| | _________________________ | | NZ RUGBY
| | /oooooooooooooooooooooooo/\ | | 1994
|____| /ooooooooooooooooooooooooo/ | |____| SEASON
| | /oooooooooooooooooooooooooo/ | | | SUMMARY
| | |~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| | | |
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THE NEW ZEALAND 1994 RUGBY SEASON
A Summary put together by Paul Waite
21st November 1994
with contributions from
Bill Taylor, Alan Murray, Paul Kendall, and Tracey Nelson
CONTENTS
{1} 1993 Season, a Retrospective
{2} The Hong Kong Sevens
{3} Women's Rugby World Cup
{4} The Super-10 Series
{5} The All Black Trials
{6} The French Tour
{7} The Springbok Tour
{8} The Bledisloe Cup
{9} The NPC
{10} All Black Selectors
{11} The 1995 Rugby World Cup
{12} Acknowlegments
Points of Note
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
By the way, the following perspective is my own. When I make statements
like "New Zealanders thought ....", or "The All Blacks played badly" etc.
they are based solely on my own observations, and reflect my current
knowledge and opinions. I don't pretend that these views are 100% accurate,
but they are the best I can do.
Although contributions have been made, the article is fully my responsibility
as editor/writer. Any and all mistakes, inaccuracies, and so forth are
entirely my fault.
A big thank-you to all the contributors, Bill Taylor, Alan Murray, Paul
Kendall, and Tracey Nelson for your efforts, without which the article
wouldn't have been produced.
Article size
~~~~~~~~~~~~
This article is approximately 1520 lines long (about 60 screens),
comprising about 12,900 words in just under 77Kb. To search for section
9 (for example), search for "{9}". The curly brackets will ensure only
two matches, the index and the heading, apart from section 9 of course
which will now have three :)
{1} 1993 Season, a Retrospective
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The 1993 season would have been, but for one crucial result, a successful
one both for the All Blacks and for New Zealand Rugby in general.
The changed format for the National Provincial Championship, introduced
in 1992, which provides a four-team knockout as the finale continued to be
a huge success, having transformed it in one step from an average league
table based competition into an exciting event.
The All Blacks had finally come on form and played as we know they can
after two shaky tests, to beat the touring Lions decisively at Eden Park
in the third, winning the series 2-1.
The Bledisloe Cup had been regained by easily beating a 'cold' and
under-prepared Australian side in the wintery depths of Dunedin.
The tour of England and Scotland, without Grant Fox, was a successful one
right up until the most crucial match of the tour, the test against England.
England deservedly won that match, and showed that the current All Black
outfit cannot vary it's gameplan when stymied by a committed defensive
effort designed to cancel it out.
Another black mark was added to Jamie Joseph's record when he deliberately
stamped on Kieran Bracken's ankle, an indefensible act caught in graphic
detail by the cameras.
Also worth recalling here is the lapse in judgement which caused Laurie
Mains to call up Mike Brewer, in the UK on business, into the squad to
cover for injury after the test. Brewer subsequently played as a substitute
instead of Liam Barry in the Barbarians game. As a result there was
considerable bad feeling waiting for Mains and his management team back
at home. This directly resulted in the replacement of the team manager Neil
Gray by Colin Meads.
By contrast, the test against Scotland the previous week had showed what
the then current All Black style and gameplan could do when it found the
room to express itself. The Scots were steamrollered by some fine
attacking flair.
It is worth mentioning the loss of ace goal kicker Matthew Cooper in
the dying minutes of the Scotland test through a groin injury. Cooper's
kicking on tour had been outstanding and his injury forced the All Blacks
to use Jeff Wilson, in only his second test, as the first choice goal
kicker. The record showed that Wilson was not up to the task although
it is unfair to blame him for the loss in a test New Zealand did not
deserve to win.
Another consequence of Cooper's loss was the choice of his replacement -
Eroni Clarke. Like his performances in the Lions series earlier in the year
he persisted in cutting back into the forwards which played into the hands
of England's huge forward pack.
The loss to England had been a blow, no doubt about it. However it is
a measure of the knife-edged nature of World rugby today that, had John
Timu's foot not happened to slip that unfortunate inch or two outwards
over the touchline, he would have scored the winning try in the England
test, and the All Blacks would have been deemed to be 'right on track'.
It was not to be. A very large questionmark hung poised over Laurie Mains
and the All Blacks. They had shown themselves to be lacking against
England, and the way this match had been played raised some uncomfortable
memories of a similar lack being exposed by the Lions earlier that year.
A great measure of the problem could be attributed to losing Grant Fox
to retirement, and the inability to choose a permanent successor on
the England-Scotland tour was a puzzling failure on the part of the
All Black management. It had seemed that Steven Bachop was ready-made
for the position, but no, the coaches toyed with Marc Ellis instead, and
thus vital matches were wasted, wherein a backline for the World Cup
might have been forged anew.
--------
The reason for rehashing 1993 is to show how New Zealanders' thoughts
were tuned at the start of the next season.
At the beginning of the 1994 season, there were grave doubts in the minds
of most New Zealanders, but there was also a strong hope that over the
summer the 'great minds' of the All Black management might have been able
to come up with some plan to put things right. After all we had the NPC,
and two whole international tours to come. Plenty of time.
There were some amongst us who thought that there was a hell of a lot to
do as yet however. The absolutely key position of first-five eighth had to
be filled, at least one good lock was required to remove the dependency
on Robin Brooke to win our lineout ball (his injury on the England-Scotland
tour was a cruel blow indeed), and a decent kicker to replace Foxy's
Superboot was a priority - tight tests are often won with kicks, and
not with tries.
So the feeling was one of doubt, and a conciousness that the All Blacks
were quite a long way off what was expected of them, but a hope that
the coming season, comprising 6 tests, would provide the necessary pressures
to sort it all out, and largely determine the World Cup squad for 1995.
{2} The Hong Kong Sevens
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
March 26-27th
The Hong Kong Sevens tournament is always an entertaining way to start
the new season. No matter who wins, it always provides some superb moments.
For the first time, New Zealand decided to put in a team made up of
'specialist' sevens players. Now don't ask me why this hadn't been done
before - apparently it hadn't so that's that.
The difference was astounding. The team took just about everyone it met
apart with a combination of speed, imagination, and strength. Chief in
combining all of these facets was young Jonah Lomu, fresh out of school
in his first season.
Eric Rush again showed us that he is the ultimate 7s player; later in the
NPC season, apart from the latter stages where he revelled in attack, he
demonstrated for the most part that his 15-a-side skills are sadly not
up to quite the same standard.
Osborne showed himself to be a superb goal-kicker at Hong Kong. However
this talent was not developed during the NPC season due to North Harbour
preferring to use Warren Burton. Needless to say his running skills were
also on show, and he did not disappoint.
A comparison with the inaugural "official" World Cup Sevens is in order
here. This was an event which seemed to go on a day too long for everyone,
England surprised by winning, beating a Campo-led Australia in the final.
The whole event was unconvincing overall since every team competing lost
at least two games and injuries played havoc due to the demanding schedule.
In the end there were five teams with 2 losses, unlike Hong Kong where
New Zealand lost none of it's matches and Australia lost only 1 providing
a much clearer result. The World Cup 7's tournament committee could
learn a lot from the 'experts' in Hong Kong.
The strongest image of this tournament, in which NZ won the final fairly
easily against the Australians, is one of Jonah brushing off tacklers
as he made breaks for the line to score. He was just about unstoppable.
Other NZ protagonists were: Eric Rush, Dallas Seymour, Glen Osborne, Peter
Woods, Luke Erenavula, Graeme Bachop, Joe Taiwi, Aaron Hamilton and Martin
Jones. Taiwi in fact played most of the matches and not Bachop. Hamilton,
Jones and Bachop played only in the first match.
