EDITORIAL: Dire but I'll be watching: Aren't you?

It's a sign of the times, that on Saturday afternoon I was asked if I'd be watching the All Blacks-Italy test.
A few years ago I would have hissed: ``What do you mean? Of course I will be.''
But I politely offered: ``Yes. You always get something out of it.''
A few hours later, 40 minutes into the game, I'd got frustrated and a phone call from my equally frustrated brother in England.
Another 40 minutes on I knew why Richie McCaw had touted his Crusaders understudy George Whitelock as his international substitute prior to the Iveco series. Hurrah! A positive.
If it wasn't the most dire 80 minutes of test rugby I have witnessed in 40 years of following the game on television, it was close to it.
It was as if all the talk about the public falling out of love with the national game had got to the Men In Black. They were passionless _ the intensity was simply not there, teamwork was limited, mistakes were common.
The Tri-Nations appeared to be not a hill, but a giant mountain to climb for the defending champion.
In defence of the All Blacks, the weather conditions have not been kind in their first three outings of the season. The insistence of television that rugby be played at night continues to cause quality problems. June to August in New Zealand is a terrible time to play rugby at night! But you can yell that until the cows come home to no avail, because night rugby is the cash cow for Sky TV thanks to advertising dollars.
Also the All Blacks have been hit unusually hard by injuries and defections.
Take Sitiveni Sivivatu, Daniel Carter, Rodney So'oialo, Richie McCaw, Ali Williams and Andrew Hore out of any team and it would have to be weakened.
Add in Richard Kahui, Anthony Boric, continuing injury woes for Conrad Smith and sundry others, as well as the departures of Greg Somerville and Leon MacDonald and it hasn't been a pretty picture.
However concerns remain about the standard of the rugby witnessed. Brian Lochore once famously said words to the effect of, ``Put a good provincial player in an All Black jersey and he won't let you down''. That team, the Baby Blacks, went on to beat France 18-9 in 1986, and a year later several of them tasted World Cup glory.
But on Saturday perusing the team list it was disturbing to look at the stats, for example, of centre Isaia Toeava. This was his 24th test. To play 24 tests for the All Blacks and still not inspire complete confidence has to be cause for concern about his ability and the selection process.
For others, including some newcomers, June has not been a dream month. Even an experienced cove such as Joe Rokocoko appears to have lost the skill to beat a man.
At first-five the selectors lost patience with Stephen Donald and introduced Luke McAlister without success. They must make up their mind.
Similarly at halfback where Piri Weepu, continually on the bench, is the only one in form.
The backs have to find rhythm and to help them do that the pack has to find drive.
But all is not lost. South Africa have struggled to quell the British and Irish Lions and there are some odd selections in their mix, while the Wallabies have won without being too flash.
And the imminent return of Sivivatu, So'oialo, McCaw, Hore and hopefully Smith can't come soon enough. And there were one or two others missing on Saturday night.
They have the nouse and the ability to make all the difference in July and August.
So when I'm next asked if I'll be watching the All Blacks test tonight I might just add, as a diehard fan, a believer in the black jersey and Richie McCaw as a leader of the pack _ ``aren't you?''