I thought I was going to let my fellow bloggers run with the ball on this great rugby debate, but I just have to claim my pound of flesh. So, here goes! I think Jake White should do more than pee on the ashtrays on the desks of his bosses (as fellow blogger Chris Moerdyk […]
Sport
Posted inSport
Bread and circuses
Lo, Sunday morning dawned and strangely enough the world was unchanged! The fact that some beefy boys with cauliflower ears and bloodied eyes had spent 80 minutes throwing themselves on top of each other and shoving their heads up each other’s bums to win a shiny beaker the previous evening seems — oddly enough — […]
Posted inSport
Dear Jake: Go pee on your bosses’ desks
We could feel the politics even at the final. For example, when the team hoisted President Mbeki onto their shoulders, I swear I could hear Jacob Zuma yelling “drop, drop, drop !”
Posted inSport
Springboks the class of 1995 and 2007
One of the greatest moments of my life was watching a packed Newlands rugby stadium, comprising almost entirely white fans, thundering “Nelson, Nelson, Nelson” as Madiba made his way to commence his opening address for the 1995 World Cup. Madiba magic was born, and how the rainbow nation responded to it. Yet rugby was and […]
Posted inNews/Politics, Sport
From a bitter, twisted person: my blood remains red; I could care less about the Boks
Days ago, I had resigned myself to the fact that I was going to be bombarded with rugby news until, at least, the end of next week. That’s fine. I suppose our national rugby team getting into (and possibly winning) the World Cup final is a big deal. To each her own. It’s not my […]
Posted inLifestyle, Sport
What crazy rituals will you be performing come Saturday?
One of my favourite human behavioural idiosyncrasies is the level to which we all delude ourselves about our perceived rationality. Rubbish. Our “rationality” is at the same level as that of poultry. We might not bury our heads in the sand physically, but we sure do it inside our brains. One of the manifestations of […]
Posted inSport
Kraai the beloved country
Manne, I believe the Bokke are going to crush the whingeing Poms on Saturday. That goes without saying. However, in the event of the impossible becoming a reality, you need to be prepared — you need to know how to deal with your emotions without making your name totally tottie. Accordingly herewith: Traps’s guide to […]
Posted inSport
Where were you in 1995?
It came on suddenly during the week in the build-up to the 1995 Rugby World Cup final. I had been laid low by flu the previous week, but had recovered enough to make the most of the semifinal against France. But the flu boomeranged back and left me in bed — at least the All […]
Posted inSport, Tech
Rugby should embrace more technology
France won their quarterfinal match against New Zealand on the back of a scintillating try that included a forward pass between Frederic Michalak and Yannick Jauzion. The pass was blatant to the millions of fans watching on television but was missed by referee Wayne Barnes and his two touch judges. Similarly, Fiji came within a […]
Posted inSport
Why we’ll lose the World Cup
It’s Saturday evening. 9pm. The World Cup final. Fifteen men in green and gold line up to face fifteen men in white. It’s a showdown of epic proportions — England want to avenge past humiliations; South Africa are equally hungry and need to prove their worth as “past World Cup winners”. In the UK, millions […]
Posted inLifestyle, Sport, Tech
All Blacks and France plan Facebook revenge
France and New Zealand may be out of the Rugby World Cup, but they have come up with a desperate new attempt to prove they remain a force on the international stage. In just three weeks, France has doubled the size of its regional network on Facebook, from 141 000 to 284 000. The New Zealand network […]
Posted inSport
Brian Ashton to be rewarded?
Barely weeks after the English media were telephoning vets across England to ascertain the price of having their coach spayed comes the heartwarming story of the English RFU’s decision to extend his contract. Wonderful news, which means I can now throw away my copy of Dr Alan Cresswell’s report. The vet from Bath was waffling […]