Four years ago today
I can’t let the day pass without a salute to the boys of 2003 that won the World Cup on this day four years ago.
That momentous night in Sydney will never be forgotten, but let’s hope we can build on some solid foundations over the next four years and recapture the Web Ellis Cup.
Here’s to you Clive, Martin, Jonny, Lawrence, Will et al.
Rugby World Cup Dream Team
Here’s my team of the World Cup - let me know what you think.
One or two controversial selections, but the wealth of talent on show meant there was always going to be disappointment for those that missed out.
1. Andrew Sheridan (England)
First name on the teamsheet, primarily because I started at the top, but also because he’s now the most-feared scrummager in World Rugby.
2. John Smit (South Africa)
The World Cup-winning captain led his team with pride and courage, and I would have liked to have seen Thabo Mbeki hoisting the big hooker onto his shoulders, rather than the other way around.
3. Census Johnston (Samoa)
Gave the Samoan pack its teeth. Several teams of the tournament have selected Carl Hayman, but surely only on reputation rather than impact at this World Cup.
4. Victor Matfield (South Africa)
The best lineout forward in the world, and made a big contribution in the loose. Was responsible almost single-handedly for dominating England at the set-piece.
5. Simon Shaw (England)
Powerful tight game and prolific loose game. A revelation for England in this World Cup, and helped give Sheridan the necessary shove to destroy Australia.
6. Schalk Burger (South Africa)
Despite wearing the number 7 shirt, he was far and away the best blindside in the tournament. Marshalled South Africa’s defence in the final, and regularly contributed to their score throughout the competition.
7. Thierry Dusatoir (France)
A star of the French victory over the All Blacks, Dusatoir emerged as an outstanding openside, winning the battle of the breakdown with Richie McCaw.
8. Finau Maka (Tonga)
Spearheaded Tonga’s famous victory over Samoa, and almost carried them through to the knockout stages. Big guns, big hair, big game player.
9. Fourie du Preez (South Africa)
Now widely regarded as the best scrum-half in the world, and deserved to lift the trophy. His tactical nous took some of the pressure away from Butch James.
10. Juan Martin Hernandez (Argentina)
My player of the tournament, without question. Executed the Pumas’ gameplan expertly, dropping the ball onto a sixpence whenever required.
11. Bryan Habana (South Africa)
The record-equalling try-scorer had a great World Cup. Several of his tries required a lot of finishing, and luckily he’s now on the same dream team as Takudzwa Ngwenya.
12. Luke McAlister (New Zealand)
The only kiwi representative, but deserves his place. Always looked dangerous with ball in hand, and some might say he was unlucky to be sin-binned against France!
13. Stirling Mortlock (Australia)
Looked a class act throughout with hard, direct running and nearly rescued his team despite the watching forwards crumbling around him.
14. Takudzwa Ngwenya (USA)
Bryan Habana couldn’t get near him, and makes this team for that searing break alone. He lit up the World Cup, and will be dining out on it for years to come.
15. Percy Montgomery (South Africa)
Percy epitomised calmness under pressure in the final, slotting four penalties for the winners, and standing firm at the back.
One Night in Paris
I love South Africa. It is a diseased country (literally as well as metaphorically), and I pray not terminally, but there is no other nation where sport has the ability to transcend all other social problems so congratulations to them on this famous and deserved victory.
I love the country, the climate, the culture (basically braiis and rugby), the people (well, mainly the girls) and I love their passion. For all these reasons I do not begrudge their win in the slightest.
From a supporter’s perspective, I am immensely proud of the English team and of the huge contribution they made to a fierce, uncompromising contest and I am equally delighted to have been there and help the English win the fans’ battle by a distance. There was a universal feeling of heartache at chances missed and an opportunity lost, but I did not witness any vitriol directed at any of the officials, no depression and no regret. Our island race has its faults, but self-pity is not one of them, and the party afterwards was no less raucous because of the result.
Kiwis take note, points and composure win big matches, not refereeing decisions. You can keep your whinging, we’ll simply applaud our boys for overachieving, which I realise must be an unfamiliar concept for rugby-lovers of the silver fern persuasion.
The weekend began with a phenomenal Friday afternoon of ESPN Classic re-runs, including the inside story from the road to world cup glory 2003 and the best of the world cup. Hours of non-stop goosebumps and spellbound viewing set the tone and raised impatience levels. However, it was a good 24 hours later when first hitting the bars around the Bastille that any sign of real world cup fever was evident, although the ferry over was a sea of white shirts and a good number of cars were sporting the Cross of St George.