{3} The Women's Rugby World Cup
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
April 1994
There were originally 16 entrants for this event including New Zealand,
and we were all looking forward to seeing our girls thrash the rest,
especially the USA, winners in the only previous competition where they
narrowly beat us in the semis.
Unfortunately, with a month to go, the event was somehow "de-officialized",
(and transferred from Holland to Scotland); and four teams, including NZ,
withdrew - apparently through lack of financial support. This was a
disgraceful episode for which *heads should roll* in the NZRFU.
In the event, the two remaining fancied teams met in the final, where the
English with their tough pack ground out a win over the U.S.A with their
flashy backs.
{4} The Super-10 Series
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
March 31st - May 14th
The sides in the tournament this year were..
New Zealand: Otago, North Harbour, Auckland, Waikato
South Africa: Transvaal, Eastern Province, Natal,
Australia: Queensland, New South Wales
Pacific: Western Samoa
The New Zealand teams were as "sleepy" as usual, and without quite a few
key players who were finishing their committments to overseas rugby and
so forth.
The exception to this was North Harbour which began the tournament playing
very well indeed, with none of the usual signs of sluggishness and poor
handling which were the hallmarks of the others.
Queensland looked quite strong and well prepared in their opening
matches.
North Harbour got to the "semi-finals" and were up against Queensland. The
match was a disappointment for North Harbour, who should have won. One
of the best moments was when Richard Turner got the ball from a ruck or
scrum. Facing him was the awesome Wallaby Illie Tabua. Turner drove
forward low as always, smashed the waiting and equally low Tabua backwards
onto his backside and rumbled straight over the top. Magic!
Only unusually poor goal-kicking by Warren Burton let them down. In the
final they would have had an excellent chance against Natal. Burton was
later to show that there is a question mark over his ability to stand up
under pressure, when he made a costly mistake in the NPC Final.
Queensland held on to win the match and make the final. Natal beating
Auckland in the other "semi-final".
The final was a victory for Queensland but costly for Australia, as Tim
Horan and Jason Little suffered serious knee ligament injuries which put
them out of the game. In Horan's case the damage was so severe that it is
not certain that he will return to form before the World Cup, although he
is reported to be making good progress in his recovery. Jason Little
returned to the game towards the end of the season and played well in the
Bledisloe Cup test.
For next year the All Black management are worried that the Super-10 will
cause problems (jetlag) with some test players. Apparently some might end
up travelling to South Africa three times in nine weeks, which medical
evidence confirms is detrimental. As it stands a compromise has been
reached with sponsors and Super-10 organisers, but All Blacks will probably
miss flying to South Africa if it turns out their teams progress towards
the final, and are required to play there. Early matches in the series
should be no problem but there is a cut-off date.
{5} The All Black Trials
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Two trials: Trial A June 1st
Trial B June 14th
Prior to these trials matches, All Black winger Inga Tuigamala made the
switch to Rugby League with a predicted move to Wigan. This added more
to the speculation of how the wings were going to be made up.
Young sevens star Jonah Lomu was a trialist with a lot of attention turned
his way, as were a number of first five-eighth contenders to replace Grant
Fox, amongst these Wellington's Simon Mannix who had had an exceptional
season with his province last year.
In the trials Lomu starred, being put up against 'old hand' John Kirwan.
In defence both came off relatively equal, and in attack similarly. Jonah
impressed with his shear size and strength, being able to stand when
being tackled by 2-3 men. At one stage he tackled hooker Norm Hewitt and
literally picked the front-rower up and dumped him on the ground. In
short he stole the headlines.
Simon Mannix was another trials success. His committed defence and ability
to run the ball and take options was impressive. He stood out as the best
first-five at the trials.
Last season's Boy Wonder Jeff Wilson was a complete disappointment, looking
terribly out of touch and unfit. It was said that his divided interests
in both cricket and rugby had left him under-prepared for this stage of
the season, and if anything should prevent him making the same mistake
in World Cup year. He was deservedly left out of the All Blacks, but did
sit on the substitutes bench, and later came back to his best in the
ill-fated Bledisloe Cup test in mid-August.
Another impressive player was winger Luke Erenavula who showed sublime
attacking prowess, but very poor defensive qualities. He signed for a
Rugby League club almost directly after the trials.
The general impression was that perhaps too many trialists were played out
of position, a habit that the current selection panel have fallen into
in a big way. This has been carried forward into All Black team selection
of course, with such examples as Jonah Lomu, Alama Ieremia, and John Timu
springing to mind. Thankfully, an injury to Marc Ellis meant that we were
spared the sight of the selectors trying to convert him from centre to
first five-eighth at the trials and beyond.
There also may be an unfair advantage with having the current Probables
versus Possibles system. Although it is good to look at a probable test
side playing together, perhaps the All Black selectors could gain a better
idea of form and ability by looking at different combinations for the two
teams by playing the Probables forwards with the Possibles backline, or
perhaps swapping the halfbacks at half time. As it is, the possibles can
quite often find it hard to impress, although in recent years the possibles
have actually won I believe.
The plan was to have two sets of trials in order to prevent the All
Blacks coming out 'under-done' as usual in the first test match of the
season. It just goes to show how important it is to put these trials
in perspective. The All Black trials are not rugby matches per se. In
a real match you are out to do everything to get your side the win. In
a trial you are out to look good to a panel of selectors. The focus is
therefore completely different.
As it was the trial matches did not prevent the All Blacks looking just
about the worst I've ever seen them in any match let alone the first test
of a season against the well-drilled French.
By the end of the trials, Simon Mannix and Jonah Lomu had played
themselves into the test side to face the French at Lancaster Park and
deservedly so, as far as the evidence of the trials was concerned.
Most people welcomed the return to the fold of John Kirwan, dropped from
the tour of England and Scotland last year. He showed he was still hungry
to play, and a winger of World Class ability, and won a test spot as well.
A player not so unanimously welcomed back was Richard Loe, who was
unavailable for the England/Scotland tour due to suspension for his infamous
eye-gouging offence against Greg Cooper. A strong trial and the prospect
of a powerful Springbok scrum ensured his place.
Mark Cooksley also returned to the spotlight, having been left out of last
year's tour of England and Scotland.
The remaining test berths were largely predictable, being made up of players
who went on the aforementioned tour, and who had had reasonable if not
outstanding trials. The resulting test team is listed in the following
section.
{6} The French Tour
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tour : June 8th - July 3rd
Tests: Sunday June 26th at Christchurch
Sunday July 3rd at Auckland, Eden Park
As a precursor to the test series against France in New Zealand, "Rugby
News" printed an interview with Pierre Berbizier in it's "Preview '94"
edition. Some of the statements that the perceptive French coach made
back then are especially interesting when the All Black's results
later on in the tests and the Bledisloe Cup are considered. Remember
that these comments were made some months before the first French test.
[Ian Borthwick of Rugby News writes..]
Apart from instilling a high degree of discipline in the team - a major
factor in enabling it to win the series in South Africa last year -
he [Pierre Berbizier] has brought the same kind of thoroughness to the
team's preparation, and the same attention to detail which as a player
made him one of the dominant figures of a successful decade of French
rugby in the 1980's.
This includes a close analysis of the All Black games on the recent tour
to Britain. Apart from television coverage, Berbizier himself flew to
Edinburgh to watch the test aginst Scotland, and his deputy coach
Christophe Mombet was present with manager Guy Laporte for the game
against England at Twickenham.
Their conclusion: The All Blacks now have a number of weaknesses in their
game, and for once are there for the taking. "What surprised me was that
they showed against Scotland that they were capable of being a great team.
But a week later against the English they were perfectly ordinary",
confides Berbizier.
"It is this difference in the quality of their performance between two
matches, the inconsistency which for me is unusual in the New Zealand game.
I believe it is one of the weaknesses which we can exploit. In my time
as a player, it always seemed as if we were battling against a solid
All Black wall. But that is no longer the case. The wall is perhaps under
construction, but from what I have observed, the cement has not yet
started to set."
