Commentary on the All Blacks and All Black Jersey

[p-b]

Written by "Haffie" on www.peoplesweekly.com

Self-Restricting Membership

Wales have no chance of beating the All Blacks this weekend, however they do have the distinction of welcoming the New Zealanders into a sad but exclusive club. A club Wales founded, and until last Saturday it only included them and the Springboks. It is the club aptly named, "The Club of Once Great and Feared Rugby Nations".

This club could only ever have three members, for in Rugby's proud history there have only ever been three nations who until their demise were constantly feared, respected and revered with awe by other Rugby nations. I am of course referring to Wales, South Africa and especially, New Zealand. The Welsh lost their fear factor by the beginning of the 80s. The last time they posed a threat to New Zealand was in 1978 when thanks to a last minute penalty the All Blacks prevailed 13-12.

Since then it has been all downhill for the Joneses. First they lost the respect of the New Zealanders, then as poor coaching and management of the game progressed the other home nations surpassed the once mighty red devils. Australian rugby stopped sodomising itself in its private schools, became a world class unit and took the mantle of the Welsh as one of the world's best. Now the Welsh game is so bad even the likes of Italy fancy their chances whenever they head to Cardiff.

My beloved Springboks never recaptured their former glory days once South Africa was eventually freed from the bigotry and sickening dogma that was apartheid. Post-isolationist South African rugby has never been as frightening to the opposition as it was in days gone by. Series losses to the All Blacks and Lions, then defeats by Australia and the now feeble Welsh combine with losses to the Scots and English to tell the tale of a proud rugby past, with nothing more than an average future. Apart from an inspirational World Cup win in 1995 South African rugby has shown itself to be as fragmented and as poorly administered as the nation's battle against AIDS. And now with their loss to England in Wellington last week the once feared All Blacks have completed the trio of once-were greats.

Since the mixed blessing of professionalism came along the Wallabies with their annual victories over the All Blacks have laid to rest the psychological edge the New Zealanders had over their ANZAC brethren. Now the English have joined the French as yet another Northern Hemisphere nation that no longer cringes at the sight of the haka and 15 men in black totally committed to winning no matter what the cost.

This, as Wales and South Africa have found, is fatal to the psyche of its players and fans. Once an opposition believes it can beat you, and does so with regularity it is hard to recapture the respect and fear that once surrounded a team. And sadly for the All Blacks they lost that totally in Wellington. Wales have been trying for over 20 years and have yet to regain their past reputation, while the Springboks are ending their first decade as a "remember when" team.

For New Zealanders the most frighting aspect of their admission into this unfortunate trio is that the All Blacks management and the NZRU have either not noticed this slide by their team, or they don't care.

The World Cup is important and I still believe the All Blacks have what it takes to win, but by allowing England to get one over them could prove fatal. I'm no fan of the English team, but like many here in the Southern Hemisphere I have been forced to become an admirer of the way they have played and performed over recent seasons.

New Zealand must do everything possible to leave The Club of Once Great and Feared Rugby Nations ASAP, otherwise, as the Welsh and South African examples have shown, the longer you stay the harder it is to leave. Does the NZRU want to go the way of the Welsh, and be known as a former great rugby nation but now nothing more than a warmup team for the likes of England (a nation hell-bent on absolute rule of the game globally)?

Here is my challenge to the once great New Zealand game. Coach smarter, lead smarter, play smarter, learn from the Welsh and South African experiences, and listen to your fans and former great players. Let the public see you train and allow the fans to feel a part of the All Blacks legend. It is the fans that reinforce the legend. Don't be so arrogant to think that it is not possible for the black jersey to go the way of the scarlet and the green.

You have taken another step toward mediocrity. It is going to take a lot of self-analysis and a huge reality check to address the problem. A victory over your Welsh club mates by 50 points would be a good start. But it will only be a start. For you Kiwis there is much work to be done.

[p-b]

Enough Experimentation

There certainly has been a lot of experimentation with the All Blacks, hasn't there?

While I applaud a lot of what I have seen in terms of trying new combinations and game plans, there is one aspect of the All Blacks that doesn't need tinkering... and I strongly suggest to those responsible they either temper their alterations or keep their hands off it completely. I am of course talking about the relationship between adidas and the All Black jersey. The combination of black fabric and silver fern once struck fear into the hearts of all opposition, but as the garment gets progressively tighter and shinier the Springboks at least (and I suspect other national reps) are making jokes about how girly it looks.

Call me old-fashioned.

Prior to Japanese company Mizuno briefly taking over as the official boot supplier to the All Blacks, adidas and their famous three-striped boots were donned by the world's leading rugby team. Alan Hewson, who kicked the 1981 All Blacks to victory over the Springboks, wore them and endorsed them as did other greats like Loveridge, Mourie and Knight. John Kirwan and the rest of the All Blacks won New Zealand's only World Cup title wearing them. The relationship between team and company is a long and mutually-beneficial one. Unfortunately, from a purist's point of view the Germanic takeover of the entire black uniform has not shown adidas in a good light. At times they have simply used the All Blacks as nothing but lab rats to experiment on. Why can't they do their experimentation elsewhere? A test match is called a test because it's a test of each nation's rugby capabilities, not because it's a forum for pushing the edge of the fashion envelope.

The great Cowboy Shaw growled to Mike Brewer when he was a new All Black, "you've got to piss blood to wear this jersey."

