My immediate thought was that the All Blacks selectors had found a way to get the big bruising winger Hosea Gear back into the Rugby World Cup tournament squad, redressing a selection blunder.
If readers find this too cynical, journalists who are as long in the tooth as me have seen things like this happen over the years.
We start off with starry-eyed admiration of officials, in all areas of life, and after experiencing the wiles and ploys of officialdom we become inveterate conspiracy theorists.
As it happened, the All Blacks management had no intention of dropping Guildford (although another binge during the World Cup would force them to). Shand pointed out that the media conference was intended to clear the air of rumours.
The facts were that Guilford had broken the team protocols twice, one after the All Blacks victory against the Wallabies at Auckland and the other after the All Blacks defeat by the Wallabies at Brisbane.
Moreover, in the weeks before these two incidents, Guildford had given an undertaking to the coaches about curtailing his drinking bouts while the All Blacks were in South Africa.
Fortunately for him, the selectors accepted his apologies and his commitment to virtually go on the wagon. He was selected for the 2011 World Cup squad. Then he played a shocker at Brisbane, dropping high balls and missing tackles. So he drowned his sorrows in beer.
There is no doubt that if the Rugby World Cup squad had been selected after this incident, he would undoubtedly not have been selected.
There is a similarity between the case of Guildford and that of the youngest Wallaby James O’Connor. O’Connor’s unfortunate drinking binge occured the night before the Wallaby squad and captain was named.
It is now an infamous part of Wallaby folklore that the team emerged player after player from a huge Qantas plane to group together for the official team photograph, but with no James O’Connor.
O’Connor was dropped for two matches and then brought back for the crucial World Cup match against Ireland.
Guildford is yet to play in the World Cup tournament. The All Blacks selectors have been developing Sonny Bill Williams as a centre/winger substitute, with Isaia Toeva, Corey Jane and Richard Kahui staking their claims for starting roles as wingers.
New Zealand and Australian societies have a problem with binge drinking. It is not accidental that so many talented young sportsmen like Guildford and O’Connor seem to have a problem in this area.
This raises very serious questions for the management of teams like the Wallabies and All Blacks on how to manage problem players and how to help them.
I am writing this in the self-knowledge that as a young man, many decades ago, it was not entirely unusual for me to over-indulge in beer on a Friday night, even though I might be playing an important cricket match the next day.
Having said this, I believe that the management of the Wallabies and the All Blacks have handled these two cases with proper care for the welfare of the players and the integrity of the team.
Neither case, on the facts that we have, merited dismissal from the team. Having said this, if either player binges again during the World Cup then they will have to be put out to pasture.
There are two reasons for this. The first relates to the player himself. Both of these players (and others like them) need tough love.
Help and understanding to beat the problem but then punishment if the player reneges on his commitment. That’s the proper recipe to affect a needed change of behaviour.
The second reason follows on from this need for tough love. Both these players offended the other members of their squad. Senior members of the All Blacks, for instance, made it clear to their management that they believed Guildford was abusing the privileges that come from being an All Black.
My information is that senior Wallabies had the same attitude to O’Connor’s behaviour.
The New Zealand Herald ran a terrific Private Eye-type cartoon on Tuesday. Titled ‘Zac Guildford Arrives At Training’, it showed a photo of Guildford with his eyes closed and his arms out in a help-me pose, being held in a headlock by one of the All Black forwards.
Guildford is saying in his speech balloon, “I’ll take youse all on!” The enforcer says, “I think you’ve had enough mate.”
Quite so.
The fact that Guildford and O’Connor are junior members of their teams (although O’Connor is an important part of the Wallabies starting side) distinguishes their cases from that of Mike Tindall.
Tindall was given the honour of captaining England in their opening match of the Rugby World Cup against Argentina. He is a senior member of the side. He is the one who should be taking aside any youngster in the England squad who misbehaves and giving him a stern talking to.
For me, this dereliction of his responsibilities as a senior member of the side represents Tindall’s main offence.
He was setting a bad example for the younger players in the side. The dwarf stuff was probably a stunt by the managers of the pub. And let’s face it, while I am hoping my lovely wife is not reading this, it is the fantasy of any red-blooded man to drop his head into the heaving bosom of a pouting blond-haired woman.
The best way to deal with the naughty boys of World Cup rugby, therefore, is to take the baseball option: three strikes and you’re out.
