Tony Johnson column
Tony Johnson draws a clear comparison between the Olympics sevens tournaments and a much-hyped, dramatic, but ultimately unsatisfying Lions series in South Africa.
The seasoned broadcaster loved how the Olympic sevens tournaments played out, certainly in comparison to the dour Boks-lions series.
If you were offered the chance to relive only one of the two big rugby events on Planet earth in 2021, it wouldn’t be a hard decision, would it?
neither of them were played in front of crowds.
Take away the fans, especially the visiting ones, from the British and Irish Lions tour, and you had a game stripped back to its most basic and unappealing form.
Two teams, only one of them remotely interested in creating some sort of watchable spectacle, the other mired in a ‘win at any cost’ bog of brutal physicality, and a total dependence on one player to create a flash of something out of the ordinary.
South Africans cannot be begrudged their success at rwc 2019… their approach was, for the job at hand, admirably effective, simple, direct, successful, and at least lit up on occasion by the mercurial brilliance of Cheslin Kolbe.
But there is not quite so much to admire about what they have done since, or more to the point the manner in which they have done it, even in winning the Lions series.
Director of coaching rassie erasmus has become a latter-day Danie Craven, given free rein to pull any string of his choosing in order to keep his team’s no 1 ranking.
Last year, it was the call not to front for the rugby Championship; this year, it has been popping up wherever he likes, making a nonsense of the waterboy role and, most egregiously, launching a full frontal assault on the integrity of the match officials, all the while claiming he can do these things because he is not the coach, when quite clearly he still is.
For all the conniving, karma may have played its part in the outcome. Mathieu raynal, the best referee to come out of France in recent years by the length of the Loire River, refused to lose his bottle in the way his countrymen did so spectacularly in new Zealand four years ago, and we got, yes, a deserved winner and not some kind of convenient tie.
But as an advertisement for the game of rugby, this wouldn’t make it in the door of any self-respecting marketing company.
You could never say that about the Olympic Sevens.
This too was played in front of empty stands, the difference being that instead of providing the entertainment as the Lions followers do, fans in Tokyo would have just sat on the edge of their seats and lapped up every thrilling second of it.
I’ve been fortunate to do a lot of sevens tournaments, all over the world. It’s true the memories tend to morph into one another, but it’s hard to recall anything in the past that provided close to the amount of minute by minute action, drama and emotion.
And no matter what happens in new Zealand rugby between now and the end of the year, it’s hard to see anything topping the achievements of our sevens teams.
To come away with a gold and silver was special, eclipsing Fiji’s heartwarming gold and bronze as the best haul of the 17 competing nations, with
‘The ability of all of the (Black Ferns Sevens) players to express themselves so openly, honestly and amusingly is an integral part of the make-up.’
France picking up one silver, Argentina a bronze, and the unfortunate great Britain two fourths.
More importantly, with new Zealand and Fiji making the most telling (but far from the only) contributions, this was a six-day programme that showcased everything that’s good about the abbreviated format of the game, and did much to ensure its ongoing inclusion on sport’s greatest stage.
Not only did the Black Ferns Sevens win the tournament, they won countless admirers with the style of their play, the manner in which they dug themselves out of a couple of rather deep holes, their exemplary conduct, and their captivating post-game interviews.
The BBC’S Jill Douglas has done a lot of interviews in her time… she’s one of the best, but I’d doubt there’s ever been one quite like her day two encounter with Ruby Tui, an interview that ended up being seen by millions on the terrestrial coverage and even more millions as it stormed social media.
Add to it the class of captain Sarah Hirini and you could hardly have done more to engage with both the established followers of the game, the casual viewers, and those watching out of interest around the world, maybe for the first time.
rugby globally has been stuck in a mire of pre-programmed player interviews, glib and predictable post-match comment, all largely down to controlling management and media prevention officers seemingly intent on squeezing the personality and spontaneity out of players, like toothpaste out of a tube.
But not with this Black Ferns team. The ability of all of the players to express themselves so openly, honestly and amusingly is an integral part of the make-up.
The players deserve all the accolades coming their way – and so do the coaches.
We live in an age where coaches with big personalities dominate the landscape… Jones, Hansen, gatland and, in sevens, Ben Ryan and Gordon Tietjens.
In Tokyo, you had to scan with very keen eyes for even a glimpse of Allan Bunting and Cory Sweeney – such is their low-key, humble manner – and they deserve more credit than they’ve been given with regard to the way in which they have empowered the players to make the big calls.
It would be remiss not to acknowledge that there was a touch of luck, especially in the semifinal against Fiji, when two big refereeing calls went their way and helped them out of a very tight spot… in Rio, particularly in the final, those calls went against them. The refereeing, again, was not one of the bright spots.
You’d have to be a very cold-hearted person to begrudge the Fiji men’s team the gold.
For starters, our Pacific neighbours are going through a hellishly tough time right now with Covid-19. A gold medal doesn’t change that, but it brings a ray of joy, an uplifting of spirits when one is much needed.
Don’t for one minute think that wasn’t weighing on them.
But their captain Jerry Tuwai has a gift for galvanising his players and finding inspiration where others would only see pressure, and he was again the key link in a chain of glittering brilliance.
The All Blacks Sevens were worthy finalists, not quite good enough for Fiji, but a team that has learned to get the best out of itself, and it is a nonsense to suggest that their silver did not atone for the shortcomings of rio.
But there was drama everywhere, no more so than the five-man Argentina win over South Africa, a remarkable moment among so many remarkable moments.
So much so that, in the end, you forgot that there was no crowd, the action was where it is supposed to be – and how good it was.
And that is why the Rugby Sevens, Tokyo 2020, will go down as one of the best, if not the best sevens tournament ever played, and quite the best thing that was happening in rugby at a time when so much attention was supposed to be elsewhere.