It was typically French to organise the transport strike for this weekend - good lads - but when I asked the taximan if the chaos on the roads was because of the final/strike/Saturday afternoon he replied it was like that everyday in Paris. Absolute carnage. Getting to the ground via Metro and RER wasn’t as hard as it might have been and the banter on the packed trains helped build the atmosphere. It was also good to see the variety of national shirts being sported by optimistic fans who had retained their tickets anyway.
It is also typically French to construct a brilliant stadium with so many basic design faults. Firstly location, in what is essentially an industrial swamp meaning the walk to the ground is funnelled by grumpy chat-deficient Gendarme down a ridiculously thin passage next to a main road, which bottlenecks horribly at the subway entrances,
Then there is the toilet issue within the ground. It must be the only place in the world where women can answer their calls of nature quicker than the lads, although the absurd lack of urinals does mean you can opt for the more efficient method waz and hand-wash at the same time!
Last stadium issue that slightly disappointed me was actually the acoustics, as despite the fantastic spectacle and sweeping stands, the singing never really rumbles around the place like it can at HQ, and as a sporting coliseum it comes nowhere near matching its predecessor the Parc des Princes for sheer noise by all accounts.
Having said that, it was a privilege to have been there, and I was captivated by every second of the game. There has probably been enough written about the match and every facet analysed to death. The was it/wasn’t it a try was a seminal moment and undoubtedly would have altered the game’s dynamic. The debate will continue as Mark Cueto claims he is 100% confident he scored, whilst Stuart Dickinson is equally happy with his decision, which still photographs hazily seem to back up. My interpretation and I think that of every other pair of eyes in the stadium was that it was a try and when the agonising wait ended in frustration I was stunned as these decisions have generally tended to go the attacking side’s way in moments of doubt.
Regardless, the South Africans won this match for the right reasons. They were clinical, their kicking was near flawless, their lineout was actually flawless and they played error-free final-winning rugby. We might have provided more of the wide stuff, but we didn’t have a game-breaker.
The one we did possess at the back ended his career in a hugely sad way, his aging body now broken twice by the merciless Springboks. There is not a genuine rugby fan worldwide of either code who hasn’t appreciated Jason’s genius over the years: all hail Billy Whizz. In fact, the nearest I have been to seeing any real aggro at a rugby match (off the pitch) was when a Bok fan got slightly impatient at the Englishman in front of him saluting Robo’s limping heroics as play went on, and was swiftly silenced by a torrent of abuse and accusations of lacking respect.
It is a mystery to me why Jonny didn’t take more shots at the drop-goal from numerous great field positions, surely the costly early miss didn’t dent the great man’s confidence? Overall though, neither side left anything on the pitch less for an Herculean amount of sweat and a fair bit of claret.
As ever, the stats don’t come close to telling the story but the simple truth is, South Africa 2 finals, 2 wins, England 1 from 3. In two games we scored 6 points, they put 51 on the board. At least we have a better final record than the Frogs, and the partying into dawn was very much a multi-national, cordial effort. One Englishman we met insisted the Saffas were terrible at celebrating their win, chastened by the unfairness of the try decision and not being able to afford it anyway having spent all their Rand getting to Paris. He got put in a bush.
At the conclusion of an unforgettable tournament, it is only right to thank the Frenchies for putting on a great show, congratulate South Africa for achieving the ultimate accolade and repeat Kenny Rogers’ immortal words from the team’s new adopted anthem:
You gotta know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em, know when to walk away, know when to run.
You never count you’re money, when you’re sitting at the table, there’ll be time enough for counting, when the dealin’s done…
Four more years boys, four more years.
By Rob Douglas
‘Boring England’ beaten at their own game
Against Australia and France, England showed the world how to close down a game and come out with a victory - the Springboks were watching and that’s exactly what they did to the former World Champions last night.
England’s strength in the quarter- and semi-final was at the set piece, where Andrew Sheridan ruled the scrums and Ben Kay lorded over the lineout. Victor Matfield and Bakkies Botha were the undisputed kings of this domain in the match that mattered most.
England lost seven lineouts and couldn’t steal a single one from the opposition, and they could not exert the same pressure at the scrum as in previous weeks. Without that dominance, there was simply no way through the green and gold defence, led heroically by Juan Smith.