Capital
Guest
mattamkll, if you think missing the Team Announcement is not really a big deal - well I think you would be on a different page to a lot of people. Including his Wallabies team mates, management and the Sponsors who have an expectation that a highly paid professional athlete might take more interest in the RWC announcement, than getting on the turps and not retutrning to your hotel. JOC gets paid a lot of money to play rugby. He markets his brand pretty well - and with that marketing are some exdpectations - to his team mates, sponsors and supporters. There are a lot of people who are disappointed in his actions, and whether he is 18 or 30 he should be held to account for those actions. I think the management team were pretty on the money.
jason8
Guest
Top ahtletes shoudlnt drink.... its like putting diesel in your porsche. If i was coach i wouldnt allow anyone in the squad to get drunk - one or two here or there is not a problem - during the active season. If you do, you get to sit out a game or two. These two dimwits have no idea what a privilege they have to play sport for a living. I remember the night in Cape Town when Bob Skinstad had his car accident, and pretty much ruined his career cause he was never the same after that.... the official line was that he hadnt been out drinking. hahaha plenty of time to get trashed when you hang up your boots.
jus de couchon
Guest
Been there and its far from dull . Youd have to have never been there or be a dullard yourself to say that. They do drink a lot though.
jus de couchon
Guest
Im hoping English supporters at the RWC can .by example, stop drink related incidents and provide responsible guides to future Pub /cultural exchanges.
dc
Guest
No Lord Viscount, the All Blacks send out Twitter posts and attribute them to the players, Cory Jane has been doing video interviews with team members and posting them online, and I must say the AB squad looks pretty relaxed and focused. Team members play guitars in their rooms. There is a strong set of rules and role model expectations around the ABs, but they are not sitting in their hotel rooms staring at the ceiling.....they have been out in the community alot too.....
mattamkII
Guest
Bokka, I'll add you to my list of Roarers that struggle to recognize banter and humor.
bokka
Guest
Can't be that dull when tourism pretty much fuels their economy. Everyone I know who has been to NZ has been there at least twice. Can't be that dull.
Ted
Guest
I am surprised more Kiwis don't have a boozing problem......it is such a dull place. That article in the SMH regarding AB supporters is spot on.....the worst fans in rugby (including BOKS supporters).
Capital
Roar Guru
Betty And if the sleep in was a result of being out drinking with KB until 0 dark hundred (past 3 AM). And the failure to turn up to teh biggest media event was a result of drinking impaired judgement - where a lovely lady was more important than the team he is paid hundreds of thousands to represent? Or if the failure meant he wasn't actually in his hotel, therefore couldn't be found? And I would expect - didn't answer his phone? Not with you on this one.
Capital
Roar Guru
Not really no mattmkll - but if that is how you read it ... The article is about naughty boys and Chris comments were about rules and punishment. The issue is commonsense, and leadership in a team.
Betty B
Guest
maybe you need to be careful Spiro, unless I'm not up with matters. Labelling O'Connor as having a drink problem is a bit over the top on the evidence produced. We know he slept in, but do we know that it was due to drink? I assumed that he had curled up with a lovely lady somewhere. And do we know know too, that he drinks regularly and therefore has a drink problem? Yu need to add more detail if you want to include O'Connor in your argument about drinking. Letting the team down by sleeping in, different matter.
mattamkII
Guest
nobody is suggesting that you keep cancers in the team. But to assume guys like Quade and JOC are at that stage is foolish.
rich1612
Guest
I think the suggestion of picking the best players is childish, it doesn't take into account that rugby is a team sport and what one does as an individual in a team reflects poorly or positively on the team. In addition to that if one or other player goes against the overall agreed team code/rule/morals it is going to negatively effect the overall performance of the team. Time and time again in many different sports the team that doesn't have the most world class players doesn't always win, generally the team that wins is the one that performs best as a team. I thought this was pretty evident on Saturday night, Wallabies seemed to play much more individually where as the Irish looked like a team that would "die" for each other. The Wallabies can do this on occasion (such as the recent Brisbane Test) but as the year go by it just doesn't happen as often as it did or that it needs to, to be a consistently high performing team.
mattamkII
Guest
Jesus chris, you're actually using the armed forces as a guide for a footy team?
mattamkII
Guest
And as for Mike Tindall...My god Spiro, you need to get out more.
