Speaker: God is in the numbers
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I can't imagine one million PNG people getting up at 2am to watch the All Blacks.
If the good people of Papua New Guinea are such avid rugby watchers, then wouldn't TV3 be better off selling the ad space in the broadcast to PNG companies rather than the apparently insignificant Aotearoa market?
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I don't understand the fascination with McAlister over Mauger, who I think is exactly the person you'd want in the backline come crunch time in the big games - reliable, experienced, less likely to make fatal errors.
If McAlister throws just one of those loopy bloody passes, I'm gonna...actually I hadn't thought all the way to the end of this sentence...I dunno, write a letter! I was expecting it centres to be Mauger and Muliaina.
And yes Charles, "Trawling" not "Trolling". Trolling the internet, whole different thing.
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btw, i just saw this via Nathan Rarere
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“Cardiff will practically be a home game for them, the Welsh won't cheer for the frogs”
No offence KM, but that is utter, utter rubbish.
If a bloody Twickers crowd can chant “Allez Bleu” non-stop throughout the 2nd half in 1999, the Welsh shouldn’t find it too much of challenge following suit.
When will people realise the All Blacks can come across as arrogant to northern hemisphere audiences?
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Great stats. With all those turnovers and tries per minute of possession, all we have to cut down on the unforced errors and hope the lineout still works.
Shit. DEFINITE signs of 2003.
I remain an optimist though, and refer back to the first Dropklck World Cup post, which said of the Argentine-France match "this has upset written all over it" and also picked an NZ - SA final. Holden' ya to that.
And I've managed to negotiate a swap with my beloved of our usual Sunday morning arrangements, so she'll be on toddler-duty.
The ABs had better not let me down. This doesn't happen all that often.
(The toddler-duty thing, I mean. The ABs have let me down, often, since 1998.)
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Oh, and God isn't in the numbers.
He usually hides out in burning bushes, places like that. Got that on the highest authority.
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No offence KM, but that is utter, utter rubbish.
If a bloody Twickers crowd can chant “Allez Bleu” non-stop throughout the 2nd half in 1999, the Welsh shouldn’t find it too much of challenge following suit.
When will people realise the All Blacks can come across as arrogant to northern hemisphere audiences?But any fool could have seen months ago that this is one game where the All Blacks would definitely be playing -- I suspect there will be a lot of expat Kiwis with tickets.
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RB:
Sure, there will be a lot of black Adidas tracksuit trousers there, but they will be in the minority, and were also there at Twickers in 99.
But the majority will be Welsh locals (they didn’t wangle their way to co-hosting rights just to flick off all their tickets to NZers), and their will be a fair smattering of Irish, who had also expected to be there, and French, as well as the LandRover set from Eng.
And to a man, they will be cheering for France. We’re deluding ourselves if we think otherwise.
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I remain an optimist though, and refer back to the first Dropklck World Cup post, which said of the Argentine-France match "this has upset written all over it" and also picked an NZ - SA final. Holden' ya to that.
heh, is this a bad time to mention that we are not responsible for any bets made on our advice.
I would've said that the Irish in the crowd would support the All Blacks after France beat them in the 6 Nations AND the World Cup.
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<i>If a bloody Twickers crowd can chant “Allez Bleu” non-stop throughout the 2nd half in 1999, the Welsh shouldn’t find it too much of challenge following suit.
When will people realise the All Blacks can come across as arrogant to northern hemisphere audiences?</i>But any fool could have seen months ago that this is one game where the All Blacks would definitely be playing -- I suspect there will be a lot of expat Kiwis with tickets.
Well I think there's a big difference between a Welsh crowd and an English one. I think there's a lot more respect between NZ and Wales (both in, and outside of rugby), than NZ and England.
And French supporters all fronted up and bought for a different game. They're now reliant on Irish supporters (who bought many of the tickets for Cardiff) handing their tickets back, and finding accommodation at short notice at a fully booked city. Like Russell says, every Kiwi doing the tour, and a whole heap of expats, forked over a few hundred bucks for tickets to this weekend's match ages ago.
Anyway, we'll see come Sunday morning.
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So you don’t think the English would normally find it inconceivable to cheer for the French??
BTW, I went to an All Black / Wales test at the old Cardiff Arms Park in the 1980s; “respect” is probably the last word I’d use to describe the crowd’s view of the All Blacks back then.
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I was at the semi in 1999 and I don't remember the crowd chanting Allez Bleus at all, I think the dawning realisation that we were going to lose blocked that out...
I was, unfortunately, surrounding by a bunch of old Welsh...people and I haven't had any respect for them ever since. Starting with "where'd you get your ticket? This is a WRU seat" and ending with "ah well, it's good for Northern hemisphere rugby isn't it" with pleasure written all over his sour face. At least the French fans, understandably jubilant, were gloriously happy in their celebrations and passed on genuine condolences to us shell-shocked Kiwis (before getting royally pissed in celebration!).
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When will people realise the All Blacks can come across as arrogant to northern hemisphere audiences?
Even living there I couldn't (and can't) understand the bee in English bonnets over All Black arrogance, however it goes both ways. An English mate of mine once said he couldn't see any arrogance in the England team (this is early 2003) and wondered where we got the idea.
