A round-up of today's other stories in brief
Tindall tattle
MIKE TINDALL’S nocturnal activities along with his English team-mates on a night out in Queenstown have been tabloid gold and the New Zealand media have been having fun with the “story” as well.
A picture of Tindall and the Queen’s granddaughter, Zara Phillips, on their wedding day seven weeks ago dominated the front page of the New Zealand Herald yesterday under the heading: Rugby Royal, The Blonde and The Dwarf.
It just had it all.
Age profile: Favours Aussies
MUCH IS made of the need for experience at World Cups, all the more so in light of England winning in 2003 and reaching the final in 2007, although the age profile of the South African squad has generally been cited critically.
The contrast in age profile between the Irish and Australian squads has also been highlighted, although three of the four changes from the side that started against the USA have seen younger men called in.
The average age of Ireland’s starting XV for this game is over 27 and a half, whereas the average age of the Wallabies’ starting line-up is over 25 and a half. Radike Samo and Dan Vickerman are the only thirtysomethings in their starting line-up (Ireland have six) and their back line is particularly youthful, with Adam Ashley-Cooper by some distance the elder statesman at 27 (Anthony Fainga’a is the second oldest at 24).
Whatever about this World Cup, as things stand Australia look the best bet to win the next one in England four years hence.
Ham-fisted: from Mexted
AWAY FROM the actual matches, the television coverage here, especially on Sky Sports (who are showing all 48 matches), on magazine programmes and such like is often irreverent and jokey.
So it is a reporter was sent looking for a leprechaun, which was about the extent of one piece on Ireland, while captions underneath coaches or players as they talk tell a tale. Take the example of two of the ex-All Blacks coaching rival teams.
The caption under Australian coach Robbie Deans was “ex-Kiwi”, whereas underneath the still popular John Kirwan, Japan’s coach, it read: “Ninja Warrior”.
The commentaries can be fairly irreverent too. Murray Mexted throws in a few curve balls that, perhaps, he prepared earlier.
During the USA-Russia game, as the cameras scanned the crowd, Mexted was surprised by how many Russian fans had “come out of the woodwork” and speculated whether there really were that many living in the vicinity.
“Either that or a lot of people go to bed with a clenched fist.”
Picture perfect
OVER THE duration of the World Cup in Auckland there is an exhibition of the best rugby photographs taken over the years. Sports Illustratedphotographer Neil Leifer was brought in as consultant for the choice of pictures. He voted the best picture in the exhibition was taken by Ireland's best-known sports photographer Billy Stickland from Inpho. It is a picture of Peter Stringer from behind in a line-up supported by Malcolm O'Kelly and Alan Quinlan during the 2003 World Cup.
Wrong lesson
STONES AND glasshouses and all that, but an interesting tagline on the official rugbyworldcup.com website during the week caught our eyes. Under the heading: Rivals heap praise on Wallaby Elsom, the tag explained: "Ireland's Denis Leamy and Jamie Heaslip learned a lot playing with the Australian flanker in Leinster's 2008/2009 championship
season". Another blow for Tipperary, then.