"You don't often strike the All Blacks with a number of definite weaknesses
in their game. It is a real opportunity for us, and it is up to us to
seize it with both hands. It is up to us to go and challenge them on
their own soil, challenge them by playing in the French style, and
hopefully pulling off an historic victory..."
[End of Rugby News article]
These were prophetic words as we all know. Interesting to note the point
that Berbizier refers to "a number" of weaknesses in the All Black game,
but only highlights inconsistency, and the defensive qualities. It would
be very interesting to get hold of his notebook!
--------
There was a feeling in New Zealand as the French squad arrived, having
failed to win the 5-Nations Tournament losing two matches, and having
lost to Canada on the way over, that they were just the "entree"
before the "main course" of the Springbok tour. A good chance for the
All Blacks to limber-up, before getting into the more serious stuff.
However the French began their tour reasonably, overcoming most of the
provinces they faced, although being beaten by North Harbour and Hawkes
Bay. In retrospect, their brushing aside of the New Zealand "A" team,
(nearly as strong as the All Blacks) should have been a warning, but
it was not heeded.
The tour really was about the test matches of course. The following two
sections takes each test in turn and discusses the turn of events.
First test: France 22 New Zealand 8
The All Black team -
J Timu, J Kirwan, J Lomu, F Bunce, M Cooper, S Mannix,
S Forster, A Pene, M Brewer, B Larsen, M Cooksley, I Jones,
O Brown, R Loe, S Fitzpatrick
Apart from Simon Mannix and Jonah Lomu making their debuts, this team
looked pretty safe, given the other names in it, and the way the
All Blacks had been developing last year.
Lin Colling was the back-coach, and assistant coach to Laurie Mains.
Colling had been elected to the panel in place of Peter Thorburn, and
little was known about his background, and why he had been elected.
Apparently he was being 'tried out' by giving him responsibility for the
backs against the French, with Earle Kirton set to resume those
responsibilities for the Springboks.
In this first test the All Blacks were weak all round. They were slow to
the breakdown, did not scrummage very well (although the French tight-five
did perform outstandingly), couldn't get any points via kicking due to
Matthew Cooper being off-form, and were very disjointed in the backs who
showed no signs of inventiveness or confidence.
In addition the team did not play as a unit, and didn't seem able to support
one another. Young rugby prodigy Jonah Lomu looked sadly out of his depth
in test rugby. He was as awesome as expected going forward, but lacked
experience in the tackled situation, and also did poorly when on defence
especially in terms of positioning. It was definitely a case of a raw
talent scrabbling on the steep slope of the learning curve, without the
appropriate climbing equipment.
After a nervous start from both teams France soon realised they were up
against a poor side and began to play confidently. They built a good lead
through drop-kicks from Jean-Luc Sadourny, and Christophe Deylaud. Other
stand-out French players were Philippe Benetton and Laurent Cabannes,
always first to the breakdown, with Cabannes especially providing a
nightmare test debut for Simon Mannix at first five-eighth, and N'Tamack
playing on the wing.
The French win was a fairytale come true for Philippe Sella, on the day
he celebrated his 100th cap, he was part of only the second test victory
of France over the All Blacks in New Zealand. He was presented with a magnum
of Moet & Chandon champagne after the game.
Second test: France 23 New Zealand 21
The All Black team -
J Timu, J Kirwan, J Lomu, F Bunce, M Cooper, S Bachop,
S Forster, Z Brooke, M Brewer, B Larsen, M Cooksley, I Jones,
O Brown, R Loe, S Fitzpatrick
Simon Mannix was seemingly made the scapegoat for the first test loss
although he didn't have too bad a game overall. The shock call-up of
Stephen Bachop who wasn't even in the squad for the first test, and seemed
to be out of favour, puzzled everyone in New Zealand, although many
thought that his flair was just what was needed to get the backline
working properly.
The story of this test was very similar to that of the first, with the
exception that the forwards raised their game considerably, and played as
a unit. Zinzan Brooke was in excellent form, and made a huge difference
having replaced an out-of-form Arran Pene.
Unfortunately the same problems were evident in the backline. A lack of
understanding, flair and ideas made them look ordinary. Despite this the
improved forwards asserted control over the game and managed to grind
out a small lead. The All Blacks were in the driving seat right up until
the final 5 minutes or so, and everyone watching expected a dour but
probably deserved win.
At this point, they committed the cardinal sin at test level of giving
away possession too quickly and too often to the side trying to catch up,
as well as relaxing the defensive vigilance a little for the first time
in the game. This was all the talented French needed. With nothing to
lose they strung together one of the all-time great test tries which started
back on their goal line and ended up just over the one that the All
Blacks were trying to defend. It was enough to give them the test by 2
points, and deservedly return home with the series win, having played by
far the better rugby.
Summing up
~~~~~~~~~~
For the All Blacks, the first test disaster could be explained away. Too
many 'rusty' players having an off-day together contributing to a very
ordinary effort indeed. Unfortunately this thinking was not supported by
the second test performance. Even if the All Blacks had won, it would not
have impressed anyone looking beyond the scoreline to the actual game itself.
The same problems persisted. A lack of understanding in the backs, and a
disturbing lack of a 'directing intelligence' in the tactical aspects of
the play. The only improvement was in the level of committment from the
forwards.
Cooper's terrible goal-kicking deservedly eliminated him permanently from
the All Blacks. He was not included in any of the further internationals
during the season. In the NPC his kicking remained indifferent, although
he did kick well in one or two games, notably against Counties and
Wellington. Judging by his excellent performance on the England/Scotland
tour, this is just a matter of poor confidence and form, which will
hopefully be rectified next season.
For the French there were inumerable good points. Their giant locks Olivier
Roumat and Olivier Merle (the latter weighing in at around 125Kg and
looking like a particularly nasty and irascible Foreign Legionaire)
were awesomely strong.
Their loose forwards, in particular Laurent Cabannes were outstanding, and
their tight-five disciplined and strong. As always, the French backs were
full of ideas, and ran in that distictive manner with 2-3 players running
almost abreast at times, criss-crossing at others, and always running
straight at the defence. Nobody does it quite like they can.
One of the most impressive men was not to be seen playing on the field.
Much of what the French achieved in New Zealand can be attributed to that
canniest of coaches Pierre Berbizier. Under his direction Les Bleues
possessed a hitherto unknown quality in French sides: discipline. If they
can develop this new found strength for the World Cup they will be very
hard to beat.
The All Blacks were left in disarray after losing this series. With the
Springboks having been in the country since before the first test, they
had to come up with a recipe for success, and quickly. One good point
was the possibility of playing Michael Jones, with the tests being played
on Saturdays. His contribution in the loose was sorely missed.
{6.1} The 'Silliness Law'
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Just a recap for those of you who missed the discussion of this
particular little 'niche' of the IRB Laws Of The Game. A little-known
law involving that blatant offence "making the opposition look
extremely silly on the field of play".
At the end of the second and final New Zealand vs France test match
the French were guilty of breaching this regulation and, with the referee
failing to apply The Law and disallow the try, they won the match and the
test series.
For those who are not familiar with this rule, the IRB Rulebook
states..
Law 199(4): A team must not, by any combination of kicking, passing,
running movement or other method of conveying the ball,
make the opposition team look extremely silly.
Note (i) Normal silliness is permitted, however for the purposes
of this Rule, the boundary between normal and extreme
silliness is deemed to be: running more than 70 metres
or more toward the opposition line, avoiding 13 or more
opposition players, and passing more than 9 times before
scoring a try.
Note (ii) The only exception to the extreme silliness limits set
down in Note (i) is if you are playing an exhibition
match against an obviously inferior team, or Scotland,
in which case it is deemed to be almost impossible
not to incur the extreme silliness ruling. In these
particular instances, the rule is waived.
