With three world cups on the horizon, our columnist checks his wish list for the last time this happened.
With three world cups on the horizon, our columnist checks his wish list for the last time this happened.
Columnists should probably adhere to the rule “never look back”. Revisiting old columns can be chastening: bold predictions that were way off the mark, trenchant observations that turned out to be wrong-headed; riffs that provided self-satisfaction at the time but in hindsight seem self-indulgent. Alternatively, and perhaps worse, the columnist may be forced to the conclusion that their old stuff was several notches above their recent output.
Wish lists may be the exception to this rule, since at worst one is exposed as either having absurdly high expectations, or being a “nattering nabob of negativism”, as Richard Nixon’s vice president Spiro Agnew labelled critics of the administration. (Both Agnew and Nixon resigned in disgrace.) Besides, revisiting my 2015 wish list seemed pertinent given that, like 2019, it was a year of rugby, cricket and netball World Cups.
In January 2015, I wished that the All Blacks’ six veterans – Dan Carter, Richie McCaw, Keven Mealamu,
Ma‘a Nonu, Conrad Smith and Tony Woodcock – who’d served New Zealand rugby for so long and with such distinction, could disprove the sporting dictum that “there are no happy endings”. They duly did, particularly Carter. Having struggled with injuries and form, he ended his glittering international career in a blaze of glory, playing a starring role in the World Cup final in which the All Blacks defeated the Wallabies and being named World Rugby player of the year.
Turning to Super Rugby, I wished that:
The Crusaders would either win the Super 15 or fail to make the playoffs, thereby avoiding yet another agonising close-but-no-cigar season. They opted for the latter. The Highlanders would surpass the expectations created by their journeymen-dominated playing roster. They became the champions. It has to be said, however, that they owed a lot to Ben and Aaron Smith, Lima Sopoaga, the tournament’s top points-scorer, and top try-scorer Waisake Naholo, none of whom bear any resemblance to journeymen.
The Hurricanes would regain their fans’ respect and Westpac Stadium on game day would cease to resemble a crowd scene in a low-budget movie. They finished as runnersup, hosting a final that drew a crowd of 36,000.
The Blues would validate former
Welsh captain, BBC commentator and Observer rugby correspondent Eddie Butler’s opinion that there’s “more talent in the Auckland area than in the whole of Europe combined”. File under pie in the sky.
Somewhat warily, I hoped the Black Caps would have a good World Cup. They did better than that, mounting a stirring campaign that riveted the nation and propelled them to the final. Looking to the longer term, I hoped they’d maintain their progress towards becoming a world-class team: genuinely competitive against all comers in all forms of the game, at home and away. They’re very much on track, being currently ranked third in test cricket, third in one-day internationals and sixth in T20. Only India and England have superior sets of rankings.
I hoped the Silver Ferns would shake off their malaise and start beating Australia again. They came agonisingly close – much closer than the Black Caps did against the same opponents in their final – losing the World Cup decider in Sydney 58-55. Things have gone downhill for the Ferns ever since, rock bottom being their failure to win a medal at last year’s Commonwealth Games, an unwelcome first. But 2019 is a new year with new opportunities. The Quad series, which gets under way in Liverpool this weekend, should be useful in terms of setting expectations for July’s World Cup.
Looking further afield, I wished that Roger Federer and Tiger Woods, respectively the greatest men’s tennis player and golfer of their eras, if not ever, would win major tournaments after long hiatuses. With Federer, it was a case of “it won’t happen overnight but it will happen”, as Rachel Hunter used to say in the shampoo advert. He didn’t win a major in 2015 or 2016 but has won three in the past two years.
In Perth last weekend, Federer teamed up with Belinda Bencic to win the Hopman Cup for Switzerland, beating Germany in a repeat of last year’s result. At the presentation ceremony, Germany’s Alexander Zverev jokingly complained about the 37-year-old Federer’s longevity: “We’re all tired of you guys, especially you [pointing at Federer]. I mean, you’re a 30 whatever. Why? Just why?” A case, perhaps, of a true word spoken in jest.
We’re still waiting for Woods. After a wretched run of injuries – four back operations in four years – even true believers were losing hope of seeing him ever play well again, let alone win a major. However, his latest comeback, which culminated in his winning the Players’ Championship, the final event of the PGA’s 2017/18 season, has restored hope, and the massive boost his return gave golf’s TV ratings has thrilled all those who make money from the game.
I hoped no one would die of heat exhaustion at the Australian Tennis Open. Thankfully, no one did. Chances are, however, that at some stage during this year’s tournament, which gets under way in Melbourne next week, fingers will have to be crossed.
I hoped a club other than Manchester United, Manchester City or Chelsea would win the English Premier League (EPL). Chelsea won. The following year, though, unfancied, unfashionable Leicester City proved yet again that every underdog has its day. Founded in 1884, Leicester had never been champions of English football’s top division; in 2008/9, they were relegated to the third tier; at the start of the 2015/16 season the odds on their winning the EPL were 5000-1, hence their triumph triggered the biggest pay-out in British sporting history. Then normal service – plutocracy – resumed: Chelsea were 2017 champions; Manchester City won in 2018.
And I wished to see the backs of Fifa boss Sepp Blatter and his Formula One counterpart, Bernie Ecclestone, who for far too long had taken turns at being the unacceptable face of sports administration. In December 2015, Blatter was ejected from office and banned from taking part in Fifa activities for six years. Ecclestone hung around for another year.
I hoped the Silver Ferns would shake off their malaise and start beating Australia again. They came agonisingly close.