On the only occasion that it cracked, Mathew Tait went searing through midfield and Mark Cueto was put over in the corner only to be denied by the finest of margins - the evidence looked inconclusive, but the Australian television match official was never going to award the try to England, that everyone hates so much!
In fact, images in today’s paper showed that the decision was correct, but the non-try was undoubtedly the key moment. John Smit gathered his troops behind his try line and gave a rallying call to arms - for the remainder of the game, England were running into brick walls, fortified by the Springbok hunger for the Cup which they were just moments from lifting.
It wasn’t a classic, but it was gripping, and will have sent a message to the southern hemisphere boo boys that dislike the defence-based gameplan so much. Defences win World Cups, and Smith’s brutal band of Boks won it last night.
England return with their heads held high, having lifted themselves from the shameful abyss into which they fell a month ago, and their determination to restore pride can only be admired. The curtain comes down on the greatest World Cup ever, and the countdown to New Zealand 2011 begins.
South Africa steal England’s crown
South Africa became the 2007 World Champions last night after beating England by 15 points to 6.
The Springboks deserved to win, but the final was a dour affair. The debate over whether Mark Cueto scored the try that was disallowed by the TMO will continue, but South Africa are the more worthy champions.
They took England on up front and beat them at their own game. Still no team has successfully defended their crown, and still no team that has lost a game in the tournament has gone on to win. If England had retained the Web Ellis Cup after that 36-point drubbing, it would have been ridiculous.
How do you think the game was won?
World Cup Final: How to beat the Boks
Despite the 36-point debacle five weeks ago, Brian Ashton’s men have the opportunity to make history on Saturday. It’s easier said than done, but here is my view on the areas they should concentrate on to avenge that defeat.
Field position
The gameplan for Phil Vickery’s team will be to play rugby in South Africa’s half so that Jonny Wilkinson can take the points whenever they are available - it’s not boring! - whilst preventing Percy Montgomery and Francois Steyn knocking the ball over from anywhere within England’s half. That means the forwards must dominate and Wilkinson and Catt must be deadly accurate.
England must continue to destroy the opposition at the set-piece as they did against France and Australia. South Africa’s boast two of the world’s best lineout jumpers in Bakkies Botha and Victor Matfield, but Simon Shaw has been immense and will look to spoil Springbok ball. In the scrum, it will not be as easy for the front row against the solid CJ van der Linde and Os du Randt, but neither are devastating scrummagers and if Andrew Sheridan et al can create a platform, Jonny will be able to dictate field position.
The kicking game from Wilkinson and Mike Catt will therefore need to be first class, and this was the most painful area for England in the group game against the Springboks. They’ll need to kick into space and have two or three chasers closing down South Africa’s back three, preventing them wherever possible from getting distance on their kicks, and not even giving the opportunity to run it back.
Turnovers
The back row will need to be ruthless at the tackle area, but Schalk Burger and Juan Smith will be more aggressive in looking for turnover ball than anyone else England have faced. Lewis Moody needs to be his usual mental self and not give anything away, with Nick Easter and Martin Corry close behind him to the breakdown. If South Africa win too much turnover ball, Fourie du Preez and Bryan Habana will hurt England.
In defence, the English pack must get three or four men to the breakdown to compete for the ball. A few early turnovers in England’s favour, and they could build a score.
Mistakes
South Africa were not hugely creative in attack against Argentina in the semi-final, but they did not need to be - they just pounced on the numerous mistakes made by the Pumas. If England make as many errors as they did in the 2003 final, they will get beaten. Their experience on the biggest stage of all should work in their favour, whilst the Springboks may feel the burden of expectation and wilt in the spotlight.
England should put pressure on Butch James and Francois Steyn - both of whom can be prone to the odd mistake - and be sure to pile on the points given any opportunity.
The Springboks are beatable, regardless of what Jake White says about winning being their destiny - it would be a surprise if England retain the Web Ellis Cup, but this tournament has been full of them.
By James Hutchison
The Eccentricity of Mad Bernie
As the mass exit of head coaches from the leading international teams gathers pace, the contribution and success of one of them remains very hard to assess.
Bernard Laporte moves into his country’s cabinet after a reign as head coach which has been punctuated by the always unusual, the occasionally brilliant and the frequently crackpot. During it, he attempted to reverse a hundred years of history in the way the French approach their rugby, with the unarguable reasoning that if some discipline could be grafted on to the wealth of talent which France habitually produces, they could dominate the rugby landscape.