Let us all sincerely hope that the French will abide by The Laws of
The Game in this respect at the World Cup. Well, when they play the
All Blacks anyway. :)
{7} The Springbok Tour
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tour : June 23rd - August 6th
Tests: Saturday July 9th at Dunedin, Carisbrook
Saturday July 23rd at Wellington, Athletic Park
Saturday August 6th at Auckland, Eden Park
South Africa started their tour just before the All Blacks came to grief
in the first French test. They began well beating King Country and Counties.
Their level of aggression and arrogance on the field after these two
matches was somewhat of a talking point, and was acknowledged by SA
coach Ian MacIntosh, who said he was endeavouring to get the players
to channel the aggression to the ball, and not the man.
The first real tester in the provincial matches was against Wellington. Here
they looked vulnerable when attacked with good, fast backs, and Wellington
ran in some good tries. South Africa showed that their own backs could
also move the ball at pace, and eventually deserved their win. It was
in this match that SA captain Francois Pienaar knocked himself out on a
Wellingtonian knee, and suffered concussion, keeping him out of the
first test.
SA then accounted for a gritty Southland, who never gave up, and a Hanan
Shield XV, before the first test at Carisbrook, Dunedin.
First test : New Zealand 22 South Africa 14
The All Black team -
S Howarth, J Kirwan, F Bunce, A Ieremia, J Timu, S Bachop,
G Bachop, Z Brooke, M Brewer, B Larsen, M Cooksley, I Jones,
O Brown, R Loe, S Fitzpatrick
With Earle Kirton resuming his assistant coaching duties as the backline
coach, a few re-arrangements were made. The dependable Shane Howarth
was brought in for his goal-kicking and solid fullback abilities. John
Timu was moved back to wing from fullback. Alama Ieremia was put in
at second five-eighth, even though he usually plays at centre (Frank
Bunce's position), and Graham Bachop was brought in as halfback replacing
Stu Forster, who was not producing the goods in terms of attacking play,
and whose wayward kicking had been a bit of a liability. This brought
the Bachop brothers together in a halfback/first-five combination.
In the forwards, no changes were made from the French tests.
The test was a scrappy affair, with plenty of physical needle from both
sides. South Africa lost this test rather than New Zealand winning it, with
silly penalties given away by indiscipline, especially by Johan le Roux,
and an inability to control the ball at crucial times under test pressure.
All Black lock Ian Jones was injured with a suspected fractured cheek-bone,
and was out of contention for the second test.
The only real highlight was John Kirwan's try, which was well-worked.
Although we didn't know it at the time, this was to be JK's last
test try.
At this point it was perhaps evident that the Springboks had made a mistake
in insisting on a fairly 'low impact' tour as far as the Provincial matches
were concerned. Apparently they were influenced by the pressure the Lions
were under when touring here the year before, when most top unions were
visited. In my opinion the lack of quality opposition resulted in the
Springboks being under-pressured. When the tests came around they were
often found lacking when time and space were restricted by the more
intense level of play.
In between the first test and the second, the Springboks played a spirited
Taranaki side, Waikato and Manawatu. They had little problem in beating
all three of these teams, although some controversy was generated by
the 'over-the-top' charge made on Steve Gordon by Springbok winger James
Small. Gordon had to be helped from the field after the incident, which
looked quite deliberately calculated to injure and effectively ended
his season.
Later on Small was lambasted by Murray Deaker on a television sports show,
where amongst other things he pointed out that Small had admitted using
marijuana, and was definitely 10 cents short of a dollar (or words to
that effect). Small was simply cautioned at a disciplinary hearing, and
therefore available for the second test.
The feeling was that the South African test side could play much better than
it showed in the first test which was lost due to SA indiscipline and
mistakes. The All Blacks were going to have to raise their own game to
beat them at Athletic Park.
Second test : New Zealand 13 South Africa 9
The All Black team -
S Howarth, J Kirwan, F Bunce, A Ieremia, J Timu, S Bachop,
G Bachop, Z Brooke, M Brewer, B Larsen, R Brooke, M Cooksley,
O Brown, R Loe, S Fitzpatrick
The All Blacks came out for this match in a very pumped-up and focussed mood.
They looked impressive on attack from the start, with John Timu fitting
right back into former wing spot and getting a lot of work.
Athletic Park was packed, and the atmosphere was thrilling. In the first
half the All Blacks played intense attacking rugby and reaped the benefits
with a superb winger's try to Timu, and a push-over try to Zinzan Brooke,
who had an absolutely outstanding game to win the "Man of the Match"
award. His two long-range drop goal attempts will be remembered for a
long time :)
In the second half the Springboks rallied and mounted attack after attack,
only to be beaten back by a determined All Black defence. The All Blacks
looked dangerous on the few excursions they had down to the South African
end of the pitch as well.
The only sour point in the whole match was the silly ear-biting incident
of Johan le Roux on Sean Fitzpatrick. Springbok tour manager Engelbrecht
showed excellent judgment of the situation by sending le Roux home in
disgrace immediately after the disciplinary hearing.
After losing the second test and the series, the Springboks then lost the
Springbok Head (presented to the first provincial side which beats them
on a tour) to Otago. The game was played in torrential rain on a pitch
which resembled a swamp.
Third test : New Zealand 18 South Africa 18
The All Black team -
S Howarth, J Kirwan, J Timu, F Bunce, A Ieremia, S Bachop,
G Bachop, Z Brooke, M Brewer, B Larsen, R Brooke, I Jones,
O Brown, R Loe, S Fitzpatrick
This test was a complete disappointment for the spectators from the
New Zealand perspective, and probably from the viewpoint of South
Africans as well.
The Springboks might consider themselves unlucky not to have won this match,
with the All Blacks looking fairly clueless and under-motivated. The
points for the All Blacks were all scored care of Shane Howarth's boot, whilst
the Boks scored two tries, both in the first half.
Summing up
~~~~~~~~~~
New Zealand won the test series against South Africa 2-0. Their performance
in the forwards was much improved over the efforts against the French,
but the backs only got a pass mark. Only in the second test at Athletic
Park, Wellington did the backs show any of the skills and combinations
which we have come to expect from them, and which we see regularly in the
provincial competition.
In short, New Zealand failed to impress. Although a 2-0 test series win
against South Africa looks good on paper, one must look at South Africa
and recognize the fact that they had problems too, and were not a
strong side compared to Springbok teams of the past. With a new
coach, with a tour of Wales and Scotland to iron out more problems of
selection and tactical aspects, and with home advantage in the coming
World Cup, there would not be one chance in a thousand of the All Black
side which won this series beating South Africa next year.
{8} The Bledisloe Cup
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Test: Wednesday August 17th at Sydney (night game)
It was very sad to see John Kirwan dropped for this test. He was accused
by Laurie Mains of lacking the enthusiasm and hunger for the game.
Kirwan responded angrily in the Press by stating that, in his opinion
"Laurie's lost the plot".
This test was (to coin a cliche) a game of two halves. In the first the
All Blacks managed to give the impression that they weren't interested
in taking the game to the Wallabies at all. They shirked tackles, drove
forward weakly, were driven backwards easily, and showed no ideas when
they got the ball in the backs.
The Aussies were, on the other hand, fizzing. Excellent forward play earned
them points, and they deservedly led at the end of the first 40. Notable
was the try scored by Jason Little in the first 20 seconds of the match.
It was an effort reminiscent of Horan at his jumping best: a kick from
half-way dropping right on the All Black goal-line and retrieved by
Little jumping higher than a very static Shane Howarth. This try
obviously played it's part in the terrible first-half performance of the
men in Black, stunning them into a seeming torpor.
After the game Sean Fitzpatrick commented that at the half-time whistle
many All Blacks had not even broken a sweat, and they felt they had done
more in some training sessions. The question has to be asked: "why?".
In the second half the All Blacks came out a completely different team.
