Welcome back everyone. Cairnsgourmet is back online and the blog will be updated agains as regularly as it was. Unfortunately there wasn't enough time to comment on this last round, a round of upsets. However, the Blues seem to have come back, battling the former home of the new coach and beating them for the second successive time at Eden Park. Good news for you Blues fans out there, like this fellow who sent me the comment before this round.

"I will be upfront and admit I am a blues supporter and I think the Blues are having a cracker of a season. That is only because I have videoed every game the blues have played so far and by carefully splicing all the first half performances together I have really enjoyed what I have seen. Damn shame about the second half but at least they aren't beating each other up I guess like some other teams.

Can anyone suggest what the problem with the Blues is? True they have lost a few good players but to be wallowing near the bottom of the table hardly seems to reflect the potential of the players they have? Who to blame – the coach (damn Aussie!) or the captain (surely not!)."

Some good material in there to comment on. I'm not sure what they were doing wrong, but they may have just sorted it out. Perhaps they were looking for a reason to play...and they found that the number of hits on their websites were down now that they are losing. Perhaps having another player whose name no one can pronounce helped in their quest to regain some form?

I'm looking forward to getting some more comments on the blog and being able to post a few more articles about this coming Round of Super 14. Apologies for the delay, and keep on coming back. Bring it on!

Hi Everyone,

Sorry for the lack of posts of late, unfortunately I am in the process of moving and my isp has delayed the connection to the internet at my new place. In spite of repeated requests it will take four working days to connect me to the internet, and the helpful (not) employee that I first spoke to failed to note my file accurately and the process was not started until I complained yesterday. It looks like I wont be online until the next round, so all of you enjoy this round and come back for the next one to get all the low down on the weekend's games.

Remember, the sevens at the Commonwealth Games are on now and some of the teams will be without a few of their stars if they have been selected to represent the nation in this area.

Cheers.

Elbows and Punches Herald Collapse of Hurricanes Season?

Is this it?  Is this the start of the Hurricanes annual season collapse as it has occurred every other year?  I awoke today to news that punches were thrown (and some reports also include the throwing of an elbow between team mates before the round even gets underway!  Lome Fa’atau seems to have gotten on the wrong side of hard man Jerry Collins and copped an elbow to the face at an after match function following the Hurricane’s loss this round.  Apparently the fight was broken up inside the bar, however Fa’atau was understandably livid and the boys had another crack outside the bar.  Not so good for team discipline, but at least the other players that were there came together to pull them apart.

Also on the bright side, it seems no member of the public was involved this time, and also there is no complaint from the owner of the establishment where the incident occurred.

However, of concern for Wellington fans is the conflict within the team with two games to go in the Republic before they return home. After last weeks surprise loss, this can’t be good for team building, especially now that captain Tana Umaga is out of the picture, probably for the rest of the competition.

Coach Cooper has left open the question of whether or not the two will be suspended for this weeks game, preferring to leave it until the team is announced on Friday.  Given past suspensions of Tialata and Nonu after their brief foray into team boxing, it seems that consistency would dictate that the two ought to be suspended for this round.  It is, however, clearly a discretionary matter and will be dealt with internally.  

This is exactly the kind of attention that a team on the edge can do without.  It will either make or break their season depending on how the team responds to the incident and adverse publicity.  The media machine has latched onto it and now all the references to role models and hobby horse preaching will get underway in earnest.  For reports on what happened, click here and here and here!

I find it hard to believe that professional athletes engage in this sort of conduct after matches.  This is the kind of thing you would expect at schoolboy level, not at Super 14 level.  Surely these guys can keep whatever grievance they have against each other under control and behave in a civilized manner.  I am guessing that alcohol will have had something to do with it and I would like to know what team management is doing again allowing this sort of thing to go on in the Republic.  Why do these things happen with such frequency over there?  It is about time that team management took a guiding role and influenced these players in their choice of unwinding after the game.

Rugby Results and Cell Phone Antics from Round Four

The Hurricanes finish round four with a loss to the Cheetahs in the Republic, who continue to surprise in their first season. I think having the big men in the front row is the secret to their success, and wasn’t it great to see the big Os get a try! Fantastic stuff, although it did serve to knock the Hurricanes from the top spot. Then again, given the history of that franchise it was about time that they started their collapse, and add to the comment made on this blog that the Hurricanes can win any game except a final or semi. The Africans remain realistic with their feet firmly on the ground after a disappointing weekend for their teams. Check out what the Africans have to say about the pride of the Cheetahs here.

Of more concern is the injury to Tana Umaga that is reported here to have the captain out for the rest of Super 14. That will be a loss, and clearly injuries played a role in the team coming out second best. However, injuries, and it seems suspensions, are part of the mix for the Super 14 and depth is one thing that will be tested in all teams each season. The ‘Canes get beaten in South Africa and the only question is, will this be the end of their good run, and will the rot that has beset them each season in the era of professionalism now set in and see them in the middle of the table at the end of the competition? Only time will tell, and they have shown a bit more heart than in previous seasons.

