All Black days have been forgiven Stephen.... Headmaster Henry!

When Stephen Donald's end of season fishing trip was rudely interrupted by headmaster Henry, he could have been forgiven for throwing his phone out into the sea and continuing to enjoy the tranquility of his time away from the Rugby field... for it was Henry, the ex-science teaching rugby master maestro of Auckland Boy's Grammar, who had given Donald his final expulsion from the All Blacks school of hard knocks... a life time of detention following an uninspiring tenure as the back-up fly half to his A class pupil... that man Dan Carter....

... but Donald finally accepted his call to arms... with one answer of a painfully persistent phone... a desperate and forgiving headmaster Henry begged his pupil return to the class-room... to front up in the old uniform and present to the whole Country all he had learned from his time in exile...

Coolness under pressure... confidence in the line of duty... the ability to make the moments count.... all these words must have been amongst the many lines that Henry dished out to Stephen Donald as punishment for his failures in the All Blacks jersey in Hong Kong in 2010...to his pupils credit... he had taken note!

Following fatal injuries to Henry's top 3 students in the number 10 jersey... it was up to an old boy to return to the fold and to prove to the new kids on the block that while you can't often teach an old dog new tricks... sometimes all they know is all they need... and all they have is good enough...

Donalds confidence to bounce from the bench and enter the pressure cooker of Eden Park to produce the kick that would ultimately bring the 2011 World cup to its rightful owners was inspiring if not somewhat inevitable... in a country of around 4 million, many of whom live and breathe the beautiful game of Rugby Union into their lungs at every chance, I'm sure there would have been many more who would have raced out onto the pitch and raised their hand for the chance to slot the kick that raised the hearts of the country... beyond the disasters of the 2011... and into the heights of heaven... a messiah to the masses!

There was however only one... one who would have otherwise been netting white bait out on the bay... but one who got the chance to repay his 30 mates (and their desperate fans) for their "4 more years" of pain and sacrifice.... and there was only he who produced the goods when it counted most...

To Stephen Donald your All Black days have been forgiven... with thanks... your headmaster and friend... Graham Henry...!

Pointless game of Rugby... Never Heard of one! (All you need is TWO teams and a ref)

If there ever was a pointless game of professional rugby union being played between two of the most exciting teams in test rugby, then critics would claim this week is it. Why have the two most disappointed teams in the sporting world for the past week been asked to front up for a pointless end to RWC 2011...? What is the point of watching Aus V Wales this Friday night??

The point is there is not point. The 3rd vs 4th match at the RWC is purely there to showcase our great game and to allow these players, who have slogged it out, in some cases for "4 more years", to play the game they love to play... without the shackles that "win at all costs" world cup frenzied fans put them in... just ask the likes of Quade Cooper!

We must remember the RWC was born in an amateur era, when players played for fun on the weekend... representing their country in between the pressures of everyday life at the office... or in some cases on the tools (mostly Rugby League players and Kiwi's)...

Players flourished on the field... and peaked at the bar beyond the game... recalling tales of how good they were that day... and embracing the beauties of the days great game...

Has the professional era erased our memories...? do we not recall how and for what the Rugby World Cup was built...? as a celebration of vast cultures of the world that share the love... to showcase the beauty of the game they play in heaven.... why then would we not want to watch the two youngest most expansive teams in World Rugby go head to head without the shackles...?

In an era when players tweet tales of how good they were before the game... while embracing beauties in the bar ... and floundering once they hit the field... has professionalism lost what the amateur era so easily gave....?

Has there ever been a pointless game of Rugby? I've never heard of one!

(All you need is TWO teams and a ref... Go the Wallabies!)

Goodbye Wallabies... You're Out... On the Full!

From the first kick-off in yesterdays elimination semi-final at the 2011 RWC, it was evident the Wallabies were on shaky ground. As Quade Cooper sent the first play of the match sailing straight out over the touch line and into the ball boys arms... Richie McCaw and his all black men sensed a kill!

The pressure on the Wallabies was immediate. Scrambling defence ensued over the next 10 minutes, as wave after wave of the black sea hammered upon the once golden now swiftly eroding wallabies defensive coastline...  as the elusive and all round impressive Isreal Dagg finally burst through the crumbling wallaby walls, sending Ma'a Nonu over in the corner... the questions inevitably surfaced in living rooms across the country...

... How is Rocky Elsom still in the number 6 jersey... being fended off by small kiwi wingers will surely add to his growing lowlights reel... Why is A.Faingaa still a Wallaby and still in New Zealand at all. He is out there primarily to defend and tonight, he can not. Why did Kurtley have to get injured...When is Rob Horne going to be injected... Why is Berrick not starting... Why did Pocock have to poke (by accident) Sekope Kepu (our only decent prop) in the eye, rendering him useless for further duty.... further more, do we have any up and coming props in the country who can actually scrummage as we need some, desperately.... also, does Robbie Deans actually get any Wallabies to practice taking the high ball at training..? They clearly struggle with this favourite past time of anyone who plays them...

So then it was... at Eden Park, where men stay men and boys stay boys, the AllBlack men of Richie's army hammered defeat into the coffins of Robbie Deans and his Wallaby Ball Boys...

