Forthright All Blacks critic Stephen Jones has weighed into the "where-was-the-droppie" debate, saying the All Blacks don't know how to win because of the Super 14 - and that any of the top 26 English and French clubs would have won the quarter-final from their position by kickinga drop goal.
The Sunday Times rugby writer was responding to my questions about why the All Blacks did not go for a droppie at opportune times and field position that would have made the game a 21-20 win instead of a 20-18 loss to France.
Reasons put forward by readers have ranged from the All Blacks suffering "brain freeze" at Millennium Stadium, to them arrogantly wanting to win only with tries, or to the more cerebral theory that New Zealand's demanding fans want wins-with-style and the All Blacks reflect a universal "droppie-phobia".
Jones, well-known for his criticism of the All Blacks and Southern hemisphere, blamed the Super 14.
"In the S14 the players are not used to developing the art of winning game horribly and in the last minutes," said Jones.
"Sean Fitzpatrick in this week's Sunday Times will be saying that the Super 14, with its lack of relegation, teams all the same year on year, does not produce players who know how to win, players whose living depends on it... Just players who can play well."
Jones also indicated he preferred the proper acronym "DG" to describe the three-point kick, rather than the colloquial "droppie" as it is in New Zealand parlance.
He said the lack-of-a-droppie was the reason the All Blacks had lost a game that many of the Northern Hemisphere clubs would have won in their position.
"All 12 of the Guinness Premiership clubs and all 14 of the top 14 French championship clubs would have win that match with a DG," said Jones.
