ABs charm home fans

In the sporting world, a villain in one’s eyes is a hero in another’s; it’s all a matter of opinion. Just ask rugby pundits in the Northern Hemisphere.

They won’t shy away from telling you the All Blacks use dirty tactics and are cynical cheats.

One scribe even went as far as saying the New Zealand squad gets an unfair advantage being allowed to perform the haka before their Cup matches.

Granted, said writer made no mention of how the performance of similar war dances affected Fiji, Tonga and Samoa, so make of his comments what you will.

Regardless, the All Blacks sure don’t appear to be losing any fans as they continue to dial up the charm.

It was clear on their arrival into Japan that the All Blacks were going to be a crowd favourite at this year’s Rugby World Cup.

They were greeted by plenty of fans and even received a haka from a local group.

Their performances alone would surely be enough to win over the local fans, but the team haven’t rested on that.

After beating the Springboks in their World Cup opener the All Blacks stood in a line, turned and bowed to the crowd as a sign of respect — a local custom.

The Japanese national team do it after their tests, and the All Blacks set a trend among visiting teams at this year’s World Cup tournament to follow suit.

It has been added to by television appearances by members of the team, and with coach Steve Hansen being made honorary chief of police of the Japanese city of Beppu for the day on Thursday, the Kiwi outfit is leaving its mark on the locals.

The All Blacks have immersed themselves in soaking up the environment of this year’s World Cup, both on and off the pitch, and it seems to be working thus far.

Their history of success means they might not be able to claim the “lovable underdog” tag, but they are making it that much harder for neutral rugby fans to say that the All Blacks are the bad guys of World Rugby.