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 NZ Rugby World column, October 2003
In mid-September I was invited to one of the world's great stadia and home to one of the great sporting institutions. I went to the Bernabeu, home of Real Madrid, voted by FIFA as the number one Soccer Club over the past 100 years. Prior to a meeting with the advisor to the President, I was given a private tour of the club. The home team dressing room was fantastic. Each of the players, of course, have their own locker, distinguished by a framed Real Madrid jersey with their name and number on it over a full-size, full-color photograph of the player in action chosen by the player himself. Beckham had picked a shot in Real Madrid strip complete with Alice band! Over on the other side of the room, Zidane, Figo and Roberto Carlos had also picked shots in Real Madrid strip. Only one player had chosen a shot in his old club shirt. And he's probably on the transfer list now. The room was modern, spacious and palatial with an ultra modern Jacuzzi surrounded by half a dozen individual showers through the back of the room. There was also a massage room with eight massage tables and the coach told me that it was obligatory for each player to have rub downs of between one and two hours immediately after every game. Real are a terrific organization, an organization which transcends Soccer. Manchester United may have taken an early lead commercially but Real are founded on a belief system of joy and flair. In many ways they remind me of the All Blacks. A sustained history of peak performance, built on long-standing values, and jam-packed with star players with that extra something. Real are all about bringing the joy of football to the world. When I was there, they had just transferred their lynch pin defender Makelele to Chelsea. I asked them whether this did not make them vulnerable at the back. They agreed it did but were not overly worried. With Beckham, Figo, Zidane, Ronaldo, Raul and Roberto Carlos, they believed they would simply score more goals than they conceded. They did concede though they were looking for a center-back but he had to be one with flair who could score goals! If Carlos Spencer were available he'd be perfect for Real Madrid. Real are now figuring out the next frontier. Asia and America are in their sights and it will be fascinating to see if their belief and joy will elevate them to an iconic level bigger than a mere soccer team. Joy is also something you see everywhere in a favorite place of mine - Limerick, Ireland. I have been working with the President of the University of Limerick, Roger Downer, an inspirational player who is mad keen on rugby, and will be visiting Waikato in November. This month we announced a partnership between the Universities of Limerick and Waikato where I will take a role as Professor of Sustainable Enterprise to combine Waikato's expertise in sustainability and Limerick's leadership in enterprise for the good of both Universities and communities. It also gives me the opportunity to catch up with Christian Cullen who was moved across to Munster now to play rugby there for that very shrewd Australian coach, Alan Gafney. Everyone in Ireland is currently in a state of euphoric shock following the IRB rankings where Ireland were rated number three in the world. Chris Handy's view that the IRB is too close to the Guinness Brewery in Dublin has a good deal of merit. I love the Irish and I love the way they play and view rugby. And in Brian O'Driscoll and Munster man, Keith Wood, they have two world-class, charismatic players. To suggest, however, they are ahead of Australia, France and South Africa seems mischievous to say the least. Facing Argentina and Australia on consecutive weekends at the World Cup will certainly test the IRB ranking methodology (if indeed there was one!). If you have the chance though put Munster and Limerick on your travel
schedule next year. Grassroots passion is alive and well and, of course,
Thomond Park in Limerick is actually listed as a tourist
destination. |
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You'll all recall, that's where Graham Mourie and the 1978 All Blacks were
beaten 12-0 by the men of Munster. Something which every Munster man will
tell you about. And everyone I've met was actually at the game. The
capacity must have been somewhere near 120,000 if you believe every taxi
driver, every barman, and every other man from Munster you met and claims
to have been there.
It is, as John Greene, the Irish playwright calls it, one of "the last great folk memories." Christian Cullen will love his time there and I believe Munster will love him. He still got a couple of years of brilliance left and I'm sure that under Gafney's astute coaching he'll be an inspiration. I saw the recent Ireland v Italy game in Limerick. (On the television unfortunately, but thanks again to the miracle of Murdoch.) Italy competed well for 50-minutes then went walk about. JK has made some very brave selectorial decisions and has picked a team full of pace, verve and potential. If he can get the number 10 position sorted out then Italy could surprise everyone and make it through the quarters. I expect them to play a shadow team against the All Blacks first-up and then roll their sleeves up for must-win games against Wales, Canada and Tonga. Following my sojourn in Madrid I hopped on a plane to London to catch the England/France game. Boy is it getting tough to win at Twickenham!! England were fantastic
for the 50-minutes in which they took the game seriously. The French were
mentally somewhere else. |
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England first played France in 1906 and have played 82 times. In the
modern era England have won 29 and France 30. I believe they'll meet in
the semi-final in Australia, and England will be hard to stop.
However, France always have one incredible mind-blowing game up their jumpers in every tournament as we know only too well. I hope they don't pull it out against England because I believe the final the world wants to see is New Zealand/England where bragging rights for the next four years will be decided. (Why on earth the IRB didn't wait for the World Cup to publish their first ever-ranking list is completely beyond me.) England were formidable against the French. They are full of inspirational players led by Johnson, Dallaglio, Dawson, Wilkinson and Greenwood. Cohen, Robinson and Lewsey are international class and the tight five are world class. Wilkinson, of course, is best in the world in terms of goal kicking. Nick Farr-Jones told me that to win the World Cup, you need five players who would walk into the world 15, 5 players on the fringe and 5 solid test players. Both England and New Zealand match these criteria. I'll be going to the All Black group games and the quarters before being stranded in Europe and the US for the semi's and the final. Teams that win the World Cup build momentum through the tournament and I believe John Mitchell has picked exactly the right squad with exactly the right balance to do just that. (Wasn't the Lloyd Jones, NZ Herald interview of August 30 on Mitch, incisive and insightful?) And have you read Paul Thomas' new book yet, "A Whole New Ball Game"? He makes a fantastic comparison between rugby in New Zealand and the ability of New Zealand business to maximize every little opportunity working harder, being more innovative and making the money go further.When we compete, we can win. We're ready to do both in Australia next month. |
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