IMHO, our respective media are responsible for stirring up the "you're arrogant, no you are" business. A certain Sunday Times columnist being the worst culprit, but the media in NZ as a whole are pretty bad. Sure there are some players we love to hate (Carling, Guscott for example) but the players in the current England team are mostly pretty inoffensive compared to them.
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WH,
Shit. DEFINITE signs of 2003.
Heh. Yep. Still, I tend to think we will beat the French. This team does not have the defensive and tactical frailties of our 1999 side.
IMO the Mitchell/Henry All Blacks have been and remain the best rugby team in the world, as assessed by their world ranking and win/loss record over those years, World Cup results notwithstanding.
The Australians looked pretty impressive in those statistics, especially their defensive lineout (We should totally get us one of those. Who cares about our scrum if we keep dropping the ball and can't kick it out?) The Aussies have mobile forwards, excellent locks, and have a backline that might not be superior man for man, but is organised well and always dangerous.
I don't really want to think about the possibility of another 2003 style ambush any more than that.
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From not-so-sunny CHCH, over and out.
Oh, quit your whinging, it stopped sleeting.
Removing my tongue from my cheek for a while, what I found really embarrassing was Hamish McKay describing the All Blacks/France match requiring a coin toss to decide who wore which jersey as 'French shenanigans'. FFS, France wasn't even expecting to be playing this game. Every time somebody rolls out this dreadful conspiracy theory bollocks, that's when I get cultural cringe.
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the crowd chanting Allez Bleus
That could backfire, I mean the All Blacks don't know French (apart from Anton) and so would hear a two syllable chant that sounds a lot like "All Blacks, All Blacks"
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And of course Allez blues is three syllables, Hadyn you fool (my point is still valid!)
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Come to think of it; it’s hard to imagine what “Allez Blues” in a Welsh accent would sound like.
Pretty awful I’d imagine.
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Come on people! Our fears and dodgy (sorry Hayden) statistics mean nothing. The result lies with those wearing the black (well, 'silver'...) this weekend. And I see no fear from them.
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The Australians looked pretty impressive in those statistics, especially their defensive lineout (We should totally get us one of those. Who cares about our scrum if we keep dropping the ball and can't kick it out?)
Or don't kick it out. There's no stat for it, but I think the All Blacks looked like the best kick-chasing team in the competition.
Speaking of stats, I'm really missing Tracey Nelson's game stats. I wanna know the first three to the breakdown!
But she's without her VCR (yep, she uses tape) and having far too good a time over there anyway.
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Brilliant breakdown dropkicks - Ms Nelson must be anxious about her well deserved spot at the top of the empirical pile.
That said, I'm committed to not doubting this time... last time, well last time I didn't doubt despite having my doubts. Particularly, doubts that is not times, about players playing out of position like MacDonald at Centre rather than Muliaina for instance... all seems too familiar. But hey, I'm with the optimist's who say past events do not influence future ones (bombs on planes or some such). The All Blacks are the best side in the competition - no-one doubts or questions this - and the best team wins right?
Besides, not insides, I'm going to bravely go to the same pub as last time - the Dolphin on Crown St - stand where I did last time - alone - and cheer like I did last time - strangulated groan (hot on attack, inside the Australia 22 and Mealamu throws to the middle to Williams, Williams palms down to McCaw, McCaw into the breakdown and now Marshall to Spencer and Spencer to... the Evil Wizard Gargamel... try)
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Besides, not insides, I'm going to bravely go to the same pub as last time - the Dolphin on Crown St - stand where I did last time - alone - and cheer like I did last time
Heh - I admire your fortitude. I watched same game at the Wollombi Pub, literally the only AB supporter in a packed NSW country pub, and by the end I was the object of - to make it even worse - pity and sympathy (bartender wouldn't even let me buy my drinks to drown my sorrows).
Wouldn't ever want to repeat that experience.
I am doing my best to think positive though, superstitions aside (its only when I see our media declaring us 'certainties' I get the strongest sense of deja vu).
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Brilliant breakdown dropkicks - Ms Nelson must be anxious about her well deserved spot at the top of the empirical pile.
Not a chance. We "interviewed" Tracey last year for the podcast and I really do mean "interviewed". I just said "hello" and she went and rattled off hundreds of stats and analysis for like 10mins, it was the best interview we ever did (even better than the psychic!).
Tracey is easily the best.
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I think there's a lot more respect between NZ and Wales (both in, and outside of rugby), than NZ and England.
Not to mention than between Wales & England.
I suspect the Welsh will back the ABs over France. But we'll see.
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Tracey reports that you can't get accommodation in Cardiff and that flights across the Channel for the weekend are apparently going for up to £700!
She's expecting there to be a lot of NZ supporters at the game -- much more so than French.
Also:
Some hilarious stories about Welsh supporters who "never dreamed" that Wales wouldn't make the quarters and had shelled out hundreds if not a thousand pounds for tickets, flights and accommodation in Marseille this weekend and now don't want to go. It is rather amusing though that the UK press seem amazed at Argentina having made it through (were any of us surprised? I think not), and there are also lots of stories about the "minnows roaring" in reference to Fiji beating Wales. They don't seem to appreciate that they themselves are actually crap, as much as Fiji have played quite well.
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