48 hours: All Whites win inspires...well, a comment

This column was initially going to be about the Super 14 final but we changed it at the last minute, for a couple of reasons.

For a start, we couldn't see the rugby final because of the pea-souper in Christchurch on Saturday night. And there was also concern about the mauling we'd receive from Danny Hay if we didn't start with the All Whites.

Hay, remember, gave us all a good tongue-lashing at the weekend for not praising New Zealand enough after their loss against Hungary, claiming he was angered by Kiwis' indifference.

The way he saw it, the fact his team hadn't been completely annihilated was apparently grounds for great rejoicing, and ought to have resulted in far more fawning coverage from the New Zealand media.

So you can just imagine how we've jumped to attention now the All Whites have actually won their first game of soccer in Europe, a reportedly riveting 3-1 win over 101st-ranked Georgia.

Given his earlier outburst, Hay will no doubt expect ticker-tape parades and perhaps a national holiday to mark the triumph, not to mention far more public support and respect.

But he really shouldn't hold his breath.

If anything, his comments only confirmed what many of us suspected, that some of our country's soccer-heads live in cloud-cuckoo land when it comes to accepting reality.

After all, it wasn't that long ago that Knights boss Steve O'Hara, who has since left the job, called a press conference so he could chastise the nation's media over not being positive enough about the A-League campaign. At that stage, the Knights had lost 10 out of 11 games.

It's not hard to understand Hay's desire for more credibility. But did he really think that lambasting the general public (after a loss) would engender more support for his team; that people would suddenly realise what they'd been missing?

He sounded like a struggling store-owner slating passers-by for their lack of interest.

At some stage the New Zealand skipper needs to accept that you can't force people to take an interest in your pursuit. You have to attract them, seduce them, make them feel like they need to be part of it.

Yesterday's result in Germany was a massive step in the right direction in that regard, and it's true that the All Whites' effort against Hungary was also a worthy one, particularly as it came so soon after a long-haul flight.

Hay should rest assured that if enough convincing performances are put together on-field, sports-loving New Zealanders across the board will clamour for a piece of the action - just as we did in the days leading up to 1982.

But equally certain is that outbursts like the one after the Hungary result are more likely to prove counter-productive.

Yes, the Georgia win was an excellent result, but there'll need to be many more like that before Hay can feel justified in accusing us of apathy.

High

The Sky rugby commentary in the fog on Saturday night. Take a bow TJ, Nisbo; even you Muzza. Whoever came up with the idea of calling it from both sides of the field deserves a medal. Not that any of us could see what you were talking about.

Low

Sean Marks' decision against reconsidering his availability for the Tall Blacks' world championship campaign. Understandable, given his NBA career, but still a blow for New Zealand's chances.