So was he successful in changing the way the French play the game? The fact that they now regularly finish matches with 15 men on the field, and only very rarely have players banned for eye-gouging, biting and scrotal-tearing, suggests that he was. The fact that France no longer throw the ball around with gay abandon, run it from everywhere and hang the consequences would indicate likewise. But are France any more successful or any less infuriating? The answer to this is a resounding no.
I never thought it possible (and this may seem rich coming from an Englishman), but in recent times watching France has become something of a chore. Journalists regularly trot out the easy cliché that France are either irresistibly brilliant or awful but this is no longer the case. France now are either irresistibly efficient or awful. It is a long time since France really turned on the style and tore the opposition to shreds with a torrent of slick handling and outrageous running lines like they did so often in the past. Yet they do still sometimes fail to turn up completely.
Laporte imposed rigid tactics upon his team in an attempt to curb the maddening inconsistency of which they were so often guilty. His logic was that the character trait which led France to possess such flair and grace on some occasions was the same one which caused them to collapse in an angry, brooding, incompetent heap on others. He therefore attempted to remove both of them and adopt a more English approach (France try to be England; England try to be Australia; Australia try to be New Zealand – that is rugby’s food chain).
What he failed to appreciate (and this is something England may finally have worked out in the past fortnight) is that the way a team plays is rooted in their national character. Rugby is such an expressive game that it, more than any other, can be a reflection of an entire country. Laporte tried to turn against this and managed to negate France’s assets but could not address their dark side. It is much easier to follow instructions and carry out a plan when things are going well but as soon as they turn against you, human instinct is to revert to type. Therefore, France could be an irresistibly efficient team or could mentally fall apart.
This World Cup has seen France in both guises. They turned in a display against Ireland of such professionalism that Laporte was probably purring with satisfaction. But against both Argentina and England, they singularly failed to show up. In the past when things were going wrong France would have chanced their arm – sometimes it came off, sometimes it did not. This time round, shackled by a restrictive gameplan which appeared to revolve around aimless kicking, they offered nothing because they have simply not been allowed to play that way.
Even in their wonderful victory against New Zealand, they did very little for 40 minutes and only came into the game when the criminally arrogant All Blacks had decided that they had won the game and did not need to bother anymore. Laporte’s reign has been bookended by 2 extraordinary victories in World Cup knockout games against New Zealand (the first shortly before he took over) but the difference in the manner of the triumphs was stark.
France’s fortunes have also not been helped by some of the extraordinary selections made by their coach. Frederick Michelak is completely mistrusted, starting behind David Skrela only to simultaneously displace him but be leapfrogged by Lionel Beauxis. Basically Laporte would rather start anyone at fly half apart than his most gifted, exciting player – would any previous French coach have even considered that? Throughout the team his selections were defined by their conservatism. Bonnaire instead of Harinordiquy or Chabal; until recently Yachvili or Mignoni instead of the vastly superior Ellisalde; anyone instead of Clement Poitrenaud. Any player with free spirit was consigned to the bench as an ‘ideal impact player’.
Laporte’s conservatism, muddled thinking and bizarre selections all came together in one inglorious catastrophe in the World Cup knock out stages. Having failed to learn the importance of a specialist full back after the Cedric Heymans fiasco against Argentina, Laporte moved one of his finest players into a position in which he had never played a game of senior rugby. Damien Traille is a centre with every attribute you could ask for; power, pace, soft hands and an excellent rugby brain. Laporte put him at full back with express instructions to shoe the ball as far down the pitch as he could every time he laid his hands on it. In doing this, he completely negated all that is good about Traille. The blame for England’s early try lies squarely at the door of the Head Coach.
This was not the only unfathomable tactical blunder in the semi finals. The sight of a French fly half attempting 55 metre drop goals after 10 minutes beggared belief and was clearly something which had been calculated on the training ground. How England’s spirits must have risen when they realised that France were not going to bother using their backs at all, despite it being the one area in which they had a clear advantage. From that moment until the introduction of Michelak, they offered nothing penetrative at all.
There were times in the early part of this decade when France appeared to be building something great. Their record in the Six Nations under Laporte is excellent and they have reached the semi finals in the last two World Cups. On paper then Laporte has been pretty successful. But this is a hugely talented generation of French rugby players, many of whom still have some years in them I cannot wait to see them let off the leash and given licence to express themselves. Against England they gave one of the most limited, one-dimensional performances I have ever seen from France and they are simply better than that. His reign started with such promise but in the end, Laporte’s eccentricity has taken France backwards.
