KEY POINTS:
It is said many of the great inventors dreamed first and invented later.
What vision did David Nucifora have for the Blues, you had to ask, as they battered their way into submission against the previously unimpressive Waratahs on Saturday night?
Firstly, a plea. When Nucifora departs, the
powers that be - whoever they might be - must give Auckland coach Pat Lam his chance with the Blues. Lam must also be given a free hand to pick his assistant.
He's done enough to warrant the job, seems to have the confidence of the players rising up through the grades here and promotes a style that would be a breath of fresh air on the usually hard fields of the Super 14.
The loss by Nucifora's Blues against New South Wales in Sydney on Saturday night was not an outright disgrace, because the Waratahs have talent and the capability to win against anybody.
The Waratahs were even fairly enterprising. It was almost funny to remember that Nucifora was touted as a replacement for the dumped NSW coach Ewen McKenzie.
But the Sydney capitulation was more evidence that after a deceptively fast start, the Blues are scratching and clawing their way down the table. Their sluggish performance, just when they needed to pick up the pace, hinted that the players are not inspired by or in tune with the battle plan.
The seeds of doubt were abundantly planted during the fortunate win over the powerful but naive Bulls, then flowered last Saturday night.
The Blues captain, Troy Flavell, had apparently promised a physical approach against the Waratahs, as if this was a new gadget that would open the path to glory.
It's not the Blues' ability to run smack-bang into opponents that is the worry. They are proving increasingly world class at that.
It's their inability to get runners into holes that invites despair in a city that has long promoted flair.
The great Bryan Williams, John Kirwan, Carlos Spencer, Va'aiga Tuigamala, Mac Herewini, Grahame Thorne, Zinzan Brooke, Steve McDowall, Gary Whetton, Michael Jones, Keven Mealamu - they were/are not only fabulous players but in some cases virtually rewrote the book for their positions.
Auckland's tradition is about producing, procuring and promoting such talent and giving it a chance to flourish.
Auckland supporters got a thrill when men like that ran out of the tunnel. Yes, the game has changed, there is less room on the field, and the planning has to be more precise. But the days of wild brilliance are not over.
The extraordinary test try scorer Joe Rokocoko is out of action for the rest of the campaign, but he was doing nothing out of the ordinary anyway. For the past five rounds, the Blues have chugged laboriously along while being outscored 15 tries to nine. Only one of the Blues tries in that time has been scored by an outside back.
The theory behind Nucifora's appointment was that he would create a foundation upon which flair would flourish. But the high-rise dream is still a hole in the ground.
Blaming other teams for slowing the ball down in recent rounds, as some have, is a lame excuse because if you haven't planned for that then you haven't planned at all.
Dull is a rugby crime in Auckland. It is the way the Blues are losing and winning that is disappointing and it flies in the face of the type of footballer that this city produces.
Auckland rugby, with crazy North Harbour included, has a distinct past.
There are periods of sublime supremacy, and others where it all goes horribly wrong. There isn't much in between, partly because there are always such high expectations.
Auckland rugby has stumbled plenty, but a belief in flair has always been at the core.
Sadly, as the blues man BB King wrote about a love affair, the thrill has gone to the point that it's hard to recall the wonderkid Isaia Toeava doing anything wonderful at all.
The rugby scientists like Wayne Smith might ogle Toeava's finer points, but the rest of us want broad strokes that can be savoured from the grandstand.
It is no coincidence that the highly functional Benson Stanley, an All Black prospect, is the one who is thriving under Nucifora and Greg Cooper's reign.
There is also, I would argue, a lack of ruthless flair within the Auckland administration. A sharper outfit might have zeroed in on the Highlanders halfback Jimmy Cowan, for instance, because a top-drawer halfback is desperately needed. Cowan is wasted with the ailing southerners.
Auckland's administration mundanely accepts what comes its way, and lacks the class to retain A-grade footballers like Ali Williams and Mils Muliaina when things go wrong.
Bring on the future, even if it involves a risk and reward punt.
Lam has had a vision for his successful Auckland teams, who keep the ball alive and defend with individual energy. It is a policy that, let's face it, suits the strong Polynesian make-up of the team and is great to watch.
What you fear is that the New Zealand Rugby Union's influence will promote another company man, Cooper, when Nucifora goes. Cooper's time as the Highlanders' head coach and Blues assistant leaves you wondering what his rugby vision entails, but such men have inevitably ended up at the Blues' helm.
In all seriousness, what was Nucifora's dream for his Blues? It surely can't have had anything to do with what happened on Saturday night against the Waratahs. Because what really hurt about that was that the Blues were mind-numbingly boring.
