the Lions are focusing on ahead of their meeting in Christchurch.

"The reality for us is that we can't take that into the equation," said the Wigan coach.

"I'm sure they'll be ready to play, but we're focusing on ourselves as much as anything else."

Britain have been largely written off as a contender for the trophy by the media Down Under but Noble refuses to surrender to these suggestions.

New Zealand kept Australia scoreless in last year's final, thrashing the overwhelming favourites 24-0 at Elland Road, and Noble will no doubt use this as inspiration during the Australasian tour.

He said: "There are no easy games in this Tri-Nations. We've seen this year, and in the last two, that any team can beat any other on its day.

"We've got to get up to speed now but I'm pretty sure we're ready for this."