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MARK REASON
OPINION: Let's get one thing straight from the start. The All Blacks are the best rugby team in the world.
They thoroughly deserved to win the World Cup and did so despite injuries to key players. New Zealand's second team would be a match for most, such is their strength in depth.
Yet so euphoric was the reaction to the 22-0 victory over Australia that I found myself having to review the game. Had I imbibed a glass too many of pinot noir? Had someone spiked my mushroom bhaji? Did my fading vision now entitle me to apply for a job on the elite referees' panel?
Whatever the answer to any of these questions, a review of the match only heightened earlier suspicions. New Zealand had been dreadful. The scoreline was a false witness. The All Blacks probably made more mistakes in 80 minutes than they made in the whole of the 2011 World Cup.
Yes, Sonny Bill ran beautifully (and I am told he will be back in 2014) but the handling of SBW and Ma'a Nonu was execrable. They combined to produce one clumsy, bullet pass that butchered a try, a knock-on, an eye-off-ball drop, a forward pass, a hospital pass and a ball chucked on the ground. Once upon a time the forwards were described as the piano shifters and the backs the piano players. I'm not sure SBW and Nonu could manage Chopsticks without half a dozen bum notes.
But they were not by any means the only offenders. Israel Dagg blew a try, Keven Mealamu had trouble with his throwing in, Luke Romano chucked a couple of forward passes and an interception and Aaron Smith had two lapses in distribution.
Whitelock obstructed, Messam was offside throughout, Richie McCaw was penalised three times in six minutes (why is that not a yellow card, please, Mr Owens), Gear let himself be bundled into touch, Corey Jane and Kieran Read knocked on, even Dan Carter squandered a try.
You could see the look of wide-eyed amazement on coach Steve Hansen's face when he was told how well the All Blacks had played after the game. The best team in the world was very poor and you started to wonder whether they were becoming inconsistent. There was certainly evidence of that in the series against Ireland. The true context of the 22-0 victory is twofold. Australia were abominable. It is the worst kicking performance by a top-level international side better than that when they were schoolboys in Christchurch.
It is also worth noting that Australia were missing, through injury or retirement or exile, 23 players who have played international rugby in the previous 24 months. Note to Robbie Deans: Matt Giteau has been playing beautifully for Toulon. Don't fall out with players - you never know when you might need them.
The other factor in the scoreline was Mr Owens. He favoured the home side. That is more of an observation than a quibble. India have had the best of the umpiring against the Black Caps in India. The Manchester football clubs routinely get home decisions, as do Chelsea. Roger Federer always seems to get a favourable schedule, as did Tiger Woods in his pomp. In some ways it is an earned right.
But you had to laugh when Grant Nisbett (an accomplished Super 15 commentator) said he thought Mr Owens had a “very good” game with “no problems”. In contrast, Phil Kearns called the ref an “idiot”. The Aussies, it is fair to say, were not impressed. They were not impressed when Owens did not award any one of four fairly obvious penalties in the opening sequence.
Nor were they impressed when Drew Mitchell was penalised for not releasing after one second, and then, 10 minutes later, Wyatt Crockett is allowed to hold on for three seconds, a sequence that led to Genia's yellow card for a professional foul. That was a rod for the ref's back. In the second half, Owens penalised Sir Richie three times in six minutes but did not card him for persistent infringement. There was also a 30-minute sequence in the decisive middle part of the game when the All Blacks were awarded five penalties to none. Goodness me, that's the sort of thing that leads to allegations of match-fixing.
A score of 13-6 might have accurately described an impartially refereed match, because the much celebrated "nil" was another false statistic. Australia could have easily kicked a penalty goal in the second half if they had been bothered.
But it seems to be the nature of some of the New Zealand rugby public to celebrate much too wildly when the team win and get much too low (remember the pre-World Cup match against Australia) when they lose. At the moment, we are on a preposterous high.
The sanest man in the country appears to be Hansen, who persists in making proportionate and sensible remarks about both referees and his own team. He knows the All Blacks have not come close to expectations in their previous two matches.
History tells us that Saturday's match against Argentina will be a blow-out. The Pumas are very competitive at home but have always struggled in New Zealand. But for once it will be the manner of victory that counts.
Does the pack have a soft underbelly without Brad Thorn and Jerome Kaino? Are the backs missing the tactical insight and diligence of Graham Henry and Wayne Smith? At the moment, there are more questions than answers.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/o...over-Wallabies
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Originally Posted by jt12
