PRIVILEGED POSITION?
Exposing the All Blacks ‘myth’
THE All Blacks’ haka has been described as ‘‘a privilege’’, but their influence extends well beyond the pre-match ritual, says a leading British writer.
British writer Simon Barnes has accused the All Blacks of ‘‘owning rugby’’, affecting opponents, administrators, referees, supporters, pundits and journalists.
Barnes, a former sports writer at The Times, who now writes for ESPNscrum, used his latest column to declare: ‘‘People are prepared to buy into the All Black myth.’’
He said the level of New Zealand’s World Cup quarterfinal win over France was so complete ‘‘it seemed that myth and reality were finally reconciled’’.
The performance and result elevated the brand above the team as the ‘‘star’’.
‘‘Their nickname is used almost as often as the name of nation, slavishly, sycophantically. These days coaches are more inclined to make their teams talk only about ‘New Zealand’, in an attempt to deny the opposition their mystique. Nice idea, but that horse bolted a long time ago,’’ Barnes wrote.
As the All Blacks get set to tackle the Springboks in the semifinal and continue their quest for back-to-back world titles, Barnes felt the team received ‘‘special privileges’’ citing the haka as an example. But their influence, backed by success, went beyond that.
‘‘There is a feeling in rugby that if New Zealand do it, it must be right. Their edgework around the fringes of the law gets more sympathy from referees
‘New Zealand are not just as better than everyone else, they’re also more important.’ Simon Barnes
than similar efforts of other nations,’’ Barnes wrote, harking back to the infamous tackle by Tana Umaga on Brian O’Driscoll that took the Lions skipper out of the 2005 tour of New Zealand.
‘‘Nice tactic. The Lions lost their best player, New Zealand went unpunished and they still deny that there was anything untoward going on.
‘‘But that’s because they own the game. That has an effect on opponents, administrators, referees, supporters, pundits and journalists.
‘‘New Zealand are not just as better than everyone else, they’re also more important. Being New Zealand is what other nations aspire to.’’
Barnes felt the win over France had ‘‘refurbished mythology’’.
‘‘And we who watch sport are deeply taken with the idea of the very special team, a team that goes on and on, changing personnel, changing managers and coaches, but forever imposing the long tradition of excellence on the world.’’
Barnes pointed to the Brazil, Real Madrid and Manchester United football teams, as well as the Australian cricketers and American franchises the New York Yankees (baseball) and Dallas Cowboys (American football) as other sporting outfits with similar mystique.