Marshall's right - rugby is boring, say fans

This week the Herald invited readers to respond to All Black Justin Marshall's claim the Tri-Nations and Super 12 have become monotonous. It excited a huge response and as the following selection of opinions show, most people, nearly all in fact, are with Marshall. There was also plenty of advice for the New Zealand Rugby Union - some of it a little too direct for publication.

Yes, I am afraid Super 12 and Tri Nations are boring and I can understand Justin Marshall's comments. It used to be that the All Blacks played South Africa only every five years or so - 1956, 1960, 1965, 1970 etc.

What this meant was that for the losing side there was a big gap before they had the chance to redress the balance. It was not common for many players to have two series against the Springboks during their career.

Now games are held every year and I am sure there is a feeling that "if we lose this year, there is always next year". This also applies to the Super 12.

I can recall the scores and details of the 1970 tour of South Africa more clearly than last year's games.
GREG CAVE, GLENDENE

I reckon Marshall is on the money. Why couldn't we involve Argentina, or the Islander team, or both? Good on ya, Marshall, for speaking out!
CLIFF

I agree with Justin Marshall's views. Contrary to what Sky Sport tries to sell us in its flashy ads and promos, the Super 12 is just a predictable rugbython that beats you about the head for 14 excruciating weeks.

As for the Tri-Nations, I won't be watching it this year. I'm tired of seeing the All Blacks playing Australia and South Africa all the time.
PETER AGNEW, WELLINGTON

The Tri-Nations needs to be expanded or possibly the winner should automatically play the winner of the Six Nations.
ROBIN DUCKER, AUCKLAND

Although I'm not a big fan of Justin Marshall, in this instance I believe he has a perfectly valid point.

Rugby used to be a joy to watch. Come in from the cold on a mid-winter's day, crank up the fire and feel the passion to quell the opposition. Now we start the season in ... well, the cricket season!

As for the players, you can see that their panache and zeal for the game has been frittered away by their sport becoming a day-to-day grind.
TONY JENKINS

I don't think the Tri-Nations etc are boring. I think Justin Marshall is acting like a spoilt little brat and burning his bridges with New Zealand rugby when he shouldn't be.

It would've been real nice to see Marshall come back after his stint at Leeds and take up coaching or something to put back into rugby, but quite frankly, all I can think now is good riddance.
KIRSTIN

I agree with Marshall that the public need/want more.

The upcoming Lions tour takes us back to when teams actually played our provincial heroes. Remember the Springbok head that was always up for grabs against all provinces? I do.

Carisbrook was the last time it was taken. What a fantastic day.

Remember when touring teams played 3rd division NPC squads and the whole region stopped for half a day on a Wednesday to savour the moment?

Teams may have lost by huge scores but the lone try scorer became a legend, and rightly so.

However, I suppose that money talks these days and the TV rights to South Africa v East Coast Ngati Porou in Ruatoria would be a hard sell in Japan!

Forget the buck, bring back the tours, I say.
WAYNE BAIRD, NAPIER

I can understand why these competitions are boring for Justin Marshall.

He has been in them for so long, playing with and against the same people. It is obviously a personal thing and he is bored. Going overseas will provide new challenges, higher rewards and increased stimulation.

Makes sense to me.
LANCE BESTE

Justin Marshall is spot on with his views. There is little anticipation, and we are drowning in too much rugby. I miss the days of proper tours. That was when rugby was a contest and got everyone excited. Now you just turn on the TV and wonder if there is some rugby on to fill in time.

I feel the administrators are kidding themselves, and I can only wonder if they will eventually kill the great product and brand name of the All Blacks

JUSTIN. Justin is right on the money. I mean South Africa and Australia again and again and again. Talk about dating your sister. And that is straight off the back of playing the same players in the Super 12/14.

Super 12/14 is great, but the Tri-Nations? Yawn! Bring in Argentina and the Islanders and we will talk.
CLINTON MOORE

Justin Marshall is boring with his constant and somewhat dim mouthing off. Glad to see the back of him and his pass.

SIMON GREIG.

Boring, boring boring ... can't wait for those 3am matches in South Africa - the Hurricanes versus the Bulls (yippee).

Can't wait for those night matches in Dunedin when it is too cold even for the Scarfies.

Can't wait for a further two substandard teams to be added to the Poor Two, Average 8 and Adequate 2 competition.

Can't wait to see the Brumbies and Crusaders in the semifinals/finals due to no other side having a strong enough team.

Can't wait for South Africa to lose away from home again.

Can't wait for that 1-1 Bledisloe Cup result.

Can't wait for that unimportant All Black Tri-Nations win.

Can't wait for the inconsistent and inadequate referees for the season to come.

Can't wait to see the continued decline of Pacific Island rugby due to greed from the ARFU and NZRFU by taking their players or denying them any top-level rugby.

While Justin Marshall has a pass that almost rivals the speed of the Southern Motorway at rush hour he demonstrates something quite revolutionary in New Zealand rugby: intelligence and free thought - to be discouraged absolutely by all at the NZRFU. Thank heavens for the NRL.
ONE OF THE DISENFRANCHISED MAJORITY, MAIRANGI BAY

The only thing boring about New Zealand rugby is Justin Marshall. I don't think it is any coincidence that New Zealand played its best rugby when he wasn't on the field.

We get sick of watching his flick-in passes to the forwards when he has the world's best backline at his disposal. He is the most overrated player in world rugby.
MARK PETERSON

I've always said the repetitious nature of the Super 12 and Tri-Nations is boring, but then I haven't been able to think of a better alternative - such is the nature of international rugby.

