“We are trying to strike a balance between quality of play and ticket sales, and emmigration. If we let in Argentina or Tonga, the risk of a domestic team losing a match is simply too high right now. New Zealanders will not spend $200 to watch these amateurs defeat what’s left of our national side players. On the other hand, if we send our teams to the US, most of them will probably score lucrative contracts and not return. Samoa strikes the balance: the rugby is good, but not great, and who wants to move to Samoa? Have you been to Samoa?”
This lack of appropriate disciplinary action on the pitch by the referee endangers the players and sets a terrible example for a sport that is trying to break into the mainstream in many countries including Canada and the USA.
This type of match demands a lot of the match officials, but it appears that today, they were not up top the challenge. It started early on when the Lions, behind 7-0, broke the line and Ugo Monye rumbled over the try line in the corner. As the grounding was questionable, the referee right called on the Television Match Official (TMO) for clarification.
We've waited until the very last minute (the official squad is announced in less than 24 hours) so that we can claim to be the final Lions predictions for the 2009 Tour. Enjoy!
The more I read about rugby in South Africa, the more I feel like I'm reading some trashy diva piece in the Enquirer or some other bottom-feeding, pop-culture rag. What's got my knickers in a knot this time? If you have not heard, there is currently a row over the use of the Springbok, an antelope indigenous to South Africa, on the national team jersey.
Yes, that's right. The most serious issue in South African rugby is apparently what mascot to use on the damn shirts. Oh ... my ... God!
Thursday, July 9, 2009
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