Elsewhere the Blues woes have continued when a 10 point lead at half time was blown out to a loss of 39-10 with the Crusaders running in 39 unanswered points in the second half for a win over the traditional foe. It didn’t all go badly for Auckland (except the refereeing decisions which saw Rockococko sent from the field for 10 minutes in the second half, and also Ali Williams spend 10 in the bin at the end of the game too), although the result was somewhat predictable, and yet again they have let a game go in the second half. However, they were competitive for longer and the score line doesn’t really do them justice. Canterbury were too good at the breakdown and Auckland allowed McCaw to get away with too much offside play. Perhaps they were all worried about being suspended. In any event, a superb display from the best number 7 in the world, and the usual playing style of the Crusaders won out. I hate to be a critic, but you wonder when the Crusaders will start to score from well developed back line moves instead of pouncing on the mistakes of their foes. For a full match report read here and here. For a very positive spin, check this out here.

Despite being rated favourites, the Stormers were unable to justify that tag and wilted to a 15-30 loss at home to the Highlanders. It seems that the men in tartan are doing okay over in the Republic this time around, however they will be tested next week against the Bulls at home. For a full match report click here and here.

The Warratahs predictably ate the Sharks at home 31-16. It was all over red rover pretty early on and while the punters in Aussie are talking down the Tahs so far this year, they haven’t done too badly all things considered. They may well be there in the finals this year. For a full match report click here. Mat Rogers made a good return to football and we’ll all be looking forward to him making a contribution as the season continues after his reversal of his earlier decision not to play this year. Good to see him back and all the best to him after a shocking series of personal life events.

And finally, a human interest story from New Zealand emerges in the Aussie and Kiwi media. Byron Kelleher seems to have truly entered the digital age and made full use of his new partner’s ‘former’ racy occupation by taking saucy snaps and films of himself and his partner allegedly indulging in private lewd acts. The device by which he accomplished this? His cell phone. Interesting use of the new technology my friend, and just the kind of thing the so called role models of our community ought to be doing.

But wait. What’s that? Some cad nicked your phone? And now he’s trying to pawn them off to the media? Who’d a thunk of that? Rob Lowe perhaps? Doubtless even Pam Anderson or Paris Hilton could told him that might happen!

The article which you can read by clicking here identifies some other indiscretions that have been taped involving New Zealand’s best hope of winning the World Cup in France in 2007 and two young French backpacker chicks. Seems the French might be onto him and may have sent the two Feme Fatales to take care of young Daniel in the lead up to the competition! Now that is some nice off field material to have to be released at the right time. We’ll have to wait and see how that develops!

Well, that’s all the news that is fit to print from Round 4. We’re seeing the clear emergence of the top teams now, and the finalists will not be far from being identified soon. The only real question is, will the Hurricanes still be there, at the end. Bring on Round five!

Round Four Heats Up

Round four get under way with the Reds left with egg on their face after a toweling in Hamilhole.  So much for their being not far off the pace…it seems the only thing that has been keeping them in it was the fact that their first three games were at home.  It is going to be a long season for Reds fans, and they had better be careful of becoming a ‘next season’ team.  The Reds have been getting good press leading up to every season so far, and they have consistently failed to deliver.  Perhaps Eddie can turn it all around next year.  Also Latham makes the Australian sevens team for the commonwealth games.

For the Chiefs, they have celebrated their return to Hamilton, birthplace of the rich and famous and truly the land where milk flows like water, in style.  Gibbes returns and makes an impression clearly indicating that his leadership is important to the team.  Lauaki continues with his strong playing style, I expect big things from this guy.  Watch out when these boys come up against the loose forward trio of Wellington.  Watching Jerry and Sione go at it should be very interesting.  I can imagine the Colonel and Ronald McDonald rubbing their hands with glee seeing these two lads waltz in the door after the big game!  Could it be that this franchise is starting to come right?  Muliaina would be thinking he has made the right move at this stage.

For a full match report from Aussie click here, and the report from New Zealand click here.

In last night’s other match the Brumbies put away the Cats in the capital in their first home game of the season.  So, the Brumbies remain unbeaten, but the draw they had in the Republic leaves them at the bottom of the top 4 in the competition.  No surprises in this game, except perhaps that the Brumbies were not able to get their fourth try for the bonus point in the second half after running up such a huge lead.  However, I think this has more to do with professionalism than anything else.  These guys always slacken off when they have the game put away.  It is unlikely that the bonus point will hold them out of the top 4 at the end of the season.  Click here for the Aussie view.

As for the Cats, the less said about them the better I think.  Obviously they are miles off the pace in this contest, and are easy beats.  For comment from South Africa click here.

In my view the big game is coming up this afternoon Aussie time.  The Blues against the Crusaders should be a cracker.  With any luck the shoe leather will be kept off the head and body of Ritchie McCaw this year and the Blues can keep most of their players on the field and off the suspension lists this time.  The traditional rivalry is alive and well and Christchurch could be the scene of another classic game.  I would say that the Blues supporters on this site have been muted lately and is a clear indication of the lack of faith in this Blues team….are they going to prove me wrong?  I doubt it, while the Crusaders haven’t played that well the last couple of weeks, they have won all their games.  The Blues on the other hand have posted one win against the lowly Reds.