Thursday, April 28, 2011
Rugby Crowds in the Most Important Year in NZ Rugby History
I'm not actually going to comment on them right now, just a promise that I might get drunk later this evening and put up the crowd stats from the Super Rugby comp thus far in 2012. The might part doesn't apply to me getting drunk. That's definately happening as my school hols wind down. It's just a matter of remembering to post the stats. Remind me if I don't. I guess it will add further weight to the idea that NZ is NOT 4 million AB supporters and that adding to the research suggesting only one million people outside the 8 major rugby nations watched the last WC final, is the fact that only one million NZers even watched NZ bow out of the last WC on a Sunday morning on free to air TV.
Labels: bullshit PR, crowds, pacific island rugby, rugby world cup
Saturday, May 09, 2009
Real Men
Try Harder.
If ever there was evidence of how Graham Henry and co. were soft cocks leading up to the Rest and Rotation World Cup where hard men were allowed to turn into powder puffs and we were forced into watching substandard (nearly as bad as the northernhemisphereclubrugby) it's tonight where Johnathon Thurston, Darius Boyd, Jason Nightgale and friends are tearing it up in the NRL.
I could be wildly drunk (I'm not, I paced myself this evening), but I seem to recall that they played A FUCKING TEST MATCH LAST NIGHT.
Imagine Ma'a Nonu playing a test v South Africa and the next night the NZRU say's sweet, play for the Hurricanes in an away game v the Blues. In fact, play 30 games this year as a starter. You'll be fine.
And you know what?
He will be.
Maybe they should check out how many games they play in NH rugby, or the NBA, or MLB, or the EPL or any other big professional comp.
I challenge anybody to say that they are under more mental pressure than somebody playing professional football for a big club in Europe. One minute you're playing a key EPL game then you're playing an FA Cup semi, then you're playing a champions league semi and yet week in and week out these guys put the goods out on the park.
I don't think our rugby players get worn out from PLAYING rugby, I think they get worn out from training.
Train half as much play twice as much.
You heard it here first.
If ever there was evidence of how Graham Henry and co. were soft cocks leading up to the Rest and Rotation World Cup where hard men were allowed to turn into powder puffs and we were forced into watching substandard (nearly as bad as the northernhemisphereclubrugby) it's tonight where Johnathon Thurston, Darius Boyd, Jason Nightgale and friends are tearing it up in the NRL.
I could be wildly drunk (I'm not, I paced myself this evening), but I seem to recall that they played A FUCKING TEST MATCH LAST NIGHT.
Imagine Ma'a Nonu playing a test v South Africa and the next night the NZRU say's sweet, play for the Hurricanes in an away game v the Blues. In fact, play 30 games this year as a starter. You'll be fine.
And you know what?
He will be.
Maybe they should check out how many games they play in NH rugby, or the NBA, or MLB, or the EPL or any other big professional comp.
I challenge anybody to say that they are under more mental pressure than somebody playing professional football for a big club in Europe. One minute you're playing a key EPL game then you're playing an FA Cup semi, then you're playing a champions league semi and yet week in and week out these guys put the goods out on the park.
I don't think our rugby players get worn out from PLAYING rugby, I think they get worn out from training.
Train half as much play twice as much.
You heard it here first.
Labels: pacific island rugby, rest and rotate on my big fat cock
Saturday, March 28, 2009
GUTS
It's almost surreal watching Zar Lawrence playing in the Hong Kong Sevens tonight and playings his guts out. His younger brother, Wiremu, was killed in a car accident and he found out about it this morning but is playing out the tournament before flying home to the Tangi. I can't even begin to think how I would deal with similar news but I sure as fuck wouldn't be going in the class room to teach for several days let alone several hours later.
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Every year I watch the HK Sevens and think back to when I went there. I think that it's the last time NZ actually won it in 2001 (and we were lucky as from memory Aussie were up by about 10 points with a minute left before doing a couple of dmub things allowing us in for a couple of tries and a last minute conversion gave us the semi win. We then dicked Fiji in the final). Rip off beers at $12NZ for a large cup, the equivalent of about a pint I suppose and they played 3 songs on a loop for 3 days. That Tom Jones Sex Bomb song, a J Lopez song and one other. Talk about a marketing disaster. They seem to have moved on thankfully as I haven't noticed the same songs in the background in years since. Highlight for me was my Canadian mate putting Mapel leaf stickers all over the place including our luxury hotel entrance and on police car bonnets.