It looked (to the cynical bystander) that they had thrown away Laurie
Mains' tactics book, and just 'gone for gold'. In fact, the whisper
around Christchurch clubs was that the All Blacks not only threw away
Laurie's tactics but also ignored his half-time instructions which
were to tighten the game up.
Whether this is near the truth is open to debate, but whatever it was
it resulted in one of the most exciting and heroic finishes ever to any
test match.
The Australians decided to sit on their lead, and thus most of the play
was made by the All Blacks. The situation was reminiscent of a certain
World Cup Semi-Final, but this time the All Blacks had the ideas to
penetrate the superb Australian defence, surely still the best in the
World.
The result is history, the All Blacks, as so often has happened in Laurie
Mains' reign, _just_ failing to win but for a bit of bad luck and some
tackling genius from a little Aussie called Gregan. He made a last-gasp
try-saving tackle on Jeff Wilson who was literally hovering over the
Australian line having dived before having the ball knocked from his
hands. The try would have won the match for the Blacks but it was
not to be.
The bad points of the game for New Zealand were: the inexcusably poor
attitude and effort level in the first half, the perennial lack of
tactical appreciation and variation, and the inability to be _winners_.
The last might seem facile, but it is not. This ability is real, and is
generated by a belief which comes from good coaching, familiarity
with a consistently picked team/squad, and good results.
The single good point that could be taken from this match was that the
players have the ability to take anyone apart on their day. It's just
that these days are few and far between and, currently, are only ever
prompted by being in a desperate strait.
--------
It is interesting to note the last three years have seen five Bledisloe
Cup tests. Of these, four have been played in Australia three of which
were won by Australia by only 4 points or less, New Zealand winning the
other by a similar margin.
The single game played in New Zealand last year was an easy win to the
All Blacks. This indicates that, on a neutral ground New Zealand
might consider itself in with a good chance of victory.
The main thing as far as the spectator is concerned is that tests
between these two countries continue to produce exciting rugby, and are
eagerly looked forward to by both sets of supporters.
Next season there will be a two match series, one test will be played
in New Zealand, and one in Australia, in an ominous re-enactment of
the Bledisloe fixture arrangements which pertained just prior to the
1991 World Cup.
{9} The NPC
~~~~~~~~~~~
I would like to begin here by referring you to Paul Bickerstaff's superb
World-Wide Web server (WWW). The URL is
http://rugby.phys.uidaho.edu/rugby.html
This server contains all the match reports for the NZ NPC rounds, and
the semi-finals and final, as well as many many other interesting facts
and figures, results and stories regarding rugby World-wide.
The following is an overview of the season from the point of view of each
province in the first division. Apologies to supporters of teams in the
second and third divisions, but time and space required me to limit the
section to the first.
After the ups and downs of what was, from a New Zealand perspective, an
extremely poor and dissatisfying test season, there was an almost audible
sigh of relief nationwide when the New Zealand National Provincial
Championship began. After the stilted back-play, and the obvious lack of
intelligence and flexibility in the game tactics and option-taking at
test level, all New Zealanders were looking forward to seeing some really
exciting rugby for a change, and _without_ National Pride being at stake.
Waikato
~~~~~~~
The loss of Waikato stalwarts Graeme Purvis and Brent Anderson through
retirement and to a lesser extent Richard Loe's shift back to Canterbury
proved to be crucial. The Waikato forward pack, so dominant in the early
1990's, was just a shadow of it's former self. Much was expected of Mark
Cooksley who made the move from Counties but he failed to reproduce the
form he showed in the international matches when it really mattered.
Waikato got off to a bad start having a poor Super-10, but began the NPC
with a nice romp 46-10 over King Country in their first Ranfurly Shield
defence.
The rest of the season was not the best, with sloppy defense in the backs
letting the side down and contributing to several notable losses, such
as against Wellington (away) and the loss of the Ranfurly Shield to
Canterbury.
It must be said however that Waikato played some very good rugby this
season, but unfortunately it was patchy, and never for the 80 minutes
required. Another disappointment was the kicking form of Matthew Cooper,
who was dropped from the All Blacks because of it.
It's safe to say that the core of this Waikato side, which had won the NPC
in 1992 and the Ranfurly Shield the following season, was a year past their
best. Coach Kevin Greene who was to retire at the end of the season, was
guilty of remaining fiercely loyal to the players who had served him well
in previous years. Unfortunately an injection of youth was sorely needed
and the failure to do so ultimately led to Waikato's demise. With a new
coach, former All Black John Boe, and the depth of talent that exists
within the province Waikato should once again challenge for a top four
finish in 1995.
Wellington
~~~~~~~~~~
Wellington suffered from having a very disjointed start to the NPC, with
no Super-10 matches to warm up with either. However this doesn't excuse
the inconsistency which has become their by-word over the last three
seasons.
Starting badly with a 29-3 hiding away at Counties, Wellington seemed
to get back on track with a better performance, winning at home against
Waikato. The next game at Otago showed that they are only capable of
concentrating for about 15 minutes at a time, and they deservedly lost
that match 31-14.
After being easily over-powered at home by Auckland 52-30, they won
against King Country, and then beat Canterbury who were really
concentrating hard on the crucial Ranfurly Shield defence coming up
against Otago the following week.
They had a chance, with the final match away at North Harbour, of getting
into the top four. In this game they were exposed as second rate by
one of the most devastating attacking teams in the country.
Overall the season showed a slight improvement over the previous one, but
was not a good one. Wellington are a Jekell and Hyde team who can show
brilliant attacking play in the backs one minute, with hard driving in
the forwards backing it up, and the next minute a total lack of impetus
and dedication which allows the opposition to run straight through.
Steve McDowell, the ex All Black prop, bolstered the front row when he
returned from a course in Ireland in time to face the Springboks at
provincial level. Also welcomed back into the fold after trying to find
gold in Australia was prop Bill Cavubati. Alama Ieremia became an All Black
against the French, and Simon Mannix played his first test for the All
Blacks as well, but was dropped immediately in favour of Stephen Bachop.
Unfortunately Mannix then lost all the confidence he had built after having
a disastrous tour to France a few years back when Alex Wyllie was All Black
coach.
John Preston played the last few games at first five-eighth and looked very
good there, with Moncrieff playing halfback. This combination, with Alama
Ieremia back after knee surgery and exciting wingers in the Umaga brothers
could set the team alight next season with the right coaching and motivation.
North Harbour
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
North Harbour started the season with a hiss and a roar in the Super-10
where they looked the most exciting team in the competition. Unexpectedly
bad kicking from Warren Burton caused their demise at the hands of
Queensland, when they looked the better of the two.
The exciting sevens-style attack of Harbour began the NPC where they
left off in the Super-10. The most exciting game was the away win
against a powerful Auckland side by 35-31 in the dying minutes of the
game after the lead had switched about three times. This match caused
spectators on both sides to applaud the superb standard of rugby being
played in the NPC, and begged the question "why can we not attain the
same level in our test sides?".
In their final match at home against Wellington they showed that they
have one of the most dangerous attacks in the country, able to run
the ball from anywhere on the field to score.
Fullback Glen Osborne took a giant leap towards his first All Black
test place this season. He proved that he can produce exciting attacking
runs even when under pressure from high class opponents, is effective in
defence, and that he has the maturity to try the next step up.
Coach Brad Meurant retired at the end of the season, and deserves
recognition for building a fine, entertaining side. He is succeeded by
Chas Ferris who was the NZ Maoris coach this year. Interestingly, his
assistant will be Buck Shelford, who is quietly building his coaching
career. Many predict that he will be coaching the All Blacks in the
not too distant future.
Auckland
~~~~~~~~
Auckland started their season against Canterbury, winning reasonably
comfortably at home. Some controversy surrounded this match when
Auckland requested that a player be returned from the Colt's training
camp (normally an inadmissable procedure), and the request was granted.
Canterbury asked to do the same and were denied. Although the
circumstances were allegedly different, this understandably irritated
a lot of people in the game.
