Blues’ problems a major concern
A lunatic could sit high in his castle and float down a paper dart inscribed with the message that tells us there’s not much wrong with the Blues.
Some may actually believe that. Most New Zealand rugby fans, whether they reside inside the Blues’ catchment or beyond, would just bury their heads in their hands and silently scream with frustration.
Because no-one seems to know when the final chapter of this horror story will be written. Anyone who genuinely cares about rugby in this country should be worried about what is happening with the Auckland-based franchise.
It is paramount New Zealand keeps harvesting its rugby talent, especially in the country’s biggest city, and with the player-drain to offshore clubs likely to get worse the fight to retain promising players is only going to get fiercer.
The Blues’ latest loss, a 34-16 defeat to the Highlanders at Eden Park on Friday night, confirmed what we already suspected: the Blues’ playoff hopes are in tatters.
What made it even more galling for those who want the 15-man game to prosper, was that only around 4000 fans bothered to attend while 18,000 watched the Warriors beat the Dragons in the NRL match at Mt Smart Stadium on the same night.
Blues coach Tana Umaga has had to sift through the ashes of a squad that has been blitzed by a horrendous injury toll - 18 at last count - and you only had to look at the face of captain James Parsons in the postmatch interviews to understand how much he is hurting.
Both insist they, and their players, are doing everything they can to win games. Clearly, though, something is wrong. It would be nice to hear from someone outside the team’s bubble, whether it be the Blues chairman or CEO, to offer explanations as to why fans should trust them. Will Umaga have his coaching contract extended? ‘‘I’m just concentrating on what I can control and that’s the performance of these guys every week,’’ Umaga told Radio Sport on the eve of the Highlanders game. ‘‘All that talk is just that, and obviously you’ll find out in due course.’’
Now, on to more cheerful news. Even with key playmaker Damian McKenzie forced to retire in the 20th minute of the match because of a head knock, the Chiefs overwhelmed the Reds 36-12 in Brisbane for a bonus-point victory on Saturday night.
Blues supporters must look with envy at the way new coach Colin Cooper refused to allow a huge injury toll to shunt the Chiefs’ campaign off its tracks.
Driving hail, accompanied by lightning and thunder, doused AMI Stadium as the unconvincing Crusaders struggled to shrug off the Sunwolves for a 33-11 win in Christchurch on Saturday night. The home side was ordinary for long periods in the wet before finally snaring the bonus-point.
There was woe for the Waratahs in Sydney. Their four-game winning streak collapsed when beaten 29-0 by the Lions, the first time the Aussie side had been kept scoreless since Super Rugby began in 1996. The good news for the Tahs is they remain at the top of the Aussie conference, with the Rebels doing them a favour by getting spiked 28-10 by the Bulls in Pretoria.