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Warriors crap out but actually probably a good time to get it. They will still be in the top area of the table and have 21 matches left so should slap themselves in the face and get back on the pony. Although if people think you can just tick yourself off and win in the NRL you have another thing coming. Teams bring it every week and if you don't you may as well run onto the paddock with your pants round your ankles.
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Every year I watch the HK Sevens and think back to when I went there. I think that it's the last time NZ actually won it in 2001 (and we were lucky as from memory Aussie were up by about 10 points with a minute left before doing a couple of dmub things allowing us in for a couple of tries and a last minute conversion gave us the semi win. We then dicked Fiji in the final). Rip off beers at $12NZ for a large cup, the equivalent of about a pint I suppose and they played 3 songs on a loop for 3 days. That Tom Jones Sex Bomb song, a J Lopez song and one other. Talk about a marketing disaster. They seem to have moved on thankfully as I haven't noticed the same songs in the background in years since. Highlight for me was my Canadian mate putting Mapel leaf stickers all over the place including our luxury hotel entrance and on police car bonnets.
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Warriors crap out but actually probably a good time to get it. They will still be in the top area of the table and have 21 matches left so should slap themselves in the face and get back on the pony. Although if people think you can just tick yourself off and win in the NRL you have another thing coming. Teams bring it every week and if you don't you may as well run onto the paddock with your pants round your ankles.
Labels: hong kong, nrl, pacific island rugby, sevens
Wednesday, March 04, 2009
SANZAR Talks
Chris Rattue has a few comments/suggestions in the herald on all this going on in Dubai.
My suspicion is that they will go with a 3 pool type system largely for these sorts of reasons:
What they should do in my opinion is add a 5th Aussie side (wherever they like and include a Pacific Island side in their competition as well giving them 6 teams. They are the weakest of the 3 playing nations and its never going to be because they have one less Super12/14 side, it's always going to be because more Aussies play league, AFL, football, cricket, swim with sharks etc. They are competitive at international level (yes, I know they have won 2 world cups) but they do not have the record of a South African or All Black side week in and week out because it's not a massive sport in OZ and NEVER will be.
That would mean adding an extra NZ side perhaps in the central North Island somewhere. It's a bit tricky because they could play at New Plymouth, Tauranga or Hawke's Bay so a decision would need to be made there about the venue likely to get the biggest support. The other option would be a Northern side based at North Harbour Stadium and maybe playing a game or two in Whangarei. Hard to know and a lot of population/crowd/economy/facility crunching etc would be needed.
You'd play each side home and away in your region giving 10 games then play perhaps 3 teams from each of the other zones (3 at home and 3 away). On the alternate year you would play the other 3 sides that you hadn't played the year before. That gives you 16 matches best spread over 17 weeks exactly like the NFL. Then have the top 2 from each plus best 2 3rd placed sides.
yes, I know, it gets a bit mickey mouse there but you have to have an even number of teams divided by 4 or else whatever you come up with won't work. Odd numbers don't work, giving teams a week off in round one doesn't work because who gets it off? The top 3 teams overall? Nope, because then how do you get a game for each of them the following week without having 3 matches and 3 winners leaving ummmm, 3 teams to fight it out in a match meant for two.
So for example assume NZ and SA provide 3 sides each and Aussie 2...
The top side in the comp (Blues) gets to play the worst of the 3rd placed sides (Stormers).
The 2nd zone winner (Bulls) plays the other 3rd placed side (Crusaders).
The 3rd of the zone winners (Waratahs) plays the next worst team (Hurricanes) and the best 2nd placed side (Sharks) gets the other match v a fellow 2nd placed side (Brumbies).
Then obviously the higher ranked winners get home advantage over the lower ranked winners.
Fairly straightforward.
What will be interesting is if Aussie push for not just a 5th side but also a 6th side. They will be mud if they do that. It's a shame rugby in NZ is stronger than OZ because it would actually be better if we in NZ included a Pacific Island side. It would suit us better with our population base.
But no doubt the proposal will be absolutely bizzarre, involve huge amounts of travel to far flung places and mean we see piss all of the local derbies we always loved.