mattamkII
Guest
Chris, you're right. But the media only write it because certain personality types buy into it. So people love nothing more than cutting down people they are jealous of. Ask yourself, honestly. What the hell has JOC done wrong? Really, in the scheme of things? you know, when you balance up all the good and bad in the world and think of what most of us were like at that age and what world we were living in....is it really that greater issue? The answer is a clear NO. I have this theory that the dog who barks the loudest is usually the one nicking your paper. Sure the dog is keeping thieves away from your street but all the time its the one doing the nicking. In other words, those who preach about morals are usually the biggest sinners. Not that I get into any of that sin/church stuff....12 years under the Christian Brothers is enough to put you off for life. My point is, in my 35(ish) years in this world it never stops amazing me how the most vocal anti anything people are almost always neck deep into the world they talk against. Anti Gay Senators who get coked up and got to bath houses, preachers with drug and gambling habits, priests that like little boys the list goes on. Now, with celebrities being the new religion and in Australia sports celebs being number one, who has replaced the clergy? Answer is Journalists. I have been using the Monty Python skit about witch burning in The Holly Grail a fair bit of late in reference to people getting wound up about JOC, Quade and Co....And I genuinely think anyone who buys into the media angle are a stupid as the peasants in that act.
mattamkII
Guest
well said my friend. Pious old boys drive me mad...and seem to forget half the things they got up to on tours. ''oh but they are professionals'' So what. Don't rape or kill anyone and I couldn't care what they do.
Capital
Roar Guru
Chris The defence force has rules as well. Some people used their common sense and didn't need the threat of a stick ... others do not. The issue is how you manage that. And that is the leadership aspect that I alluded to. If the same result is achieved without a stick - then why use it? The issue is that the individuals who are talent wise - bordering on certainties to play; are amongst the cast of idiots who do not conduct themselves according to team protocols, or think that they are outside the rules of the team. Leadership is about mentoring, developing, trusting, leading, encouraging, improving, morale and discipline. And I think that for quite some time we had a weak leadership team in the Wallabies.
Chris
Guest
I think everyone's missing the point. Which is that high profile national sporting teams (presumably) have rules and regulations about conduct off the field. As long as those rules are clearly explained to the players, it shouldn't be very hard to manage. You break the rules, you get punished. It's really quite simple. Whether it's hypocritical, or unfair, or whatever isn't the issue. The reality is the media are going to report on this sort of stuff and there's no amount of hand-wringing that's going to change that. And if the levels of punishment are also clearly outlined, it removes the temptation to waive the rules for certain players or certain situations. Assuming Australia made the final, would the Australian coaching staff drop JOC if he missed a training session in the week leading up to the game because he'd been out on the turps the night before?
Capital
Roar Guru
From a different thread - but appropriate here: Sorry some ex-digger thinking for a moment. Team discipline has a number of levels: Self discipline – for most people this is enough, but in Gen Y – look at me, FB and tweet the universe because it revolves around me – some of these guys lose marks. And it appears to be the flashy rugby players, who bring the most of this trait into a team mix. The older, more conservative guys don’t need to do it, nor do the family / strong cultural guys – like Ioane, Faiinga. Ols Hand discipline. The old dogs sort out teh young guys and set the standards and framework, without the coach or management team needing to alienate the players. This in my opinion is the failing of this side, because some of the old hands – like Rocky their captain, AAC, Moore (2 months ago), Giteau, Barnes have struggled to make the team. Elsom found it difficult to be part of teh leadership group when his position was more fragile than most of his team mates. As did the others named – some of whom have re-earnt their place – like Moore; and others who appear to be in the side on past performances not form – AAC. And lastly discipline. Where you take action as last resort. This is the all other options failed, you are reckless / irresponsible / immature – and probably shouldn’t be here. And we have had Cooper, JOC, Beale in the past two years who have all not met team standards. However, both Beale and Cooper have re-established themselves. If we take this one step further – Cooper being a nob against McCaw falls into Old Hand re-rengineering, when he is pulled aside by a respected team mate and told to grow up. Just as Farr Jones and Campese tried to do via media, because teh wrong message was coming from the coaching staff. I think we have had a weak / neutered leadership team who cannot mentor problem kids. I also think that if Deans is not the disciplinarian – then someone else must step up – like Nucifora, or Egerton.