Showing posts with label World Cup. Show all posts
Showing posts with label World Cup. Show all posts
...no no Nathan, thank you!
Sunday, 23 November 2008
At the end of a wonderful World Cup Final, New Zealand captain Nathan Cayless thanked the British fans for all the support they offered the Kiwis on the way to victory in Brisbane. It is though the English fans and the RFL who should be thanking the Kiwis.
A dark cloud had hung over English Rugby League fans and commentators all week. We had been contemplating another long period of Australian dominance. Whenever an English team was to take the pitch against Australia, we would be psychologically beaten before the game had even started. The best we might hope for would be that we might be competitive, rather than thinking about how to beat them.
Yet the Kiwis proved that the Australians are not supermen. They are fallible like the rest of us. They can be put on the back foot and respond poorly when the tide of matches goes against them.
The Kiwis recovered from a drubbing in a test series in 2007 to win a World Cup in 2008 against a side many had suggested was the best in history. They did so with a blend of youth and experience. They did so even with key players out injured. But they did so most of all with a solid game-plan, with a coaching staff of the best and the brightest, with enthusiasm and vigour sustained over 80 minutes. Instead of reforming every aspect of Superleague, these are the lessons we must learn.
None of this of course makes up for our disappointment with the England World Cup campaign, but it might just offer us a glimmer of hope. England were competitive with the Kiwis during the two matches they played, but they let those games slip out of their grasp. They only played Australia once, took a shellacking, and failed to give themselves a chance to make up for it. Perhaps we are not as flawed as we might have believed earlier in the week? Perhaps next time around things might be different?
Albert Camus once wrote that when God doesn’t exist, anything is possible. Well, perhaps if Australians are no longer Rugby League gods… you can probably guess the rest.
A dark cloud had hung over English Rugby League fans and commentators all week. We had been contemplating another long period of Australian dominance. Whenever an English team was to take the pitch against Australia, we would be psychologically beaten before the game had even started. The best we might hope for would be that we might be competitive, rather than thinking about how to beat them.
Yet the Kiwis proved that the Australians are not supermen. They are fallible like the rest of us. They can be put on the back foot and respond poorly when the tide of matches goes against them.
The Kiwis recovered from a drubbing in a test series in 2007 to win a World Cup in 2008 against a side many had suggested was the best in history. They did so with a blend of youth and experience. They did so even with key players out injured. But they did so most of all with a solid game-plan, with a coaching staff of the best and the brightest, with enthusiasm and vigour sustained over 80 minutes. Instead of reforming every aspect of Superleague, these are the lessons we must learn.
None of this of course makes up for our disappointment with the England World Cup campaign, but it might just offer us a glimmer of hope. England were competitive with the Kiwis during the two matches they played, but they let those games slip out of their grasp. They only played Australia once, took a shellacking, and failed to give themselves a chance to make up for it. Perhaps we are not as flawed as we might have believed earlier in the week? Perhaps next time around things might be different?
Albert Camus once wrote that when God doesn’t exist, anything is possible. Well, perhaps if Australians are no longer Rugby League gods… you can probably guess the rest.
En forme?- Mais non!
Thursday, 20 November 2008
Some years ago I worked with another English friend in a French language school. We both taught on Saturday mornings and this invariably followed a long night out. Our boss, a very jovial Frenchman, would always greet us by saying "Bonjour – en forme?”- to which we would always answer-come hangover or lack of sleep- "oui oui, en forme!” before giving each other a knowing glance.
Much has been said about the reasons for England’s dismal showing in the World Cup, from too many overseas players in Superleague to a basic lack of skill. Yet few have mentioned the form these players took into the tournament.
The majority of players came from the two dominant sides of the past two seasons, yet were either side really in form at the end of the last campaign? Leeds had slumped significantly towards the end of the season, with players like Burrow and McGuire failing to penetrate defences in the way they had at the beginning of the campaign. Whilst they produced a couple of gutsy performances to win the Superleague crown, Leeds were not of the stature of the previous campaign.
Likewise, although Saints’ form had improved over the course of the campaign, key players, not least Wellens and Pryce, had failed to produce the form this season to match their previous efforts.
There were a couple of players whose form held in the tournament, especially Roby and Graham, but as with Graham when he played for Saints this year, too much was placed on the shoulders of impact players to compensate for the underperformance of others.
In the middle somewhere, between the likes of Burrow and Pryce who struggled and Roby and Graham who stood out, were players who on their day can be world class- yet none of them showed it. We all know that Martin Gleeson and Gareth Hock to name just two can tear defences apart, but again that form failed to materialise, the latter no doubt hindered further by a long period of suspension near the end of the season.
Many have said that we had an easy time of it in the tests against New Zealand last year, and no doubt they were a different proposition this time around. Yet from an England perspective, (ok, so they were GB in 2007 for what difference that makes), the 2007 series was a unique moment. We found a side in which almost every player was in form, peaking just at the right moment to produce individual and team brilliance.
