Rugby: Lack of drop kick nous defeats ABs

Goncalo Malheiro celebrates a drop goal for Portugal in the clash with the All Blacks on September 15. Photo / Brett Phibbs

The English have been doing it in private. The Australians, brash colonial upstarts, have been doing it in public.

The Argentinians don't care where they do it and never have, but New Zealanders haven't been doing it in recent years and nor do they particularly like talking about why they don't do it.

This is, of course, dropping goals - now a subject of mirth and consternation in New Zealand as the nation is left to ponder for the next four years just why the All Blacks didn't try to move into field goal position in those final desperate 10 minutes against France.

The frustration is not eased any by the certainty that, put into the same position, France would have created a drop goal opportunity. England, Argentina and South Africa, the other semi-finalists, would also have had field goal on the brain in those dying throes.

Think back to 1995 and it was South Africa's Joel Stransky who broke the extra time deadlock with a drop goal. In that same tournament, Rob Andrew had put Australia out of the quarter-final with a long-range effort.

Four years later and Jannie de Beer famously struck five in one match to end England's hopes and then Stephen Larkham landed the first of his career in the semifinal to defeat the Boks.

Like anyone could ever forget, there was also Jonny Wilkinson's match-winner in 2003.

Come World Cups, everyone gets gripped by drop goal fever. It took a while for the infection to set in at this tournament, with the first goal being dropped by Portugal's Goncalo Malheiro against New Zealand.

Since then, though, goals have been dropped everywhere. Juan Martin Hernández kicked three in Argentina's 30-15 victory over Ireland, while Wilkinson dropped two against both Samoa and Tonga.

In the quarter-finals, the four teams that qualified all took regular drops at goal although Argentina were the only side to register a success.

Strangely, though, just two points behind against France with 13 minutes remaining, New Zealand weren't peppering the sticks with drop goals. They appeared to have some aversion to the option, choosing to pick and go in the hope they would force a penalty.

"We realised we had been in this situation before and we just tried to have composure," said halfback Byron Kelleher about the final period of the test. "We talked amongst ourselves that we should try and slow the game down - which is why we reverted to the pick and go to get close to their goal line.