With the season split into 'two' it would work beautifully if they had 5 zone games then went to the 6 matches home and away mid season after each teams supporters had seen their team 5 times either live or live on tellie (not stupid 5am matches). You go on a 3 match road trip spread over 4 weeks and come home to play your 3 matches at home v overseas teams before the return fixtures for the NZ sides. Or vice versa with 3 at home, 3 on the road and then your last 5 games leading into the playoff series.
My suspicion is that they will go with a 3 pool type system largely for these sorts of reasons:
The essential weaknesses can't be repaired under the current format.
For one, teams don't play at home often enough, robbing their fans of live action at a reasonable hour and limiting the revenue-gathering potential as well. It has taken four rounds for the Blues to appear at home this year, which has given the season a surreal and distant start for their supporters. Worse still, the South African Cheetahs won't play at home until April 4, in the eighth round of the competition. That alone says this is a competition screaming out for an overhaul.From a New Zealand point of view, the South African teams in
particular have struggled to forge clear identities, rendering a lot of the competition as deadwood. Whereas in the old days an Aucklander might have taken a reasonable interest in say a clash between Canterbury and Otago, New Zealanders don't give two hoots about a game between the Cheetahs and Reds, or the Force and the Brumbies.
What they should do in my opinion is add a 5th Aussie side (wherever they like and include a Pacific Island side in their competition as well giving them 6 teams. They are the weakest of the 3 playing nations and its never going to be because they have one less Super12/14 side, it's always going to be because more Aussies play league, AFL, football, cricket, swim with sharks etc. They are competitive at international level (yes, I know they have won 2 world cups) but they do not have the record of a South African or All Black side week in and week out because it's not a massive sport in OZ and NEVER will be.
That would mean adding an extra NZ side perhaps in the central North Island somewhere. It's a bit tricky because they could play at New Plymouth, Tauranga or Hawke's Bay so a decision would need to be made there about the venue likely to get the biggest support. The other option would be a Northern side based at North Harbour Stadium and maybe playing a game or two in Whangarei. Hard to know and a lot of population/crowd/economy/facility crunching etc would be needed.
You'd play each side home and away in your region giving 10 games then play perhaps 3 teams from each of the other zones (3 at home and 3 away). On the alternate year you would play the other 3 sides that you hadn't played the year before. That gives you 16 matches best spread over 17 weeks exactly like the NFL. Then have the top 2 from each plus best 2 3rd placed sides.
yes, I know, it gets a bit mickey mouse there but you have to have an even number of teams divided by 4 or else whatever you come up with won't work. Odd numbers don't work, giving teams a week off in round one doesn't work because who gets it off? The top 3 teams overall? Nope, because then how do you get a game for each of them the following week without having 3 matches and 3 winners leaving ummmm, 3 teams to fight it out in a match meant for two.
So for example assume NZ and SA provide 3 sides each and Aussie 2...
The top side in the comp (Blues) gets to play the worst of the 3rd placed sides (Stormers).
The 2nd zone winner (Bulls) plays the other 3rd placed side (Crusaders).
The 3rd of the zone winners (Waratahs) plays the next worst team (Hurricanes) and the best 2nd placed side (Sharks) gets the other match v a fellow 2nd placed side (Brumbies).
Then obviously the higher ranked winners get home advantage over the lower ranked winners.
Fairly straightforward.
What will be interesting is if Aussie push for not just a 5th side but also a 6th side. They will be mud if they do that. It's a shame rugby in NZ is stronger than OZ because it would actually be better if we in NZ included a Pacific Island side. It would suit us better with our population base.
But no doubt the proposal will be absolutely bizzarre, involve huge amounts of travel to far flung places and mean we see piss all of the local derbies we always loved.
With the season split into 'two' it would work beautifully if they had 5 zone games then went to the 6 matches home and away mid season after each teams supporters had seen their team 5 times either live or live on tellie (not stupid 5am matches). You go on a 3 match road trip spread over 4 weeks and come home to play your 3 matches at home v overseas teams before the return fixtures for the NZ sides. Or vice versa with 3 at home, 3 on the road and then your last 5 games leading into the playoff series.
Labels: expansion, nzru, pacific island rugby, rugby, sanzar, super 14
