All Blacks tick the boxes

Our national rugby team epitomise a strong set of New Zealand ideals.

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10th September, 2011

As Lady Bracknell might have said, to lose to South Africa in the run-up to the Rugby World Cup may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose to Australia as well looks like carelessness. A consoling theory – and New Zealanders have plenty – is that these games were deliberately thrown away, first to give those powerful opponents a false sense of optimism, and second to gee up ticket sales in those countries. If only. At so many levels, the supremacy of this team and their wins and losses in our firmament are illogical. Yet to say “It’s only a game” is as offensive and unhelpful ...

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