There are only 4-5 teams on the planet who could beat or even get within 10 points of the All Blacks.

This is why soccer is so attractive to the rest of the world.

Greece winning Euro 2004 is like Georgia winning the Rugby World Cup. It was a dramatic, unpredictable fairy-tale that will never happen in rugby.
ANDREW STEVENSON, MAIRANGI BAY

Justin Marshall is spot on in his comments.

The Super 12 has led to the demise of traditional All Black play and is intrinsically linked to our poor World Cup performances.

It is only played for the benefit of Australia, and much to the detriment of New Zealand and South African rugby.

It is about time we flew in the face of the money-grubbing self-gratification of the IRB (the new IOC) and freed ourselves from the News Corp slavery, starting with a new blueprint that includes other nations, develops rugby and enhances New Zealand rugby at the grassroots.

Maybe it's time for a coup.
SEAN COOK

Yes, Justin's right - Super 12 and the Tri-Series are boring.

Super 12 suffers from too many matches, absurd uniforms, and drafting players from elsewhere.

My favourite rugby is NPC, which has none of those problems - it's REAL rugby. Super 12 is a tired circus.
CHRIS MARSHALL, GLENFIELD

To call the Tri-Nations and Super 12 boring is overstatement at best. At worst it's malicious. Marshall is correct that there is unprecedented interest in the Lions tour.

But the Lions tour NZ every 12 or so years and they are a special team because of their composite nature.

He says he'd like to tour places like Canada and Japan. Fine. But does he honestly think when it's their turn to tour New Zealand they will generate the same interest as the Lions? I suspect not.

Chris Moller is correct, we don't live in rugby utopia. If we did Marshall would have had a much better pass.
STEVE FISHER, BRITAIN

Chris Moller and other Sanzar executives: Gentlemen ... you have it totally wrong!

Show us one spectator who asked for the Tri-Nations to be extended?

Justin Marshall is 100 per cent correct. We don't want more 1000km/h ping pong rugby.

We want more proper rugby ... rugby where forward passes are punished by referees, lock forwards who stay in the pack and don't stuff up backline movements, simple, understandable and workable ruck/loose maul rules.

There is absolutely no justification in expanding the Super 12. The simple solution would have been for NZ to lose one team and the Aussies gain one.

Bring back proper tours. Rugby characters develop on tours.

Where are the modern equivalents of Colin Meads, Cowboy Shaw, Frik du Preez, Mannetjies Roux, Willie John McBride, Gareth Edwards, Benoit Douga or Walter Spanghero?
JAKES JACOBSON, PUHOI

Boring? Oh codswallop, Marshall. The only boredom we've endured is waiting for you to clear the ball.
TERRY NATUA, OTARA

I agree completely with Justin Marshall's comments. I used to be a lover of rugby and I still love watching club, schoolboy and NPC rugby. I no longer watch Super 12 rugby as it is so unexciting and meaningless.

I only watch the All Blacks when they are playing sides other than Australia or South Africa just to see some different players and different teams. Games against South Africa and Australia are so common that the trophies we play for against them actually have no meaning or care factor for me any more.

This year with my leisure time I have made a conscious decision to spend my money elsewhere.
DANIEL DE VRIES

The Tri-Nations and Super 12 are what generates Justin Marshall's salary.

I would be interested to see if Marshall would have taken a huge cut in his salary so that he was less bored.
SAM MACDOUGALL

Yes, most definitely.

In the pursuit of the filthy dollar, the NZRFU has disenfranchised its core traditional support base, and sold the game to the highest bidder.

Eventually, the NZRFU (and perhaps rugby globally) will be the architect of its own demise.
NEIL RIESTERER

The Tri-Nations has destroyed the aura, emotion and meaning of tests between New Zealand and South Africa, and allowed the Wallabies to go from strength to strength.

It is ludicrous that players like Caleb Ralph and Robbie Fleck have played each other with such monotonous regularity that their test records in terms of numbers of games played against each other now exceed those of true giants of the game.

The lifeblood of international rugby is the tour, visiting places like Boland, Gosford, and Invercargill.

Perhaps the reason the NZRFU doesn't have a "white sheet of paper" is that they sold their souls to News Ltd in 1995 and again this year.
GERARD WALSH

The Tri-Nations IS becoming repetitive and the increased number of games in that series and the new Super 14 will only add to the boredom. Not to mention the increased workload for the elite players.

As Justin Marshall mentioned, the incredible interest in the upcoming 2005 British and Irish Lions tour has shown that the NZ public are crying out for a return of the classic three-test series and tours of the past.

Wake me up when the New Zealand public finally gets what it demands please ... zzzzz ...
ANTHONY LEWIS

It all seems a bit like watching reruns of I Love Lucy. You know what it's about, you know what is going to happen, you're sure you've seen it before but watch it any way, for the time being.

I still get a sense of pride when the All Blacks win, but I rarely watch them any more.
GRAHAM COLLINS

I am an avid rugby fan, but last season I hit the "off" switch on my TV and spent time with my family instead.

An expanded Super 12 will make this even worse. I will no longer be a regular viewer - I have decided to get a life.
JOHN McNEIL

Absolutely not ... I have been following both competitions since their inception, and each year there is something new and refreshing about the approach to the game.

As it stands now, the Southern Hemisphere sides have made huge strides towards a high-tempo approach and, coupled with increasing size and power of their players, have continually brought a fresh approach to the game.

The tension of Tri-Nations tests is enough to ensure that the competition commands your undivided attention.
PETER WAA, NAIROBI, KENYA