The Roar
The Roar

Advertisement

Why the 2015 Rugby World Cup may be the most important yet

5th August, 2015
Advertisement
Richie McCaw took All Black rugby to incredible heights. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell)
Roar Guru
5th August, 2015
56
1439 Reads

The 2015 edition of the Rugby World Cup might not only be the most important World Cup in the history of the sport, but the most important result in rugby ever.

The inaugural World Cup was obviously very special. It was one of the first stepping stones to the dawn of professionalism, and it was fitting that the most successful rugby nation in the world were victorious right off the bat.

Better even than that, it was the start of 24 excruciating years of heartache for the New Zealanders. Before taking offence to that let me put my statement in context.

It is not New Zealand failing in 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003 and 2007 that makes those years good, it was the rest of the rugby world winning. Australia, South Africa and England equalling the Kiwis in World Cup success made the World Cup ideal. Where the All Blacks dominated in Tests from beginning to end, they were not, and still are not, dominant in rugby’s most hallowed and sacred competition.

Simply put, it was the best outcome for world rugby as a whole, and it added an extra flavour to the Webb Ellis Cup.

The World Cup truly is up for grabs for just about anyone. It is a relatively young competition and the winners so far are split pretty evenly, with no team really able to claim themselves as the dominant force in World Cup history.

Rugby should never become stale and predictable, especially in regards to the results of matches. Sport is much more exciting when you don’t know which way a game will go.

In the past, the southern hemisphere would just stroll past their northern counterparts. The north does not hold a particularly good record against the SANZAR nations in statistical and historical outcomes, but in recent years England, Wales, France, Ireland and Scotland have drawn much closer to Australia, South Africa and New Zealand. There might still be a gap, but now it is within spitting distance, no longer the ever-reaching abyss.

Advertisement

Recent results prove this. The games are closer, the north is winning more often than they ever have. It’s a good thing.

The exception however is New Zealand. The All Blacks have stepped up three gears since 2011, losing only twice since then. They are the best team in the world by some distance, as Wallabies coach Michael Cheika put it just a few weeks ago.

As such, many a rugby fan is becoming annoyed with the game’s hierarchy. It is not good to see the same things happening over and over and over again. This is why some loved it when Samoa beat the Wallabies in 2011, Scotland beat the Boks in 2010, and whenever the French beat the All Blacks.

There is real love for the underdog in rugby, as proven when so many were heartbroken for Ireland when they came oh so close to beating New Zealand in 2013 – something they have never done.

Of course it is not the All Blacks’ fault that they are so successful. Instead, it is the fault of every other nation for not stepping up to the plate. That is the most frustrating aspect of this topic. Every single nation can close the gap on one another, but not against New Zealand. Why?

This is why the 2015 Rugby World Cup is so crucial.

Starting with New Zealand, can they win a World Cup outside the mystical dome of the white cloud? Is home advantage the only thing that can win them the trophy? That is the question that they will be looking to answer. So far they are the only team between the four winners yet to win on foreign soil. Also, both Australia and South Africa managed to win two cups much faster than the Kiwis.

Advertisement

Regardless, it is wise to remember that this team is arguably the greatest ever, and they have had no trouble winning away from home the past four years. It would be foolish to discard them based on history.

But if New Zealand were to achieve their third crown, there would be absolutely no chink left in their black armour, there will be nothing that they haven’t achieved. It cannot be afforded.

England managed to break through the southern stranglehold in 2003 in what was perhaps the north’s greatest moment. They have the home advantage, but do they have the mental strength to defy the odds?

In the same vein, wouldn’t it be moving to see either Ireland or Wales lift the cup? Ireland being crowned champions would be the best result for world rugby, showing that even those who had been called ‘minnows’ have a place in the history books.

For Australia, the Bledisloe might be a big deal, but a World Cup victory would cast a very large shadow on that particular trophy. A win may also help boost rugby union in a country where it is relatively low placed in the pecking order.

South Africa faces change in the coming years. Whether transformation and quotas will strengthen or weaken South African rugby is not the debate here. The truth is that the quota is very real and by 2019 the national government wants to see the results. We don’t know whether it will be successful or not, but regardless, this may be the last World Cup where the Boks take to the field before a sea of change, good or bad, engulfs them.

Can anyone stop the All Blacks from taking that one last good thing that, so far, belongs to everyone? Or will we be forced to witness the coming of yet another dominant era of the black jerseys?

Advertisement
close