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 NZ Rugby World column, July 2003
It's all Earle Kirton's fault! My hero when I was a teenager in the north west of England and a lovely mover at flyhalf. If it hadn't have been for Earle, then Clive Woodward would never have been discovered and England would still have been being coached by one of the pedestrian losers of the 90s. Earle gave Clive his break into first grade rugby as a teenager and since then he has rarely looked back. Woodward was a terrific creative centre - mainly in tandem with the more direct Paul Dodge - and has turned into a very creative coach. England has a very professional game plan, a very tightly organised defense, and a maturity and confidence that comes from very level headed coaching. He also does a great job on team selection and on mental preparation. Since the last Rugby World Cup we've played England twice and lost both times. During the same period we've played Australia six times, won twice and lost four times. Our track record since the World Cup against the other two major powers, South Africa and France, is bolstered by the Springboks being in the doldrums with a resulting five out of six record for New Zealand. I am writing this prior to the French test when our record with France was 50/50 with one win each and a draw. Nine wins from 17 tests over four years against the big guns. This is desperate stuff. When we wrote our book on Peak Performance, Lessons from the World's Greatest Sporting Organisations, the All Black test record was close to 75 per cent. The most winning record in international sports. It is now eroding rapidly in the games that count. I am currently in the South of France for the annual advertising
Olympics in Cannes. In a few minutes time I'm going down into Antibes to
watch the All Black - Wales game which can only go one way. Would have
been somewhat more useful to have had this game before the England match,
rather than after it! |
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I am struggling with the reasons for our very poor track record against
these big sides. The usual suspects of course include: |
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There is some truth to all of these, as well as to the idea that international rugby now is more focused around the four-year cycle of the Rugby World Cup. To me this is a dangerous mindset. The great teams in world sport (think Australia in cricket, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid in soccer) are dedicated to winning every game. The Australian cricketers, under Allan Border, then Steve Waugh, then Ricky Ponting, personify this. They want to win every single test match and every single one-day game. They always want to play at their peak and simultaneously want to create the future. The power of paradox in living colour! We need to get this attitude back into the All Blacks. We must fight to win every game, every time, everywhere, whatever it takes. Rugby is now a much more dynamic, creative game in terms of 22 players rather than 15. Very little thinking and innovation is currently occurring in the use of the bench in international rugby. For example, we could forever play two completely separate games with Marshall/ Mehrtens and Spencer/ Devine as partnerships both being picked and then being used to effectively disrupt the opponent. Against some teams we'd start with Mehrtens and Marshall to absorb pressure, gain position, build a foundation. Against other sides we'd start with Devine and Spencer and rip 'em up and run 'em around before moving to Marshall's running game and Mehrtens' kicking game to solidify a result. We also need to up our inspiration level. I still believe we are not expressing ourselves on the field; perhaps the All Black jersey intimidates. Reuben Thorne and the senior players must raise the inspirational quotient. Rugby is a game of small differences at the top level. Martin Johnson, Lawrence Dallaglio, Jonny Wilkinson and co demonstrated this in Wellington. Wilkinson had a shocker but was
inspirational in his mental attitude to put this to the back of his mind
and deliver an incredible, match-winning kicking game. Similarly,
Dallaglio should have cost England the game when he was yellow carded;
instead he inspired all around him to play the game of their lives. |
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Brian Sweeney, my partner on the New Zealand Edge (www.nzedge.com) thinks we lose the inspiration game right from kick off. In fact, from just before the kick off. How about this for an idea. The All Blacks are being focused in the wrong direction by the crowd pleasing, TV audience winning haka being performed at the beginning of the game. Against England they did the haka perfectly. The inspiration level was very high. From the first kick off Carlos dropped the ball and incurred a penalty. So went the rest of the game. So much for the performance of the haka at this match invoking magic and mystery. Brian and I are of the view that the haka as practiced at the start of a game displaces energy and emotion. The All Blacks' haka has become commoditised, a ritual that has become routine, a piece of entertainment (rather like cheerleaders and mascots!) - and it does nothing to upset the opposing team. If you don't believe that then just look at our pathetic win record mentioned earlier. All the teams we play now have strategies to counter the haka and in fact use it to build their sense of resentment and unfairness against us. Our players get hyped up for it, let off steam and come out smoking at the wrong time at the wrong place with the wrong thing in their mind. Grant Fox told me that the secret to winning test matches was fire in the belly, ice in the mind. The performance of the haka upfront stokes the fire but melts the ice. Why not turn all this on top of its head? Make the haka a privilege for the All Blacks, not a matter of right. Let's tell the All Blacks they have permission to do the haka only when they win. Remember how Rushy and the boys celebrate Sevens victories! That's the right time for this emotion. Let's use it to celebrate a win and to bring on the next challenge. Let the All Blacks earn it. You can perform this great honour only if you win with great honour. In fact, for the World Cup let's not perform it at all until we've won the damn thing. Abstinence and denial will build tension and desire. Re-calibrating the energy fields around the haka has the added benefit of placing it back with supporters. No limits on hakas in the stands! The fans' reward would be doubled when we win. This will get them pulling for us in those last vital few seconds. The notion of the haka as a treasured relish and a point of hard-earned emotion is, I believe, concurrent with Maori belief. This discussion has many tributaries. Is there an Abs haka that can be written for all New Zealanders? Simple movements, simple words, powerful sounds - sharing the dream in action. |
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