Winning that Cup is the only thing that matters

In a quiet moment of reflection, All Blacks coach Steve Hansen might curse the fact that the end result of his team beating South Africa in their opening match was a much tougher route to the World Cup final.

Despite the respective form of Japan and Ireland at this tournament, there can be little doubt the All Blacks would have felt less jittery taking on a team they have amassed a for-and-against points record of 531-65 in six tests, than a side who have beaten them in two of their past three outings.

He might also pause to ponder the capricious qualities of the weather gods, who conspired to leave the All Blacks without a match in 13 days and without a Tier One opponent in a month.

If he did so, it would be understandable.

Yet it would also go against the ethos of the All Blacks camp, which is marketed as a “no-excuse” environment.

So a slightly undercooked All Blacks — the two-time defending champions and top-ranked team in the world — will meet their nemesis, Ireland, the team who came into the tournament ranked number one.

It is a marketer’s dream: a stop-the-nation type of event.

The prize for victory is a trip to the semifinals and a clash with one of two great enemies, Australia or England.

The cost of defeat is an early exit and one of those intense periods of second-guessing New Zealanders always engage in after an All Black defeat.

There is hope, perhaps forlorn, that the wailing and gnashing will not be as intense as it was in 1999, 2003 and, most fervently, 2007.

Hansen has plenty of credit in the bank, as do his players, but defeat can have a deranging effect on the national psyche.

Those are the obvious ramifications of tonight’s match.

In the background, a more subtle — but no less existential — dynamic is being played out.

You can make the argument that rugby’s jewel is the World Cup, the one tournament where all the sport’s great nations gather in one place to decide global supremacy.

As a counterpoint, you could make the case that nothing has messed with the fabric of New Zealand rugby (small “r”) quite like the World Cup, as fans have been conditioned to believe it is the only thing that matters.

Rugby has issues, not least of all plummeting playing numbers among teenage boys, an increasingly apathetic fan base in the country’s largest city and domestic competitions that are becoming a financial millstone.

New Zealand Rugby (big “r”) has banked big on the All Blacks’ continued primacy.

Nowadays, that means winning

There can be little doubt the All Blacks would have felt less jittery taking on a team they have amassed a for-and-against points record of 531-65 in six tests, than a side who have beaten them in two of their past three outings.

the one big tournament that truly matters.

They are not the only organisation that has bet big on the continued success of the All Blacks.

Sky has just committed a sum understood to be in the region of $400 million plus 5 per cent of the network’s equity to win the rights to broadcast rugby.

To be blunt, they have not broken the bank to broadcast Ranfurly Shield matches in late September or the Brumbies versus Blues in March. They have invested heavily with the idea that the All Blacks are king. They are kings who need a crown. Tonight, Ireland will try to steal it.