Perhaps it was all to soon for a young developing team... a few years too early in their "world cup cycle"... time will tell whether these boys can develop into something like the successful and impressive men who will lift the William Web Ellis cup next week for the second time on home soil... there will be no French revolution this time... to the AllBlack men of Richie's army... well done... this is your time...

For the Wallabies ball boys of Eden Park... we hope you learn from your humbling defeat... it's time now to sign off... your out!... on the FULL!http://s1.proxy04.twitpic.com/photos/large/425523564.jpg

In the words of Maxwell Smart... " Is this the Sharpe end 99?"

With the red hot form of Nathan Sharpe at the 2011 Rugby World Cup to date most would have assumed his selection on the bench for Sunday's crucial semi-final against the AB's was a fait accompli! It seems Robbie Deans however has other plans, with the Wallabies most experienced lock (and current player) left out of the match day 22 all together!

Sharpey now finds himself stranded on 99 tests for the Wallabies, and with next week no sure thing... his record could be as unenviable as the great Don's batting average... the century so close, but no cigar!

But do milestones really matter? When it's all said and done, who really cares how many runs we have on the board... isn't it the journey we enjoy along the way that matters most?

I'm sure Sharpey agree's that statistics and milestones are for the statistics guys, and its the life experience and team success that really matters... the fact he is not out there on Saturday will hurt him the most... but he will not show it... as one of the Wallabies true leaders, Sharpey will stand by his men and call for them to "Go for Gold" and get the team through to next week...

If they can do it, with Rob Simmons preferred for the bench lock role against the AB's... I'm tipping Robbie has one last 'rotational' twist up his 'team of ultimate depth' sleeve... watch for Sharpey's experience to be injected against the Northern hemisphere's finest on October 22nd!... I'm tipping the Rugby World Cup final 2011to feature the resurgent Wallabies, and to mark the perfect end for a true Wallaby great, Nathan Sharpe...

... so is 99 the end... in the words of Maxwell Smart "I think not"!

Send Him Back... Send Him Back...

Watching the master of unpredictability predictably struggle to steer the Wallabies ship around Wellington's Regional Stadium against the Springboks... armchair experts Australia wide were calling out in unison... "send him back, send him back..."

Three weeks earlier, against the Irish warlords of Landsdowne Road, when the Eden Park cauldron had once again cast its spell on the mostly masterful yet often flappable Quade Cooper, an astute brother of Australian arms called for Robbie Deans to "make the Mastermind work on his stroke"... urging Robbie to "send him back, send him back"... calling for Quade to be punished for the disaster, and made to swim it back... all the way home across the Tasman Sea!

Fast-foward a week and the Masters stroke was back in business, he seemed assured and steadied against the freshly tattooed Russian enemy... but alas... this was achieved only in the presence of his reliable Kinsman... Sir Berrick Barnes of Loche-calmed-ness...

For it was at the back where Quade seemed to shine... from the deeper down-field... he seemed able to launch his attacking charms, attacking with distinction and hitting the line... with the pace required to leave the opposition baffled... as his shoulders went right...  his hips went left... making the room for his mates to run through the gaps... and split the defence.... the result... a barrage tries!... all of this from the second line... from a stint at the back!

So as the Wallabies true Dark Knight (Kurtley Beale) struggles to make it through to the next decisive battle... courtesy of his hamstrung hips... Australian armchair experts once again go up in unison and call for Robbie Deans to..."Send him Back... Send him back..."

Please Robbie do us all proud... install as your Flyhalf... Sir Berrick Barnes of Loche-calmed-ness....
send Quade Cooper to Fullback ... and let him handle the rest!

It seems Springbok is best served well done!!

Eating our national animal the Kangaroo is fast becoming the norm of health savvy Australians around the country. A lean gamey slab of 'roo' presents a rich source of protein for those looking to build muscle mass enmasse'... minus the unwanted burden of heart risky trans-fats...

But there is another country out there who prefers to celebrate their representative animal brothers by eating them rather than protecting them... A country that risked it all for a bunch of players beyond their prime and paid the price... This endangered species...  the 2011 RWC Springbok!  

Enter David Pocock. The muscle strapped health conscious Aussie answer to the Flinstone's character BamBam. DP was dished up a serve of overdone Springbok on Sunday thanks to an Irish team who set the Wallabies on the unfamiliar path of World Cup Group 'runners-up'... It appears DP enjoys his... Springbok well done on all accounts...

Sundays performance at theBreakDown was the most comprehensive performance by an open-side at the 2011 World Cup to date, and perhaps the primary reason Wallabies fans still have reason to don the gold and dare to dream for one more week... thank you Dave!

His strength over the ball was immense... his ability to maintain position and pilfer the unpilferable was inspiring... he tackled like his lunch (or a 3am protein shake) depended on it... and his post-match interview showed all the signs of a man physically defeated but not yet informed his sacrifice had been the ultimate success... he personified the Wallabies performance... all heart and all defence!

So the Wallabies head to Auckland this week with damaged bodies, but with their heads held high... the ultimate test awaits... lets just hope the likes of David Pocock spend the week enjoying their win but planning for the next...

For many of the Springboks waning stars... it seems it's lights out... Thank you and Goodbye...

David Pocock enjoyed his Springbok meal... Best served... Well Done!