The world will be tempted to shrug its shoulders unless New Zealand and others display their class, and soon
Rugby World Cups, at their best, can change the way the sport is perceived. The classic example was the 1995 edition when Jonah Lomu trampled all over England and the immortal photo of Nelson Mandela and Francois Pienaar in their Springbok jerseys inspired a Hollywood film. Back then, with rugby union poised to go professional, just about anything felt possible.
Sixteen years on, there is rather less certainty in the air. Theoretically, this should be among the great weekends in rugby history. Four contrasting games taking place in a big-hearted country whose people have bent over backwards to ensure the tournament is remembered fondly. And yet. Among the most abiding images of the past month has been Lomu's face gazing out mournfully from the cover of New Zealand Women's Weekly, his acute kidney problems having resurfaced. The sport he helped to soar beyond its old cosy parameters is not as healthy as it might be either.
Hopefully, in both cases, a swift cure is at hand. Lomu reportedly needs a new kidney, while rugby awaits a thunderclap of on-field drama to divert attention from pressing financial issues in both hemispheres. It has barely registered amid all the World Cup hoopla but this week has thrown up ominous news. A New Zealand Rugby Union review has recommended the country's five Super Rugby franchises be sold off to private ownership amid increasing fears about the viability of the current structure. In Auckland, rugby league is gaining in popularity. Back in England, London Wasps are urgently seeking new investment in a grim economic climate. The International Rugby Board's chief executive, Mike Miller, has won few new friends locally after suggesting the All Blacks were "replaceable" if they felt unable financially to attend the next World Cup. The Rugby Football Union continues to resemble a rudderless vessel as it prepares to pick up the 2015 tournament baton. It is not an uplifting list.
Which is why this weekend matters. If New Zealand absent-mindedly pummel Argentina by 30 points and South Africa defeat Australia simply by virtue of booting the ball miles up in the air, it will be even tougher to portray this tournament as a milestone in pro rugby's evolution. Coaches and players are perfectly entitled to tighten up with so much at stake but the thousands of unsold seats for England's quarter-final should be a warning that audience loyalty cannot be taken for granted.
If the pinnacle of the sport struggles to woo neutrals ? or is priced beyond their means ? everyone has a problem. For each farm you pass in New Zealand with sheep dyed in national colours or the All Blacks' results painted in large letters on the side of a barn, there is an amber warning signal flashing somewhere else. At this equivalent stage four years ago three games ? New Zealand v France, Australia v England and South Africa v Fiji ? restored everyone's faith in rugby's glorious unpredictability. It mattered little that some people complained about a relative shortage of tries. This was visceral, emotional sport in the raw, to be downed like some fierce brandy.
And this time? Well, it is not over yet. But aside from Wales, New Zealand, Ireland, Australia and ? briefly ? Tonga, few teams have generated gasps of wonderment or exceeded expectations. Canada, Fiji, Japan, Georgia, the USA, Namibia and Russia have had to battle heroically merely to stand still. Take away Wales v South Africa, Ireland v Australia and Tonga v France and almost every game has had a largely predictable winner. If this continues, the world beyond New Zealand will be tempted to shrug its shoulders and look elsewhere for its thrills.
That is not a possibility the global rugby community can afford to be complacent about. Yes, the sevens circuit is attracting more interest. Yes, Olympic recognition will release more funds to less established rugby nations. In the end, though, a 44-day tournament is probably a week too long and Dan Carter's unfortunate injury has further depleted the pool of gifted individual talents on the stage. If Quade Cooper, David Pocock and Kurtley Beale all depart this weekend, there will be even fewer left.
And can a sport be truly healthy when interest is so fixated on whether the world's best side will choke or not? Frankly, what this tournament needs to be hailed as a great competition is for the All Blacks and their more positive-minded rivals to display their class as a matter of urgency. On Monday, in Auckland's Victoria Park, the former New Zealand fly-half Andrew Mehrtens is due to be challenged to a goal-kicking contest by three robots designed and constructed by university students. If that proves the most memorable entertainment in this city between now and 24 October, rugby union really will have a problem.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2011/oct/07/rugby-world-cup-2011-all-blacks
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