Here is a list of things I’d rather do than watch another All Blacks versus Wallabies game this year:
– Vacuum
– Wash my car
– Read a book
– Go for a walk
That’s right folks – after the All Blacks’ 16 straight Test wins and domination of Bledisloe Cup encounters since 2003, the appeal of another one-sided match between New Zealand and Australia doesn’t get the juices flowing anymore (although this was written just after the 18-18 draw played out in Brisbane overnight).
It got me thinking: if your team continues to dominate (or conversely disappoint), do you switch off or back them anyway?
I wondered as last night’s match wore on, thinking about a time when George Gregan, Stephen Larkham, John Eales and Matt Burke were prowling in the green and gold, or when the dominating Australian cricket team featuring the likes of the Waugh brothers, Adam Gilchrist, Glenn McGrath, Matthew Hayden smashed oppositions like they were club cricketers.
My interest was higher then, because I enjoyed watching great players, and I didn’t even follow Australian sporting teams.
The protagonists therefore surely make the spectacle, more so than the team.
When Mike Harris lined up his first attempt at goal, it felt a bit ho-hum (no disrespect to former New Zealand age-group representative Harris). Where was the excitement of the occasion?
I scouted the Wallabies’ line-up for someone I thought could change the course of the match. Who was the frizzy-haired bloke laughing at the haka? Did it feel like a real Bledisloe contest? I wasn’t feeling the normal buzz.
I have to admit my undying support for the New Zealand cricket team has waned slightly, mainly as some of my favourite players (Nathan Astle, Shane Bond, Chris Cairns) drifted out of the team. Does it feel the same watching other players in the same team?
I admit it has been fun to watch the world cricket order change hands over the last five years, but when I watched the likes of Australia and England at the recent World Twenty20, it highlighted the idea that players really do make the spectacle.
I found myself losing interest quickly. I consider myself to have a solid overall handle on most of the major sports, but I could hardly recognise the England team, and I thought Nick Maxwell was a spinner.
The Australian landscape right now is packed with intrigue and sub-plots – the Wallabies are going through a massive learning curve but can only improve, the Australian cricketers are no guaranteed winners and therefore surely interest is back, the Kangaroos have had a close season in their Test matches which again helps and the Socceroos are still relatively competitive in their matches.
Then you have all the club teams, which is another seasonal adventure in itself.
But as a sports fan right now, do you consider yourself a fair-weather or full on supporter? Do you care about who is playing in your team and does this change whether you would watch them or not?
Andrew Marmont
Roar Guru
Thanks Mikeylives – yes wasn’t the clearest article in hindsight, I apologize for this – but the good thing about sport is you have the idea of the upset – the Kiwis and Wallabies are outsiders (against the best in their respective codes, i.e. the Kangaroos and the All Blacks) and can still pull off close performances. Australian rugby (and their public) need the Wallabies to be competitive against all teams as it is the flagship team. Certainly for rugby, it was a sterling result and I applaud Australia for putting in such a performance against a full-strength AB side.
Andrew Marmont
Roar Guru
Thanks Mikeylives - yes wasn't the clearest article in hindsight, I apologize for this - but the good thing about sport is you have the idea of the upset - the Kiwis and Wallabies are outsiders (against the best in their respective codes, i.e. the Kangaroos and the All Blacks) and can still pull off close performances. Australian rugby (and their public) need the Wallabies to be competitive against all teams as it is the flagship team. Certainly for rugby, it was a sterling result and I applaud Australia for putting in such a performance against a full-strength AB side.
p.Tah
Guest
Fair enough Andrew. I'm just tired of trolling articles and when you open with that multiple choice question, devote most of the article to criticizing the Bledisloe and post it in the Union tab you can understand why I thought this fell into that category. If you'd used the Bledisloe and Qld's domination of State of Origin as examples, I probably wouldn't have been so suspicious. Professional Sports is a form of entertainment these days. The Swans marketing plans state the movies and music concerts as competitors. We have so much sports on offer in Australia. On one weekend we have 9 games of AFL, 8 NRL and 7 games of Super Rugby. If one doesn't 'entertain' we can switch channels, watch a prerecorded game or go to the movies. As Battered Sav says below, many sports 'fans' are just consumers.
mikeylives
Guest
I was pretty p!ssed after reading the article (and first comment) - hate a troll author. But I think many have misunderstood the point of your article. You support the All Blacks (and are a NZ'er I gather). Hats off to your humble replies. Apart from the references to the Black caps, I don't think that was made clear. I can understand someone from NZ wanting more competition against their ABs after going through the year relatively unchallenged. However, I think that theory falls apart on the basis of Sat night. That was an intense match and (from an Oz perspective) bloody gutsy from a 2nd and 3rd string wallaby team. Somebody commented yesterday about the chance an injury depleted NZ league side would have against a full strength Kangaroos outfit - None. I think that hits the nail on the head.