By Stuart Peel
And did those feet…
Get the champers on ice, rev up the open top bus and put the Red Arrows on standby.
The Chariot has never swung lower than it did one month ago, and yet history has repeated itself and while we say au revoir to the hosts (enjoy that 3rd-4th play-off chaps) the English march into the final. Simply extraordinary. The bookmakers are crying themselves to sleep each night and the party organisers have begun planning the ultimate Trafalgar Square knees up. Call that snap election now Gordon, if only you had half the bottle of our boys in Paris. The cross of St George has finally and rightfully (and I suspect temporarily) been disassociated with football chavdom and put back in the hands of the patriots.
What a rubbish game though. It really doesn’t matter, but it was largely dross. Voltaire would struggle to identify why the French decided to attempt drop goals from their own half from the start. Jonny re-found his own drop goal muse which had gone missing against the Aussies, but his greatest single contribution was the hit on Pelous which brought Chabal on early. This completely stuffed Laporte’s bench tactics and lessened its impact hugely – seeing Toby Flood and Paul Sackey bundle the Neanderthal into touch was actually arousing.
This tournament has rarely followed its script and as long as it continues to ad lib, the more England believe. From the unbearable agony of watching the clock tick down against Australia, there was a serene calmness to events unfolding in Paris on Saturday. Granted, I’ve developed an annoying habit of turning away for the big kicks, but observing a large crowd’s reaction before joining the celebration and throwing more beer over myself is quite cathartic. The great aspect of the semi and also now the final is win or lose, this adventure has been an enormous success for England. There is no pressure, even if expectation has shot up exponentially, because these guys have exceeded every prediction going. Its OBEs all round, arise Sir Jonny and enjoy your country estate Viscount Ashton.
Or is it? There is nothing worse about English sport than the way we revel in success. Winning the World Cup in 2003 was an end state, the summit, the entire raison d’etre of Woodward’s Army for 4/8 years. There was not even a contingency plan for what happened next, apart from the glorious homecoming and ecstatic nationwide celebrations. Ditto following the Ashes two years later. The achievement and ambition (whilst huge in itself) should not be getting there, but staying there. Our rugby team’s fall from grace was swift and painful, and let’s not even start with the cricket.
We have stumbled into a position where we can defend our crown, a ridiculous privilege from the viewpoint of the last four years. If the miracle continues and we redeem that humiliation from a month ago against South Africa, having entered the competition ranked ninth, then no doubt let’s drink every bar dry from Paris to Newcastle. Hand out the plaudits where they’re due. Then on Monday 22 October let’s think about how to set about improving our Six Nations record of late. Let’s figure out how we remind people that this wasn’t a fluke and that the Kiwis are going to have to do something seriously special even on home soil to take our cup from us.
South Africa have one world cup winner in their squad. We have, well a lot. They have Habana. We have Robo. The latest edition of the OED is publishing the phrase big game player next to a photo of J Wilkinson Esq. Synonyms: Simon Shaw, Martin Corry, Lawrence Dallaglio; acronyms: anything wearing black.
South Africa are the favourites, and we will revel in that because they have everything to lose. If we go down fighting there will be heavy disappointment but also a sense of bloody hell, haven’t we done well, bravo us and back pats all round. Sheridan and co will have watched the Argies give the vaunted Springbok pack a hard time in the scrum whilst mauling them to death and think if we can just win our lineout, not knock on every time we get possession and ask Jonny nicely not to throw the ball to their quickest players then we can turn these guys over. Big ifs, fine margins.
We will need to be better than against the French, we cannot kick turnover ball away badly and we must take every scoring opportunity that comes our way. The stone a man advantage we enjoyed up front on Saturday is gone, but we are technically better than the Springboks on our day. A lot may come down to our friend Alain Rolland’s interpretation of the scrum. I predict a thriller (rare for games with the England juggernaut in) and what’s better, I will be there. Now I just need a ticket – any offers?!
Karma awaits.
By Rob Douglas
Incroyable, mais vrai!
The remarkable World Cup continues, and next week will see the unfancied England in the final. How they have got there from the depths of despair after the defeat by South Africa, heaven only knows.
The atmosphere in Paris yesterday was electric, and this morning you had to read the newspapers to believe that it wasn’t all some sort of heady dream.
