Two players sent off, punch thrown as Kiwis thrash Fiji

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New Zealand's Ronaldo Mulitalo was sent off for a nasty high tackle, followed by Fiji's Brandon Wakeham for punching Mulitalo in the head.

The Kiwis were ruthless from the start of the match, scoring 48 points in the first half.

Australia will face the Cook Islands tonight in the final match of Pool A, needing a win to top the pool.

Two players have been sent off after a vicious high tackle was followed by a punch to the head, as New Zealand marches towards the semifinals of the tournament.

After a eight-try blitz in the first half, New Zealand held a spirit-crushing 48-0 lead over Fiji in a match that was a de facto semifinal.

With the result beyond doubt, the match was thrown into turmoil when each team had a player marched from the field following an ugly episode at Robina Stadium on the Gold Coast.

New Zealand winger Ronaldo Mulitalo, who scored one of the Kiwis' eight first-half tries, rushed out of the defensive line and hit Fiji's Ronald Philitoga flush in the head with his shoulder.

That high-shot had the Fiji Bati players seeing red, with halfback Brandon Wakeham hitting Mulitalo with a punch to the head while he was still on the ground.

Referee Grant Atkins sent both players from the field, with each player certain to be on the charge sheet went it is released tomorrow.

Wakeham will play no further part in the world cup with the Bati failing to make the semifinals, but Mulitalo's hopes of playing in the semifinals appear to be in serious doubt.

One week after giving Australia a huge scare at Lang Park, the Fijian Bati were hoping to pull off a huge upset in Saturday's de facto semifinal.

But the Kiwis were ruthless from the start, scoring four tries in the opening 12 minutes to end any hope of the Bati knocking them out of the world cup like they did in 2017.

The Kiwis will likely face either Tonga or Samoa in the semifinals, while England still has a mathematical chance on qualifying for the knock-out phase.

The Kiwis scored its first try in the second minute through Jahrome Hughes, then crossed again three minutes later when fullback Keano Kini used his speed to slice through the defensive line.

Centre Casey McLean scored the Kiwis' third in the ninth minute, then Bati captain Apisai Koroisau suffered a head knock which ruled him out of the remaining 70 minutes.

When Dane Gagai picked up a loose ball that was dropped by the Bati on their goal-line to score in the 12th minute, the score was 24-0 and the match was all but over.

The Kiwis would score another four tries to round out a spirit-breaking 48-0 first half.