Saracen, Crusaders and 'that' match at Twickenham

Firstly, may I say, I LOVE England! I'm a kiwi living here on round two (I couldn't stay away). I came back for the people, the banter, the English charm, the pubs, the socialness, the parks, the gigs and about a billion other things. But mostly, I came back for the people. The English are open minded, tolerant and compassionate, and some of my very best and dearest friends. My life would be grey and meaningless without them.

When it comes to rugby I admit, I'm often very hard on the English (team that is, not my friends). It doesn't mean to say I care about this team any less. After the All Blacks, the England rugby team is the team I take most interest in. Often for all the wrong reasons however.

I hated them winning the world cup in 2003. I didn't think they deserved it. As far as I was concerned, they were a ten man team with a magical kicker that scored all their points for them. It was a bitter pill to swallow, and the residue still lingers. Did I hate that kicker? No I loved Johnny Wilkinson - and still do. He seems a totally honourable dude with beautiful qualities (and so talented). Ditto his captain Martin Johnson, who is now his battling coach.

I think my anger with English rugby has come from seeing (IMHO only), stick it up the jumper dross dominating the world game at tournaments. But that's the way teams have won tournaments in the past, right? Playing it safe. (May the ELVS change this forever - hail mary, hail mary).

The English media haven't helped either (harping on about New Zealanders plundering the pacific islands really cut to the bone).  Six years later  and they're STILL harping on about Brian O'Driscoll (yes, I know he's Irish but he was playing for the Lions in this instant) and 'speargate'. Launching a national hate campaign against Tana Umaga was not professional or responsible (yes it was a spear I believe, but still, the hate campaign against him was awful). And then there's hiring an Iraq war spin doctor, Alistair Campbell, to be media relations stirrer for the Lions on that fateful tour (who has far more blood on his hands than any tackle legal or illegal on a rugby field).

And don't bring up the the jealous 'you're a big cheat' campaign against a person, who is just quite simply, a way better rugby player than anything produced in the north. Oops, I did bring it up after all, silly me. Mr McCaw has won the IRB international player of the year three times (more than any other). You do the math, rugby supporters of Neil Back, Richard Hill and Lewis Moody. Anyway, all of this has never pushed me towards loving northern hemisphere rugby. The sheer opera of it means I'm team Carmen, not team Don Jose.

But these things were looking like they were in the past. I was enjoying English rugby (finally daring to play a little more attack). I loved the Six Nations. Heck, even Stephen Jones of the Sunday Times had come around to the Southern Hemisphere way of thinking when it came to appreciating skills on the field (almost) which makes it easier to stomach him.  So I admit, I have been thawing. (Toreador!)

Until...the good old English rugby clubs, those last bastians of the old boys network, with their bulbous noses and pinched ruddy faces stuck their heads above the parapet once more. And why? Moaning about a charity Super Rugby match for the people of Christchuch being held at Twickenham.

I mean, here they are, these wealthy clubs on the richest currency of a meal ticket in the world. They've enticed hundreds of antipodean players over with the pound leaving us to try and pick up the pieces, replenishing our depleted stocks. I feel we've given, and they've taken. Year after year.

So, after a quite simply wonderful game against the Crusaders and Sharks at Twickenham, where thousands of ex-pat kiwis felt they could go and support Christchuch and pay their dues after feeling so distant from the terrible events shaken by that earthquake, we've got some mean spirited clubs moaning on about how 'it's a disgrace' that this Super Rugby match was played on the same day as the Aviva (excuse me while I yawn) premiership.

Hello and please?  Words fail me in this instant. They're rich, they're incompetent and they have thrown their toys out of the pram once again. That's what happens I guess when you're a spoilt brat that's used to getting your own way all the time.

The fact of the matter is, English club rugby is holding the English national game back. (We all know it, and we don't really mind if it means the English rugby team chalks up another loss). Skills are not at a premium in the UK (they blame the weather, but New Zealand has worse, so go figure). The north plays a different brand of rugby. It's attritional and sometimes entertaining, but while the clubs rule the roost, England, the 'richest' rugby team in the world will always consistently lose their international tests against the big three.

As for this 'manager' from the Saracens. What a joke. Get a life mate and think about the families in Christchurch dealing actually with losing someone in that earthquake. Think about it. Please, just for a moment, think about someone else.

On a (one thousand times) smaller level, think about the Crusaders. They, with the good people of Christchurch, lost their stadium and all their world cup games. They're trying to cheer people up in Canterbury with some spectacular rugby, because quite simply, sport (trivial as it is in the big scheme of things) can lift us up and take us out of our sadness for a few breathless moments.

The behaviour of these self righteous clubs is jaw dropping. But the dialogue after this Super Rugby match in Twickenham highlights in bold how truly awful and egotistical some of them are. Shame on you Nigel Wray of the Saracens. You're a disgrace to your fellow country men/women (who have been compassionate and thoughtful). You singlehandedly tarnish their good intentions.
Nigel Wray could learn a few lessons from the dignified people of Christchurch in this instance. Will he start thinking about others first? Probably not.  Because putting someone else before his own petty thoughts is beyond his comprehension. But if he did, just for an instance, he might have won a few more friends. As it is, it's lost.  And with it, a lot of respect for English club rugby.

Super Rugby at Twickenham - Crusaders V The Sharks

It was a balmy day at Twickenham yesterday, the first day of daylight saving, and the hint of spring making you feel good to be alive.  Although the crowd did not exceed expectations (only 35,000 turned up in the end), the lower tier of the stadium was still packed and we were able to remember and do our bit for the Christchurch relief fund in the stands.

The rugby was simply stunning, with the Crusader's attacking backs, aided by Sonny Bill Williams running wild in the first half.  I could be biased but some of the tries took my breath away. Into the second half, the Sharks decided to wake up, mounting a spirited comeback while some of the Crusaders took their foot off the pedal for a bit of a snooze. (Why do NZ teams do that?) 

The rugby purists in the North may say that this was powder puff rugger with a lot of dodgy defence, but I think they might just be a wee bit jealous.  Sure, the defence was leaky in places (but what game doesn't have leaky defence?). This was rugby played at a frantic pace with both teams willing to attack and create a spectacle to cheer the hearts of everyone watching.

Man of the match was indeed - Dan Carter (does he ever have a bad game at Twickenham). The Crusaders impressed not only in the backs but also with their dominant scrum and at the breakdown, the Richie McCaw replacement of Matt Todd had everyone wondering how these Cantabs manage to find so many quality loose forwards.

Rave reviews of the match have been written about the game in London with the Time's Stuart Barnes almost orgasmic in his observations: 'These teams produced a game of rugby so far in excess of anything in the recent Six Nations that the implications are frightening," he said. "The earth moved today at Twickenham in an altogether more munificent manner. The rugby world showed its support for Christchurch and in return the Crusaders produced a mini epic."

Not everyone was pleased. The Saracens chairman was unhappy that the RFU had agreed to play the match at Twickenham as it meant that only 7,000 people turned up for an Aviva Premiership match between the Saracens and Newcastle held at the same time.  It was a typically ungenerous thing to get up in arms for (but I don't expect anything less from these rich English clubs that want for nothing when it comes to player time and resource).  Also, I for one was never planning on travelling to Watford to watch the Saracens and I suspect the majority of people at Twickenham were the same.

Not to be too churlish however to the English rugby community. The majority were supportive to let this game be played and a big thank you to the RFU for letting this go ahead. And if the Saracens really want more people coming to their matches, maybe they need to start playing some rugby like this..... 

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