Two easy matches against Taranaki and King Country followed, with the
latter being demolished 71-7 away. Their first tough match was the
superb game at home with North Harbour which they only lost in the
last minutes after some brilliant tries by both sides to keep the lead
swinging backwards and forwards.
After that Auckland settled down to win all their remaining matches,
showing power of high quality in the forwards, and some clinical
finishing from the backs, in particular from Waisake Sotutu who
grew in stature as the season progressed. The only low note was the
scrappy, unconvincing affair at Counties which was won with a last
gasp effort by 18-15.
Coach Graham Henry has brought the team on considerably from last
season when they lost the Ranfurly Shield, and seemed to be on the
decline. They are now a formidable team and are coming back to the
sort of form of two-three years ago.
As far as the players are concerned, winger Waisake Sotutu looks set
to be called up into the All Blacks next season, especially with
John Timu's League defection. In the forwards prop Kevin Nepia also
looks like a future All Black, although next season may be too early.
Young prodigy Carlos Spencer showed some sublime running at first
five-eighth during the season, but also showed that the other facets
of his game are not nearly as well developed. Junior Tonu'u came
back from an injury which prevented him going on the pre-season
development tour, and shone in the latter stages of the NPC. As to
his future as an All Black, he still seems to lack some of the canny
thinking and tactical kicking abilities required, and can be too greedy
with the ball in hand near the line, but is exceptional when running in
attack, and has just about the longest pass in the NPC at present.
Counties
~~~~~~~~
Newly promoted Counties began the season with a surprise win away
against Otago 29-24. This set them up with enough confidence in their
open, attacking style of play to slam a lack-lustre Wellington 29-3
the following week. By this time they must have been thinking that
life in the first division was a breeze.
They were brought down to ground level again when they were thumped
36-6 away to a hot North Harbour, but recovered the following week
with an easy 38-14 win over Taranki.
A loss to Waikato, and then it was the build up for the Ranfurly
Shield challenge at Canterbury. Expectation was high that Counties
could take the shield, but the event proved too much for them,
and they made too many mistakes under the pressure of it all. They
were deservedly drubbed 42-16 in a one-sided contest.
A final close match with Auckland in which they were unfortunate to
lose in the dying minutes showed that Counties were a worthy addition
to the first division.
Towards the end of the season, Counties coach Ross Cooper stood for
the All Black panel and was elected. It was a blow to Counties to
lose Cooper who has been responsible for their rise, however the
expectation is high that next season will see them continue to improve.
Taranaki
~~~~~~~~
Taranaki had an unfortunate season. Looking at the results, in which
they failed to win a single match, one would be misled into thinking
that they were an awful, talentless team. Nothing could be further
from the truth. In all their matches this season Taranaki continued
to play the energetic, running rugby for which they are renowned.
Losing their inspirational and charismatic leader Mark 'Bull' Allen
a short way into the season was a dire blow. Allen suffered detached
chest muscles, and was out for the rest of the season.
The final match was against King Country. The winner of this match
would stay in the first division, and the loser was to go down.
Unfortunately for Taranaki, they lost this close-fought match 16-12,
and will be playing in the second division next season.
King Country
~~~~~~~~~~~~
King Country based their game around a tough defense, and hard forwards
with economic use of their backs, and good kicking skills from Hutana
Coffin.
Unfortunately this style, and the abilities of the players were not
enough to stop all of the other teams in the first division from
scoring, and they only won one match all season. That match was the
final one against Taranaki to decide which of the two teams would
remain and which would be relegated to second division football. King
Country triumphed and will play in the first division next year.
First five-eighth Hutana Coffin deserves a mention as one of King Country's
main points scorers. His accuracy with the boot kept them in with a
chance in quite a few matches.
Otago
~~~~~
Otago persevered with their well-known and exciting brand of rugby which
involves continuous phase play and maximum movement around the field
with ball retention second to none.
Having started the season badly, losing at home to Counties 29-24, Otago
then beat Waikato 38-25 and Taranaki the following week 31-16. They
then accounted for Wellington 31-14 at home, but lost away at Auckland
by 46-30.
This match deserves special mention. It was a superb end-to-end spectacle
which had some great attacking play. Otago and Auckland swapped the lead
2-3 times in the final 10 minutes, but Auckland grabbed the lead 32-30
with only a minute or so left. Otago then tried to run it from everywhere
and Auckland nailed a couple of gift tries as a result to blow the
scoreline out to 46-30.
After dispatching King Country they then set out for Lancaster Park, the
home of Canterbury and the Ranfurly Shield. Otago were fancied to take
the Shield off Canterbury, but in the event they did what is now becoming
something of a trait with them - they led until the final 10-15 minutes,
and then surrendered the match.
Canterbury deserved the credit for the win, with a terrific committed effort
from all players. The day was a superb advert for NPC rugby at it's best.
Unfortunately for Otago captain David Latta, the pressure caused him to
give away a gift penalty in the dying minutes for Canterbury's Andrew
Mehrtens to slot the winning points.
Otago probably need to develop their game one stage further. They have a
superb attacking style involving tremendous movement and ball retention,
however it can be countered effectively when the opposition stop them from
playing that way, reminiscent in some ways of the All Blacks. What is
needed is variety. An ability to play tactically when required, backed
up with a solid platform from the forwards. This might enable them to sit
on a lead, and weigh up the various options.
Standout players this season for Otago were flanker Josh Kronfeld, so quick
and hungry for the ball all year, and also playing on the flank Jamie
Joseph, who seems to have curbed his 'nasty' habits and looks a
tremendously powerful player in the loose. He is a much more impressive
player as a result. Jeff Wilson came back to form in the Bledisloe Cup test,
and is without doubt just about the best winger in New Zealand at present.
John Timu showed what a superb player he is, and what a loss he will be
now that he has gone to Rugby League.
Canterbury
~~~~~~~~~~
After recent disappointing seasons 1994 again started with optimistic noises
being made by the "press" in and around Christchurch. Some of us had heard
these comments before and felt we would rather wait for some concrete
evidence before getting too carried away.
The pre-season matches brought wins against Eastern Province and a very
flattering 33-3 win against NSW and whilst the results augered well one
couldn't help but wonder.
The pre-season games continued with a predictably large win over West
Coast and a not so convincing performance against South Canterbury
before the boys were brought down to earth with a 56-25 thumping by Otago
at Carisbrook where the old failings (most notably a lack of midfield
defence) again reared their ugly heads. For the next pre-season game, against
Southland, Tabai Matson was moved from left wing to centre alongside
Mark Mayerhofler and things began to look somewhat better.
Around this stage coach Vance Stewart made public his goals for the
Canterbury team for the 1994 season.
1) Finish in the top 4 of the NPC.
2) Be unbeaten in all provincial matches on Lancaster Park in 1994.
3) Win the Ranfurly Shield.
4) Keep the Shield in Christchurch over the summer.
The NPC season started with a predictable loss to Auckland at Eden Park
and then a somewhat shabby performance against the Springboks was followed
by a surprise win over North Harbour - maybe the this is the season the
worm turns.
Another somewhat shabby win over King Country then it's off to Hamilton
to claim the log of wood. Great first 60 minutes sees the log finally
on its way back to Christchurch. The next few games saw Canterbury struggle
against Taranaki away, defend against Counties and then lose to Wellington
at Athletic Park before the season finale - the challenge from Otago.
Canterbury played badly but still managed to retain the shield thanks to
a last minute penalty by Andrew Mehrtens. Thus the season was counted as
a success with all the set goals being attained and not even the record
drubbing by North Harbour could dampen the supporters' enthusiasm.
So to the future. Canterbury now have a young and talented backline which
should, if allowed to mature, produce some exciting football in the coming
seasons. The loss of Graeme Bachop (to Japan) is a blow but the whisper
around Christchurch is that Vance is seeking a replacement with Justin
Marshall from Southland and A.N.Other from the Hawkes Bay region being
talked about.
