David Leggat: Fog didn't obstruct the view of the dollars

Reuben Thorne, when asked last week what the one key element would be in winning the Super 14 final, said there were several important points. Then he paused and added: "I guess if there's one thing we've said more than any other, it's maintaining the ball. We want to play with a bit of control and obviously to do that you need to hang onto the ball."

What Thorne didn't realise - indeed only Him Upstairs would have known this - was what the fates had in store for Jade Stadium on Saturday night.

In hindsight, Thorne's words had a prophetic ring to them: the Crusaders maintained the ball and the Hurricanes were done for.

An image comes to mind of the Crusaders' dressing room after the fog descended. A word from the wise was no doubt: Get the ball, hang onto it, no frills, nothing silly, concentrate hard and wait for your chances.

The Hurricanes, nevertheless, seemed unsure what to do. They were ordinary at the lineouts, could not hold onto the ball long enough and conceded dopey penalties - one or two might have been harsh but haven't they learned their lesson by now? - and the game was up well before the end.

That's enough about The Game No One Saw.

This really was the game when you could have nipped out to the kitchen, put the jug on, fed the cat, made the beds, put the rubbish out and come back in the safe and certain knowledge you'd missed nothing.

So should it have gone ahead?

Two schools of thought have emerged on this. One is occupied by the (understandably) outraged who say the showpiece of the competition was turned into a non-event. Why was it not either postponed an hour or so to give the fog time to lift, or called off until yesterday afternoon?

The other perspective is that, as an act of the aforementioned gentleman above, you just accept it, do your best and put it down to something beyond anyone's control.

First, about the former: Crusaders chief executive Hamish Riach has said too many balls would need to be juggled to put the game back a day. This is a reasonable point.

It's all very well saying that as it's the great national game, mountains can be moved.

The repercussions: accommodating travelling fans and getting them home for work today, which brings airline schedules and availability into play; player safety (and Leon MacDonald has spoken of completely losing the ball twice, which in certain circumstances, such as a phalanx of Hurricanes heat-seeking missiles coming your way, could be seriously discomforting); spectators' justifiable right to be able to see what they'd paid serious money for; the commitments of broadcasters and sponsors, although in reality they'd have been better off waiting for a clear day so the match could have been seen worldwide.

Riach said discussions involving both teams, match officials, New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRFU) and tournament organisers Sanzar, led to a unanimous decision to carry on.

Perhaps they put it in the too-hard basket, but the moment they decided to press on, they were consigning a showpiece occasion to a grim joke, and no one was laughing by the end.

NZRFU deputy chief executive Steve Tew said he hoped the crowd would feel they got value for money, adding that "in the end it was another very exciting chapter of Super rugby history".

It was not clear whether Tew had his tongue in his cheek, but you'd hope he did.

One would like to think Saturday night would have rammed home once and for all to the NZRFU the foolishness of playing night rugby in Christchurch and Dunedin between May and August. It's done for the money. No one wants it but don't expect this travesty to make much difference. The bottom line counts.

Unlike the waterlogged All Blacks-Scotland test at Eden Park in 1975, which has acquired a certain curio value over time, this will not get special status.

At Eden Park, at least you could see the shemozzle.

Yet, even though mountains now and then can be moved, sometimes life throws up unhittable curve balls and acts of God simply have to be accepted.