More commentary will of course follow, when we have had time to come to terms with it and recovered from the excessive celebrations!
The Semi Finals – where miracles happen
If the semi finals of previous World Cups are anything to go by, then boy are we in for a treat this weekend. It is in the knockout stages when the World Cup really catches fire, but before 2003 there had never been a final which could be classed as both dramatic and great spectacle, and before 2007 there had never been a real upset in the quarter finals.
It is in the last four that we have really seen the moments which remain in the memory, which people talk about for years to come. Remember Serge Blanco’s injury time try against Australia in ’87…remember Gavin Hastings’ miss against England in ’91…remember Lomu steamrollering England in ’95…remember New Zealand choking on the irresistible French magic, and Larkham’s drop goal against South Africa in ’99…remember George Gregan gloating ‘Four more years boys, four more years’ to the beaten Kiwis in ’03. Remember.
These are the moments which have defined the World Cup and made it the spectacular global tournament we see today. It is in the hope of seeing drama such as this that we tune in to the latter stages with such expectancy and the semi-finals have never let us down yet. Perhaps we have already had our quota of the unbelievable in this tournament, and the round of 8 provided any true rugby fan with enough to keep him going for the next four years. France v England is too close to call and either result would not be too much of a shock but the eruption when these two sides meet on big occasions is always seismic. Argentina reaching the final would surely outdo anything the tournament has produced to date.
The semi finals are where the shocks happen and here is a reminder of some of these memorable occasions:
1987 – Australia v France
For 12 years, this was undisputed as the greatest World Cup match and still never fails to be mentioned in any such discussion. The French of the 1980s were a mesmerising team on their day. The back line was littered with genius in the form of Sella, Charvet, Blanco and Lagisquet while up front they possessed the grunt of Rodriguez and Dubroca. However, the tournament had been designed around a New Zealand v Australia showdown in the final and it looked likely for much of a pulsating match. But as the clock crept round to 80, France unleashed a series of attacks, keeping the ball in play for an interminable period. Eventually the ball found its way to Blanco on the left and he haired towards the corner flag, squeezing in for the winning try, possibly the finest in the World Cup to date. Not for the last time in World Cups, France folded like a deckchair in their next game but they had created an indelible memory.
1991 – Australia v New Zealand
In possibly the most evenly matched tournament so far, neither New Zealand nor Australia had set the tournament alight and had been unconvincing in their quarter finals against Canada and Ireland respectively. Indeed Australia had come within seconds of elimination. Still, New Zealand had never lost in the World Cup and they had not yet developed their habit of contracting breathing difficulties at the higher end of proceedings. The difference between the sides was a mesmerising performance from David Campese who scored one try and created another with a pass over his head to Tim Horan. He then talked the English out of the game in the final as Australia lifted the trophy for the first time. Didn’t work 4 years later though did it Davey boy? Or 12 years later? Or 16 years later for that matter?
1999 – France v New Zealand
The most extraordinary match of them all – it wasn’t just that New Zealand had led 24-10, it was the manner in which they had taken that lead. France just did not look interested, with Garbajosa almost doing himself an injury in his eagerness to get out of the way of Jonah Lomu on his way to 2 tries. Then, from absolutely nowhere and with nothing to lose, France blitzed the All Blacks who duly disintegrated. They scored 33 unanswered points in 13 minutes, inspired by some breathtaking counter attacking from Dominici, Lamaison and Bernat Salles. In no time the score had flipped to 43-24 in the French favour and, although they scored a late consolation, the shell-shocked All Blacks were praying to be put out of their misery. Not for the first time in World Cups, France folded like a deckchair in their next game but they had created another indelible memory.
2003 – Australia v New Zealand
Save for putting 142 points past the mighty Namibia, Australia had been singularly unimpressive in their own tournament. New Zealand meanwhile had taken all before them, including a convincing quarter final victory against South Africa in which Carlos Spencer was inspired. From nowhere however, Australia produced a performance of such ruthless efficiency that Justin Marshall was moved to ask his opposite number George Gregan at full time, ‘Jeez mate, where on earth did that come from?’. From early on, Spencer’s flamboyant style was stifled and from the time Stirling Mortlock intercepted a wildly optimistic miss pass and ran the length, the Aussies never surrendered control. Can anyone remember what happened in the final?
After the incredible quarter finals of last weekend, if we see anything like the drama produced by semi finals past, we can safely say that we will have been spoilt rotten.
By Stuart Peel
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