Tisso Time
Guest
The big question is why is the "gutsiest performace" only comes out once a year and not every week? And the gutsiest performance only resulted in a draw. Suggest still a lot to work on especially consistency.
matthewthorpe
Roar Pro
when u start criticising someones writing and accuse them of 'link-baiting', then yes i do find that a bit hateful. happy to hear your comments and opinions on the articles contents, but dont make it personal by attacking the author
RugbyRene
Roar Rookie
So if I have an opinion about the article or how it is written or dare disagree with what is written I'm a hater? Political correctness gone mad. FYI the whole article is a criticism of rugby as a spectacle.
Andrew Marmont
Roar Guru
thank you Matthew. will look forward to your next article too!
Andrew Marmont
Roar Guru
Thanks Matthew - really appreciate it! Will take heed of your words too..
matthewthorpe
Roar Pro
i think he might be trying to write an article for the same reason we all write articles - we have something to say and want to see what other people think about it. criticising someone for the opinion isnt helpful in any way
matthewthorpe
Roar Pro
andrew - i thought it was a pretty good article, don't let the haters get to you. at least you are writing articles and promoting discussion, not just criticising. as i have also found by writing articles, anything to do with rugby union will elicit some very strong responses, not all of whic are helpful. but yeh i also found the game a bit boring, think i am just too used to rugby league where they try and score tries
Andrew Marmont
Roar Guru
I can be done Elisha. You just need two computers. I don't confess to carrying it out though ;-)
Andrew Marmont
Roar Guru
thanks for your thoughts stillmissit - I confessed below it wasn't my finest piece of writing, which is fair enough. Sometimes we learn most from our mistakes. Will hope to put in a better account next time round.
Andrew Marmont
Roar Guru
not quite RugbyRene, but thanks for your contribution none the less.
Andrew Marmont
Roar Guru
interesting and thank you for your comments Sailosi. So you enjoy watching the players instead of the actual team? The majority of the people commenting here seem to be the opposite - they will back their team, regardless of players. Appreciate your thoughts.
Andrew Marmont
Roar Guru
Love it! Perhaps I should change the title of the article to "Are you are sporting fan or consumer?" or maybe someone else can have a go at it....
The Battered Slav
Guest
Agreed Andrew, I too myself have caught myself out on the rare occassions bemoaning a Wallabies win, only to give myself an uppercut and remind myself that my boys won, and a Wallabies/Brumbies is all that matters. Your suggestion that it affects some codes more than others is also a good one. When you look at rugby league for example, the majority of fans I speak to seem to support a team that has no connection to themselves. In Canberra for example, more people support other teams than the Raiders. I have a mate who supports the Broncos despite never even having been to Queensland. Whereas you would be hard pressed to find a rugby fan from the ACT who supports the Tahs over the Brumbies, or the Reds over the Brumbies. Similar to soccer where you get people who are not even English, let alone from Manchester, saying that they would bleed for Man U and support them rabidly. This transformation of sport into a well marketed product rather than a test of localised abilities of particular geographical areas is the driver of this, in my opinion.
Andrew Marmont
Roar Guru
thanks for your thoughts langou. Perhaps it raises the question of whether people follow the sports they are really passionate about "as a fan", and other sports on the edge of this "as a consumer".
Andrew Marmont
Roar Guru
thanks Mike - appreciate your words. I will state I am an All Blacks fan firstly, and follow the various New Zealand teams in different sports closely. I did enjoy watching the golden era of the Aussies, but likewise enjoy watching the Black Caps regardless of who is playing (always nice to see your favourites play). For Wallaby rugby, I thought it was neat that a capacity crowd turned out to watch. I guess the point I was making was whether we, as individual sports fans, watch for the players or the team? As we are finding out through the comments here, there is an inherent difference :-)
langou
Roar Guru
Fundamentally it is a good question, although the timing not so good considering the score Saturday night but I understand it was written before that I only truly support three sporting teams, the Socceroos, The Glory and the Freo Dockers. When it comes to the Dockers and the Socceroos I have never faced the problem of them being too dominate. The Glory on the other hand, I think I enjoyed watching them more when they were losing the A-League than when they were winning the NSL. Possible due to an increased standard and it being more of a challenge as a spectator. I also follow events like the Tour De France and the Golf Majors and got much more enjoyment watching a close contest than I did watching Lance and Tiger dominate.