New Zealand

The second half grew more tense with the rowdy crowd begging Kapuls to score at least a goal but New Zealand defended well until nil all for fulltime.

Then, came the extra time as both sides look tired and weary but continue the fight but again went off scoreless on both halves of the game.

The moment of truth than pops in when the two teams chose their best to go for the shootout.

With an awesome crowd, it gave PNG team the boost to play with confidence against the favorites.

“The $635 million committed at the 2013 Pacific Energy Summit has translated into over $900 million of investments across 70 projects,” New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully says.

“In the same way, I hope to see the $1 billion of commitments announced today increase as opportunities for leverage become apparent, and as the ambition of partners grows.

“With the growing role for the private sector and the prospect of access to the UN Green Climate Fund there should be significant potential to further expand our efforts in this area.

This coincides with the upcoming opening of its new 4 star Tanoa International Dateline Hotel in Nuku’Alofa, Tonga. 

Tanoa is a major hospitality player in the Pacific with 10 hotels in Fiji, Samoa, New Zealand and soon, Tonga. 

This makeover for Tanoa Hotels, which was founded over 50 years ago, is designed to bring the brand in line with their growing portfolio and position in the market.

Vanuatu, who went down 1-0 to the Solomon Islands in their opening match, will face New Zealand to open Tuesday’s action at Port Moresby’s Sir John Guise Stadium.

Vanutau coach Moise Poida couldn’t hide his disappointment following his side’s defeat to their Melanesian rivals.

His players looked comfortable on the ball and created a number of promising opportunities but they lacked cutting edge in the final third.

Poida knows that it will not get any easier against the All Whites, but he believes his side is more than capable of causing an upset.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully says $250,000 (US$167,000) of that money will go to the World Health Organisation's Pacific Zika Action Plan while the rest will be given to “enable countries in the region to respond rapidly if required”.

“With the Zika virus now confirmed in a number of Pacific countries, New Zealand is committed to helping limit the impact and spread of the virus in the region,” says McCully.

“Our package of support is targeted at prevention and detection measures and builds on our existing support for improving health outcomes in the region.

The design beat four other contenders in a nation-wide referendum, according to preliminary results released by the New Zealand Electoral Commission.

Simply titled “Silver Fern (Black, White and Blue)”, the design will go head-to-head with the existing flag in a second referendum in March next year.

“While this is a preliminary result, New Zealanders can now turn their attention to deciding whether to keep the current flag, or replace it,” Deputy Prime Minister Bill English said.

Universal Music today confirmed that Swift, who is rumoured to be shooting a new music video here, is indeed in New Zealand.

The news was also confirmed by Shortland Street star Ido Drent, who shared an Air New Zealand flight with the pop star.

He told TVNZ he talked to Swift outside one of the plane's toilets.

"Yeah, had a good chat to her on the plane outside the lavatory," he told TVNZ. "She's definitely here."

Swift was yesterday rumoured to be on her way here, with fans spotting her at Bethells Beach.

Hundreds of people had to vacate their offices after this morning's threat at the court, with a police cordon put around the block.

The police searched the building with bomb squad dogs looking for a suspect bag until an all-clear was given. No suspicious items were found, they said.

Wonderful tries from Nehe Milner-Skudder and Ma'a Nonu had given the All Blacks a 21-3 lead early in the second half before David Pocock and Tevita Kuridrani struck back.

With 15 minutes to go there were just four points in it, but a nerveless long-distance drop-goal and penalty from Dan Carter snatched back control.

And when replacement Beauden Barrett sprinted away on to Ben Smith's clearing kick at the death history was made, with New Zealand also becoming the first three-time champions of the world.