There is also the prospect of classy Poverty Bay wing, James Kerr, moving
to the Canterbury region to go to university. The forwards are pretty
stable but one really good lock is still needed - maybe local beanpole
Andrew Elvidge may turn out to be the answer once he has a little more
experience, he's certainly tall enough.
The major improvement in the Canterbury side this year has been in the
backline, most notably the midfield defence. Much has been written and said
about the difference players such as Andrew Mehrtens, Tabai Matson and
Simon Forrest have made but for me the player of the year amongst the
backs was Mark Mayerhofler whose hard tackling was the major factor behind
Canterbury's improved defensive performances. Amongst the forwards the
two players who have come on the most are rangy number 8, Todd Blackadder,
and speedy open-side flanker Angus Gardiner.
NPC Playoffs
~~~~~~~~~~~~
The first division playoffs involved the top four teams in a semi-final
and then final format. The top four were Otago, Auckland, North Harbour,
and Canterbury.
The semi-finals were Otago vs Auckland, and North Harbour vs Canterbury.
Otago vs Auckland was played at Otago's home ground, Carisbrook. It was
a tremendous match between two superb teams. Otago scored two brilliant
tries to Jeff Wilson and John Timu, the former try being of such genius
that it took the breath away. However Auckland's power-play style told
in the end, despite them making unforced errors near the line throughout
the first half.
Putting in a punishing last fifteen minutes, Auckland's strength told and
they ran out 33-16 winners. Otago were left wondering what they need to
do to be able to hold onto a lead. If they can work that one out they
will be challenging even more strongly for the championship next year.
The other semi-final was exciting as well. Canterbury however were a bit
flat after their successful Ranfurly Shield defence the previous week
against Otago, and only really contested the first 30 minutes of this
game. North Harbour's razzle-dazzle backline took them apart in the
rest of the game, scoring 7 tries. Glen Osborne starred.
The final between Auckland and North Harbour was a terrible disappointment.
It was badly marred by a continuous war involving just about every example
of foul play imaginable, and resulted in two sendings-off. It was an
example of how players from both sides can be made to focus, in their
build-up, on the wrong aspects of the game by media hype and pressure.
The focus was obviously on the man and not on the ball or the game.
In contrast the media hype and pressures on Otago, and to a greater extent
Canterbury for the Ranfurly Shield defence two weeks earlier resulted in
both sets of players coming out focussed on playing the game to their
utmost abilities. The result was a superb match which had an electric test
match atmosphere. It brought out some superb rugby, and had the audience
on the edges of their seats. This match shows that the media pressures are
not solely responsible for the debacle in the NPC Final, it was a case
of player attitudes being wrongly set.
In the event that one match did a great deal of harm to New Zealand rugby,
and unfortunately dominates the memories from a season full of some of
the most exciting rugby I have seen. Hopefully the players and administrators
can learn from this experience.
In the end Auckland won the final, beating North Harbour 22-16, for what
it was worth. The unfortunate North Harbour first five-eighth Warren
Burton largely lost the match for his side by fumbling a pass from his
halfback Ant Strachan. This blunder allowed Sean Fitzpatrick to score
a try and turn the match away from Harbour who had looked like earning
a win.
{10} All Black Selectors
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After a depressing All Black season in which Laurie Mains took the team
to a 2-0 series loss to the French, a reasonable 2-0 win against a gifted
but undisciplined Springbok test side, then a puzzling Jekell and Hyde
performance against Australia in which they lost the Bledisloe Cup,
Laurie Mains had reason to feel worried when election time came around
this year.
After some behind the scenes encouragement, John Hart decided to stand
against him, and the country was divided as to who should win. Everyone
was unamimous that Earle Kirton, dubbed "The Mad Dentist" would be sacked
from the selectors panel, after a poor overall display from the backs,
although some of this was undeniably the fault of allowing Lin Colling
to run the backline coaching for the French test series. Not even Lin
Colling's pet dog wanted to see _him_ retained on the panel, and no unions
nominated him either.
For two weeks there were media interviews of both protagonists, but it
seemed a 50-50 call as to which would get the job. Eddie Tonks, the NZRFU
Chairman unsuccessfully tried to disguise his favouring of John Hart.
The end result was that Mains and Kirton were both retained, with a new
panel member in Ross Cooper, formerly coach of Counties, being elected
in place of Colling.
If rumours are to be believed Laurie Mains owes his reselection to two
prominent councillors, John Sturgeon (the former All Black manager) and
Colin Meads (the current manager) whose persuasive influence over other
councillors appears to have tipped the balance of power in Mains' favour
when John Hart was thought to have the support.
In post-election interviews Laurie Mains admitted blundering with player
selections and specifically with his handling of the backs. He said that
previously he just had a quick word with Grant Fox as to what overall tactics
he wanted to employ, and the little general "just got on with it". He
stated that he was going to increase his input and coach both forwards and
backs together personally in order to get the link between the two areas
of the game right.
As to player selection he said he made the mistake of forgetting those
players who had given good service in the preceeding years, referring
blatantly to Walter Little, who sat on the bench for most tests until being
selected for the Bledisloe.
All this sounds terribly basic, and seems to be a bit of a worry. It's hard
to have faith that "everything is going to be different now", after several
years of the same old problems.
In the end though, there probably wasn't time to switch coaches with so
much preparation being put in by Laurie Mains, and only 2-3 tests next year.
John Hart lost out yet again, the last being just after the 1991 World Cup.
If New Zealand don't win the next, or Mains resigns anyway, it is a moot
point whether John Hart would stand again after so much rejection. After
the end-of-season Barbarians match it would be interesting to see if he
really could bring the All Blacks back to the successful team they were.
One final note on Laurie Mains. It has been noted, and I think there is
something in this, that Laurie appears to be easily swayed by the media.
An example of this was the inclusion of Jonah Lomu in the trials and then
the French tests. Another was the shock recall of Stephen Bachop for the
second test against France when he wasn't even in the squad for the first.
With selection stability now recognized as being very important in the
World Cup build-up, it is a worry that this seems to happen.
{11} The 1995 Rugby World Cup
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I would like to begin this section by looking into the crystal ball
a little, and trying to see about 6 months into the future..
A prediction
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Having almost completely wasted the opportunities of this season's tests
for preparation, the All Blacks will not be well enough prepared for the
World Cup. The forwards will work well, but the backs will not be
sufficiently 'together' to provide that flair necessary to beat the best
in the World.
Also the strange ineptitude in the tactical reading and manipulation during
a game, which the All Blacks have demonstrated under Laurie Mains since
Grant Fox retired, will be their undoing against sides which are highly
motivated and provide a top defensive effort. This has been a problem
during the whole of Laurie Mains tenure, and there is no reason to suspect
that it will suddenly change now.
Thus the All Blacks will probably reach the semi-finals once again but
will lose against one of the top sides (again). With only the top three
qualifying automatically for the 1999 World Cup, the All Blacks will
perhaps come an honourable third yet again and at least spare themselves
that ignominy.
If this predicted 'debacle' comes to pass, then of course Laurie Mains
will finally go, having presided over the most inconsistent and unsuccessful
era of All Black rugby in history.
Some good points
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The current position is not completely black. In all but one test this season
the All Blacks were dominant at lineout and scrum. The previous season had
seen quite definite problems winning lineout ball with the absence of
Robin Brooke. Mark Cooksley took a few more steps toward becoming the
player he needs to be as an All Black, although he has a way to go as yet.
In the scrum the return of Richard Loe brought stability and power. His
strength in the maul situation also allows more flexibility in this area.
His experience was also an asset. Olo Brown also came on in general play
this season, making some strong charges. He ought to be encouraged to do
this more for the World Cup.
In the loose forwards Zinzan Brooke shone. He makes no secret of relishing
above all others tests against South Africa. In those tests he performed
to the highest level I've seen him play.