It appears as if adidas, despite the glossy and well-marketed commercials, have little regard for what it represents. Trial and error experiments with the fabric amount to disrespect for this most holy of garments. The 1999 version of the All Black jersey, with its shiny look and pads that were supposed to help players hold onto the ball, was a failure. Did it help the team win the World Cup? Young men are notoriously self-conscious about their appearance.

I know it was not the jersey that was the sole factor in the All Blacks' disappointing tournament in 1999, but how much does space-age fabric go towards helping sportsmen (those not involved in a sport where wind resistance and millisecond timing are major factors)? We are talking about rugby, not sprinting, track cycling, yachting or speed skating. Even in those sports, experimentation shouldn't take place during important races (Team New Zealand proved that conclusively).

The new tight-fitting jersey designed for the backs is literally falling off the players. The fabric is not up to the rigours of the game and whatever testing that took place was flawed. How would adidas look if the skirts fell off Anna Kournikova? Well... I'm sure she would look all right (and the Germans have a history, anyway, of trying to strip Russians of any dignity they possess), but the company would have to undertake a massive PR campaign to repair the damage to its reputation in a truly global sport like tennis.

It is a blight on the image of adidas to have such an inferior product out there. But then again, look at that joke of a ball they inflicted on international rugby last year. That was, as Andrew Mehrtens called it, "a lemon". If the ball was a lemon then the new All Black jersey is a rag. I feel for all you Kiwis who rightly regard the Black jersey as something sacred. It is being treated with disrespect by a major international company that should know better. They don't even look like jerseys. Hell, all the players have to do after the game is take their shorts off, don a pair of fancy slacks and they're ready to go raving in their custom-made All Black nightclub shirt.

My suggestion to adidas is don't mess with a classic and go back to the tried and true rugby jersey fabric. Otherwise stick to soccer tops. Those guys can't wait to get them off and play grab-ass once they score a goal.

Another key point (and this is no mistake of adidas, it was actually made by the NZRFU and Canterbury, the traditional makers of All Black jerseys) is not to embroider the silver fern directly onto the jersey. This first happened in 1986 when the NZRFU changed the design of the silver fern. The fern used to be a separate badge that was sewn onto the jersey, which meant whatever the conditions the silver fern always stood out.

Since 1986, once the players have gotten a sweat up and the rain and dew of night games have taken effect, the fern has taken on something of a gray look. To some this may sound picky, but with so many of the game's values being eroded, I say rugby needs to preserve what tradition it can. If adidas want to repair their tarnished image I suggest they get the fern back onto a sewn badge and the players back into a tough fabric. In that way they will ensure their name, along with that of the All Blacks, will stay one of sport's biggest icons.

Wurde nicht das ist gut, mien folke?

[p-b]

Bring back the Canterbury of New Zealand jersey!

[ZoSo]

Agreed! and what is with the AB's standing out singing the national anthem with no jackets or long pants on?? Is it part of the sponsors contract to be tough and cool while the rest of the worlds teams keep nice and warm before the start of the game?
Considering we always seem to start off shit these days, maybe it's something to look at!

[BoyWonder]

In regards to the first article - translation - " My team got beaten, and now they suck, and I don't like them anymore, and I'm taking my ball and going home "

I haven't had a look at the link, but I assume this was written before the English handed the Australians their collective ass on a plate. The English have got a good experienced team together, and they beat an AB team that just needs to sharpen up a bit (and they will). The Welsh DID go down in flames to the AB's so it is a bit rough to put the AB's in the same basket.

I am very confident that this AB squad will get it together and, they do have a good chance of pulling off the WC.

[wugambino]

Originally posted by BoyWonder
In regards to the first article - translation - " My team got beaten, and now they suck, and I don't like them anymore, and I'm taking my ball and going home "

I haven't had a look at the link, but I assume this was written before the English handed the Australians their collective ass on a plate. The English have got a good experienced team together, and they beat an AB team that just needs to sharpen up a bit (and they will). The Welsh DID go down in flames to the AB's so it is a bit rough to put the AB's in the same basket.

I am very confident that this AB squad will get it together and, they do have a good chance of pulling off the WC.

[Simon]

I whole-heartedly agree with the piece regarding the jersey. That garment used to be a source of pride, now it's a fucking joke.

[Spoon1]

Originally posted by p-b
Bring back the Canterbury of New Zealand jersey!

[Simon]

It's a sad state of affairs when I can walk into a Canterbury of New Zealand store and buy a Wallaby jersey, or a Waratahs jersey, or a Brumbies jersey, or a Reds jersey but no All Black jersey.

By the looks of the All Blacks at the moment, I'd have more luck finding one in an Oxford Street or K Rd gay clubbing-wear store.

[BoyWonder]

LOL - maybe you've just started a gay fashion craze.

[ipee]

and to think the current AB's actually like the new jersey, tell's u something about the modern player. I'm trying to picture colin "pinetree" meads or mark "cowboy" shaw in one of these tight outfits but i'm just drawing a blank.

Of course this is professionalism so the AB's need to play ball with the sponsors or else they will find themselves trailing the rest of the world, especially for a national team representing such a small country.

Natural talent can only take u so far.

[Simon]

I went in to the local Canterbury store to get a new (plain) rugby jersey for training the other day, and what did I see on the tag?

MADE IN CHINA

What the fuck?

So I harassed the owner of the store, who informed me that Canterbury's new American owners have decided to move all manufacturing to China to cut costs.

What the fuck?

Canterbury rugby jerseys are now made in China?

[Rumor]

First and only time I went to Christchurch a few years back I was keen to take a tour of the Cantabury factory, all that was left on the site was a gift shop as they had only recently moved it all off shore, was totally gutted for more than one reason.