Jerome Ropati scored two tries as New Zealand beat England 32-22 on Saturday to reach the final of the Rugby League World Cup.
Ropati's tries on either side of halftime allowed New Zealand to sustain a fluctuating advantage over England and to win the right to face the winner of Sunday's second semifinal between Australia and Fiji in the tournament final.
England clawed back deficits of 16-0 in the first half, to trail 16-10 at halftime, and 22-10 and 28-16 in the second spell before Ropati locked in the result with his second try.
England's tenacity saw the lead see-saw wildly before New Zealand edged to their third straight victory at the 11th World Cup at which Australia is favored to win its 10th world title.
"We were disappointed to let the lead go as we did. We let our guard down but we're just happy to get through to the final," said playmaker Benji Marshall, who made his mark with a try and the conversion of New Zealand's final try.
New Zealand captain Nathan Cayless praised England's fighting spirit.
"We thought we had the game in the bag a couple of times but they kept coming back at us," he said.
New Zealand forged a 16-0 lead in the first half, with tries to Ropati, Sam Perrett and Lance Hohaia but England exploited Kiwis mistakes and defensive weaknesses to close to six points at halftime.
A try to Bronson Harrison _ his first in three years in Kiwis colors _ extended New Zealand's lead to 22-10 in the second half but England closed again as Danny McGuire and Jamie Peacock took dominating roles.
McGuire scored two tries and Peacock one in an England team which refused to concede defeat.
Marshall's try took New Zealand to a 28-16 lead but England revived again, scoring through Martin Gleeson, to cut the lead back to six points and to leave the match in the balance until the final minutes.
Ropati's second try finally decided the issue and propelled New Zealand into a World Cup final Cayless said it was convinced it could win.
Fiji was equally confident it could cause the largest upset in rugby league history by beating Australia in Sunday's semifinal.
Coach Joe Dakuitoga called Australia's massive favoritism "a blessing in disguise.
"This is what they did to us against France but we managed to come out on top and we will do the same against the Australians," he said.
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New Zealand 32 (Jerome Ropati 2, Sam Perrett, Lance Hohaia, Bronson Harrison, Benji Marshall, tries; Jeremy Smith 3, Benji Marshall goals), England 22 (Danny McGuire 2, Jamie Peacock, Martin Gleeson, tries; Rob Burrow, 3 goals). HT, 16-10.
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