Ashes to Ashes

The heart-stopping (breaking?) Bledisloe battles are becoming enshrined in Ocker sporting lore: “Once, Australians could rattle off virtually every ball of an Ashes cricket series. Now it is Bledisloe Cup rugby.” According to Spiro Zavos, the battle between the two greatest rugby sides in the world has reached mythic proportions since the game went professional in 1996. The build-up before each match is rivaled only by, “the collective memories, the essence of ultimate sporting events, [flooding] back in vivid detail” for years to come.