When Michael Jones returned to play in the second half of the last test
against South Africa and in the Bledisloe Cup, his speed, skill, and
experience really showed. The problem of Sunday games is, as always, a
handicap in the World Cup. Overall the loose forward area has not been
of a high enough standard and for the World Cup it has to be worked on.
The backs are a different proposition. It's difficult to find anything
positive which has come out of this season.
At this point in time we should have largely settled on our backline
combinations and been playing them together as much as possible. This is
the only way that you can expect players to perform feats of quick handling
and passing in the intense pressure situations generated at the World
Cup. There simply isn't time to wonder where a player might possibly be
before passing, you have to _know_.
The downfall of the All Blacks at the World Cup is therefore likely to stem
from the inability of the backs to open top defences. At present I can't
see how this might be remedied by a few summer training camps followed by
a couple of tests next season before it all starts in earnest.
The only counter to this is if a spark is kindled from including an
on-form Lee Stensness. This player has the class and game-breaking flair
to turn the All Black backs into a force to win the Cup, given the chance.
The unfortunate defection of John Timu to Rugby League has put extra pressure
on the All Blacks without doubt. He was a tremendous asset being able to
perform at World class both at fullback and wing. Bearing in mind the
restrictions imposed by the 26-man World Cup squad ruling, his duality of
position is a big loss. Add to that the experience he had at test level,
and the magnitude of the gap he leaves can be fully appreciated.
As this article is being written, John Timu is not the only player being
sought by Australian league scouts who have greatly enhanced spending power
due to the waiving of the salary capping rule for Union players in their
first year. The All Black's World Cup campaign could yet become even more
unravelled.
Looking at the World Cup squad
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The 31-player All Black World Cup training squad for the summer camps was
announced as follows, although Laurie Mains emphasised it was not fixed,
and that he expected to be adding and deleting players due to injury and
form etc.
Halfbacks Stu Forster (Otago) Junior Tonu'u (Auckland)
1st 5/8ths Stephen Bachop (Otago) Simon Culhane (Southland)
2nd 5/8ths Walter Little (North Harbour) Lee Stensness (Auckland)
Alama Ieremia (Wellington)
Centres Frank Bunce (North Harbour) Marc Ellis (Otago)
Wings Eric Rush (North Harbour) Waisake Sotutu (Auckland)
John Timu* (Otago) Jeff Wilson (Otago)
Fullbacks Shane Howarth (Auckland) Glen Osborne (North Harbour)
Loose Mike Brewer (Canterbury) Zinzan Brooke (Auckland)
forwards Michael Jones (Auckland) Jamie Joseph (Otago)
Josh Kronfeld (Otago) Blair Larsen (North Harbour)
Richard Turner (North Harbour)
Locks Robin Brooke (Auckland) Ian Jones (North Harbour)
Mark Cooksley (Waikato)
Props Mark Allen (Taranaki) Olo Brown (Auckland)
Craig Dowd (Auckland) Richard Loe (Canterbury)
Hookers Sean Fitzpatrick (Auckland) Norm Hewitt (Hawkes Bay)
* The replacement for John Timu has not been announced as I write this
article.
New - Junior Tonu'u, Simon Culhane, Waisake Sotutu, Glen Osborne,
Josh Kronfeld
Omissions - Matthew Cooper, Jonah Lomu, Liam Barry, Simon Mannix,
Arran Pene, Steve Gordon
NOTE: There is a 'second tier' training squad which
contains these and other players.
The naming of the initial World Cup training squad produced few surprises.
Waisake Sotutu's and Glen Osborne's selection was reward for their
outstanding performances throughout the domestic season and both should
figure prominently in Laurie Mains' World Cup plans. Sotutu is almost
certain to fill the test spot vacated by Timu after his defection to rugby
league, while on the hard South African grounds Osborne's speed would be
invaluable. Not since the days of John Gallagher has an All Black fullback
possessed such attacking ability.
But if Osborne is to force his way into the playing fifteen it will have
to be at the expense of the incumbent Shane Howarth. While Howarth doesn't
have the sheer pace of Osborne he makes up for it with his timing into
the backline. Howarth's real strength is his positional play and most
importantly he is also the first choice goalkicker. Jeff Wilson is assured
of being one winger but who joins him in the three-quarters is still in
question.
Mains' comments in the aftermath of the All Black coaching debacle suggests
that he will retain Little and Bunce as his midfield duo after they have
served him so well in the past, leaving the talented Lee Stensness on the
outer once again. While no one is doubting the defensive capabilities of
this pair the failure of Bunce, in particular, to set up his outside backs
is still a worry. The lack of tries scored by the wingers during his All
Black career is testimony to that.
The likes of Stensness, Ieremia and Ellis provide greater options but it is
unlikely that they will be given their chance. First five also remains a
concern. Stephen Bachop has shown his ability to set his backline away for
Otago but has so far failed to impose his mark at international level.
The selection of Marc Ellis is therefore still a very real possibility while
the wildcard could be Southland's Simon Culhane who must be considered to
be the most accurate goal kicker in the country. But has he got the ability
to make the transition from second division rugby to test matches with all
their inherent pressures? Culhane's selection would certainly solve the
fullback dilemma.
The expected loss of Graeme Bachop to Japan complicates matters. Forster
was tried this year in the French series and discarded while Tonu'u has
shown glimpses of brilliance once he was injury-free. It may well depend on
the type of game the All Blacks choose to play. Forster excels in broken
play and when the game is played at pace while Tonu'u is a more physically
imposing halfback.
From a distance several key positions in the backline are still up for grabs.
Just who fills these positions will give us an insight as to how the All
Blacks intend to play in South Africa and most importantly if they have the
ability to fulfil the task at hand.
New Zealand's strength undoubtedly lies in the forwards. The tight five of
Ian Jones, Robin Brooke, Loe, Fitzpatrick and Brown are settled although
Loe and Fitzpatrick will be another year older and maybe another metre
slower. Once again injuries could dictate selection. The loss of a front
rower would be adequately covered by the likes of Dowd and Allen (who are
both still injured) and Norm Hewitt. However the loss of either Ian Jones
or Robin Brooke would be devastating.
Likewise a loose forward combination of Zinzan Brooke, Michael Jones and
most probably Mike Brewer is expected. A rejuvenated Jamie Joseph will push
Brewer hard and Blair Larsen cannot be discounted. Quality loose forwards
has always been one of New Zealand's strengths so it may well be a case of
horses for courses. One would expect Brewer to replace Jones for any Sunday
games.
Regardless who Laurie Mains eventually chooses he must devise a gameplan
capable of winning the World Cup and pick his team accordingly. There is no
doubt that the talent is there but the question still remains: can the All
Black coaches instil some consistency into both selection and performance?
The inconsistency which has plagued Mains' coaching tenure has never been
more highlighted than by the results obtained in the condensed international
season just completed. If New Zealand is to have any hope of reclaiming
the World Cup they must win six consecutive test matches - something they
failed to do this year.
{12} Acknowledgments
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This summary wouldn't have made it off my hard-disk without the help
of the following most excellent and knowledgable people:
Alan Murray Superb NPC Canterbury section, contributions concerned
with the 1993 tour of England and Scotland, and of
course proof reading.
Bill Taylor Women's Rugby World Cup section, other suggestions
and ideas for sections including the French and
Springbok tours, the Bledisloe Cup and the NPC, as
well as yet more proof reading.
Tracey Nelson All Black Trials contributions, ideas for many other
sections including but not limited to the French and
Springbok tours, and that proof reading again.
Paul Kendall NPC Waikato section, significant contributions to the
sections on the French tests, the 1993 retrospective,
and the World Cup, not to mention the all-important
proof reading.
--
____________________________________________________________________________
Paul Waite doc@docdevl.actrix.gen.nz
Wellington, New Zealand +64-4-233-1764
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