South Africa - pfffff!
All right so they won. And they played well. They are a world class team or are they? If they’re such great players, why in the hell do they feel the need to play such nasty rugby?
Rugby is a rough sport, no doubt about that. But there is no excuse for the kind of extra-curricular violence that, to my mind, is the earmark of the South African team and why I cannot feel they deserved to be called best in the world. Because they played the way South Africa always plays and that’s dirty. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again - if you’re are going to play rugby, play it FAIRLY. And FAIRLY does not mean grabbing a man who hasn’t the ball and tossing him around. What was that deal with Phillips? And it doesn’t mean slugging Henson in the jaw as you run past him just because you feel like it, and it doesn’t mean hitting and pushing and punching in an assortment of illegal moves.
And what the hell was the line judge looking at? The pretty girl in the stands? It sure wasn’t the rugby match.
That’s not to say that Wales couldn’t have done better. More than once I found myself shouting “What were they thinking?!!! The skills were there, and God knows the strength and determination seemed to be there, so what happened? Hook wasn’t battling a thousand, that’s for sure. I don’t think he’s ever missed that many kicks in one game before, has he? And I, for one, sorely missed Shane Williams - there were certainly a couple of opportunities that, were he playing, we would have had the tries, no doubt.
And, in spite of all the reservations that were expressed this past week, Henson did a terrific job and seemed to be well on his game this afternoon. So here’s to you Gavin! Well done!
But I have to say I was really disappointed by the play this afternoon. We were so close so many times but just couldn’t quite seem to get there. And I think that’s more frustrating than playing poorly.
Still, it was a good effort lads. We’ll take them next time in spite of what, in my opinion, is poor-sportsmanship tactics.