2012 : (Not) A Vintage Season of Rugby

Marc Hinton has written a superb piece about the state of this year's international rugby season here (courtesy of Stuff.co.nz) -

There is no way to put this politely. So let's not beat about the bush. Test rugby sucks right now.

The competitiveness and overall standard of the international game, from where I've been sitting this year, is arguably as low as it's been in the professional era.

And the quality of the rugby being produced in what is supposedly the world's best annual competition involving the top three sides in the game also leaves a fair bit to be desired.

I hate to say it, because this is our national game, but right now the elite rugby product is pretty poor indeed.

How do I come to this conclusion?

Well I'm pretty sure my eyes aren't deceiving me, so empirical evidence is as good a place as any to start.

I challenge anyone to put hand on heart and say they've been entertained by the rugby that's been dished up over the last month. Some of it has been turgid, to say the least. Much of it muddled.

Let's paint the picture. So far in the Rugby Championship - a bland name for what's been a bland competition - the All Blacks have been far and away the best team.

They have beaten Australia home and away, and taken care of the Pumas at a wet 'n wild Wellington with a degree of comfort, if not ease.

But all three performances have been flawed to one degree or another.

The All Blacks have committed a high number of basic errors and they've been below-par in their execution under pressure, as well as their decision-making.

Their long periods of dominance have not produced the tries they should have, and so far the renowned All Black attacking game - remember that? - has been seen only sporadically.

But they've still been too good for anyone they've faced thus far, and than in itself should have alarm bells ringing somewhere.

If the world champs are this far ahead of the pack when they're playing badly, imagine what it will be like when they find some form.

It's not all doom and gloom.

There have been some things worth getting excited about - the speed and intensity of Bledisloe II, and the defence in all three tests to name a couple - but if we're honest we would acknowledge the All Blacks have been able to win all three matches without going near their best rugby.

Hopefully it's coming, and all indications are that Steve Hansen's side are poised to take their game to a new level. But so far it's all been gloriously imperfect.

But for Exhibit B in the case against test rugby at the moment look no further than this fact: the Wallabies are the No 2 side in the world.

Yes, Robbie Deans' Wobberlies, with all their weaknesses, flightiness and lack of depth, are still the second best team in world rugby.

That's a sad an indictment of the international game, if ever there was one.

With the Springboks well and truly immersed in rebuilding mode - and a distant shadow of their usual selves - gloriously gritty, but severely limited, Argentina still finding their feet at this level, and the northern hemisphere cursed to play second fiddle to the south, somehow the awful Aussies have managed to cling to the second rung on the ladder behind the All Blacks.

This is a team which has lost 14 of its last 17 matches against the New Zealanders, and yet still can lay claim to be the next best in the business.

That, dear people, is a disgrace.

And there are no signs that the northern hemisphere is set to spring a revolution. Their teams were competitive enough in June, yet at the end of the three series against the Sanzar nations the final score read the South 8, North 0, one draw.

Wales have the makings of a pretty competitive outfit and certainly have some impressive talent at their disposal, but they still have a mental block against the southern hemisphere heavyweights.

England have the resources and numbers to demand respect, but that's more on potential than anything tangible.

France have to be respected for their ability to rise to the occasion, though their glory days of Gallic flair seem to be a deep and distant memory.

The rest, in terms of test rugby, are chopped liver. Ireland should have beaten the All  Blacks in Christchurch in June, but let a glorious upset escape them and were thrashed in the first and last tests.

Scotland and Italy are making no headway at all.

Which brings us to Saturday night at Dunedin's new indoor stadium - the first time either the All Blacks or Springboks will have played there.

Test rugby needs not so much a command All Black performance, but a competitive, captivating test match full of skill, commitment, derring-do and athleticism.

If Hansen's men deliver the breakout display they hinted at on Eden Park, all the better from a Kiwi perspective.

But most importantly rugby must remind its watching public that the test game can still be entertaining and invigorating.

Now seems like the perfect time to start that process.

- © Fairfax NZ News

And in a way I do agree. It hasn't been quite a vintage season of rugby has it apart from the thrilling conclusion to the 6 Nations earlier in the year when Wales were struggling to win their 3rd Grand Slam in as many seasons.

The quality of the Rugby Championship hasn't been particularly great even if the games have been good contests. Certainly, the quality of backline play has been rather lacking with plenty of mistakes by established players like Ma'a Nonu and Jean de Villiers. It may be a rather sad indictment on the quality of the inagural Rugby Championship should the All Blacks as expected, win without looking like they're playing above 100% of their best. 

I think a key factor has been the fact that the established Big 3 of Australia, South Africa and New Zealand, whether it's a result of injury or retirements, have had plenty of young, inexperienced players in their lineups who talented as they might be, are slowly finding their feet at this level. The Springboks and All Blacks have very young locking duos and key playmakers like Dan Carter and now Will Genia have missed game time. 

The Wallabies have been the worst-affected by injury losing David Pocock and Will Genia for the season but they look pretty much like a side on the decline until last weekend. 

Then there's Argentina who have performed as we had expected - admirable but not quite enough to beat the big 3 just yet. I think they will get better though with time and could be equal with Australia at this stage and not too far off from South Africa. Argentina could be the toughest place to win a test match yet.  

I don't think there is absolutely nothing wrong with the rules - in fact I think rugby has been more attacking than it has ever been - however, the key players just haven't performed as they should.

Maybe, the extended Super rugby season may have taken its toll on the players with the Rugby Championship effectively the end of the rugby season in the Southern Hemisphere - perhaps another look at the length of the rugby season is required? 

However, rugby fans, don't give up hope. Like all sports, rugby has a cycle and I think we're just at that time of sowing. Soon it'll be reaping time and I think the game will get better.