sidelined

Well, whaddya know. Maybe I was a tad pessimistic.

The Kiwis got their act together and via some luck (or a conspiracy as alluded by whinging Ricky) won the World Cup. I remarked to Bismarck at some stage during the tournament, the the Kiwis non-performance is a worry given most of the players are from NRL sides and all very capable. But they were just warming to the task. And that final haka with the Australian’s advancing on them was fantastic. A fitting reminder of the Australian Indigenous Dreamtime team facing the New Zealand Maori on the opening day of the Cup.

And you learn more about a team’s mentality in defeat than you do in victory. And Stuart should be hauled over the carpet for his ungracious response. Some of the players deserve a rocket up their butts as well for refusing press interviews. Anyway, the Roos wouldn’t have lost if Hindy was playing.

As you may have guessed by lack of Sidelined coverage, I wasn’t that enthused by the World Cup even though I attended the Fiji v Scotland and Fiji v Australia. It was fun at the games but the seemingly inevitability of an Australia win took a lot of enjoyment out of the contest. But credit to some of the so-called minnows such as they turned it on. The Tonga v Somoa game was the highlight of the tournament. Both teams were ripping into each other during the final 5 minutes as if it was the first.

Fiji suprised many by making it to the finals and goes to show, with a little nurturing, the Pacific island teams could rise to a competitive standard. The question is whether the International Rugby League committee and the respective national organisations have the vision and capability to bank wisely the good will from the World Cup.

Alas, England seem to be on the decline. Sure they get good money playing in the Super League but the competition is not one for those wanting toughness of play. If England want to match Australia and New Zealand, they need to get some hard heads and understand the style played in the NRL, match it and then over come it. Not an easy task.

I’m now going to take a break from footy for 2 months and wallow in a summer of cricket (both for my local club and of course the internationals). If you are going to be at the New Years’ test in Sydney in 2009, I’ll be collecting money for the Jane McGrath Foundation on day one. So give generously if you are there.

Blogging will resume late January with traditional pre-season post with the NRL trial games schedule.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

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