This year, we found a side of players probably overburdened by their performances of the previous campaign and struggling to find that magic touch. So before we write-off England, Superleague et al., before we go searching for some great metanarrative to explain 36 years of failure, lets just consider for a moment that this just wasn’t our year; pack our bags home and move on.
Much has been said about the reasons for England’s dismal showing in the World Cup, from too many overseas players in Superleague to a basic lack of skill. Yet few have mentioned the form these players took into the tournament.
The majority of players came from the two dominant sides of the past two seasons, yet were either side really in form at the end of the last campaign? Leeds had slumped significantly towards the end of the season, with players like Burrow and McGuire failing to penetrate defences in the way they had at the beginning of the campaign. Whilst they produced a couple of gutsy performances to win the Superleague crown, Leeds were not of the stature of the previous campaign.
Likewise, although Saints’ form had improved over the course of the campaign, key players, not least Wellens and Pryce, had failed to produce the form this season to match their previous efforts.
There were a couple of players whose form held in the tournament, especially Roby and Graham, but as with Graham when he played for Saints this year, too much was placed on the shoulders of impact players to compensate for the underperformance of others.
In the middle somewhere, between the likes of Burrow and Pryce who struggled and Roby and Graham who stood out, were players who on their day can be world class- yet none of them showed it. We all know that Martin Gleeson and Gareth Hock to name just two can tear defences apart, but again that form failed to materialise, the latter no doubt hindered further by a long period of suspension near the end of the season.
Many have said that we had an easy time of it in the tests against New Zealand last year, and no doubt they were a different proposition this time around. Yet from an England perspective, (ok, so they were GB in 2007 for what difference that makes), the 2007 series was a unique moment. We found a side in which almost every player was in form, peaking just at the right moment to produce individual and team brilliance.
This year, we found a side of players probably overburdened by their performances of the previous campaign and struggling to find that magic touch. So before we write-off England, Superleague et al., before we go searching for some great metanarrative to explain 36 years of failure, lets just consider for a moment that this just wasn’t our year; pack our bags home and move on.
World Cup Challenges
Wednesday, 12 November 2008
We are at the semi-final stages of the Rugby League World Cup and despite no-one having yet won the tournament, things appear to have polarised. On the one hand, the English team has been completely written off after failing to live up to expectations and producing performances which don't even match our other recent poor efforts down-under. On the other hand, Australia have already been given the trophy by most experts and fans. This has left many asking why bother to play the tournament at all?
There are though several problems with this state of affairs as I write.
First, it adds fuel to the anti-Rugby League mob in the mainstream media. In writing-off England's chances before a tackle has been made in the semis, we are doing their job for them. Those who aren't necessarily fans of League, but might have tuned in for a World Cup semi-final will now probably not bother. This will damage the growth of our game.
Second, this is a sport and anyone who knows sport knows that great things can happen when push comes to shove- or perhaps when push comes to three man tackle forcing an opponent over the dead-ball line.
Third, this group of English players did not suddenly become bad players. They have a proven track-record of winning in a tough competition and against adversity. In the past two seasons Leeds have twice won the Superleague Grand Final as outright underdogs - the first of those victories under current England coach Tony Smith. In this of all sports, teams go through difficult periods where even stringing passes together seems like hard work. These English players can produce the goods- if only they could get themselves together as a team.
Of course by Saturday it may be too late. By then they may have poured more cold water on the hopes of English Rugby League fans for another generation and dumped a number of eggs on this observer's face; but let us at least give them until then before we decide! With a morning start on Saturday, whatever the score there will be egg near my face at some point during the game (hopefully to be accompanied by bacon and black pudding!).
There are though several problems with this state of affairs as I write.
First, it adds fuel to the anti-Rugby League mob in the mainstream media. In writing-off England's chances before a tackle has been made in the semis, we are doing their job for them. Those who aren't necessarily fans of League, but might have tuned in for a World Cup semi-final will now probably not bother. This will damage the growth of our game.
Second, this is a sport and anyone who knows sport knows that great things can happen when push comes to shove- or perhaps when push comes to three man tackle forcing an opponent over the dead-ball line.
Third, this group of English players did not suddenly become bad players. They have a proven track-record of winning in a tough competition and against adversity. In the past two seasons Leeds have twice won the Superleague Grand Final as outright underdogs - the first of those victories under current England coach Tony Smith. In this of all sports, teams go through difficult periods where even stringing passes together seems like hard work. These English players can produce the goods- if only they could get themselves together as a team.
Of course by Saturday it may be too late. By then they may have poured more cold water on the hopes of English Rugby League fans for another generation and dumped a number of eggs on this observer's face; but let us at least give them until then before we decide! With a morning start on Saturday, whatever the score there will be egg near my face at some point during the game (hopefully to be accompanied by bacon and black pudding!).
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