Sacre bleu! C'est Le Rugby World Cup.

[Famous Mortimer]

I think politicians are just desperate for any reflected glory they can get, especially someone like Brown. At least Mbeke seemed to have some genuine affection for his country's team, and vice versa. It was also brilliant seeing the way Habana's pre-game story about keeping Francois Pienaar's sweaty jersey for years brought a tear to Pienaar's eye...I don't know, it just seemed like it meant more to them.

And the game was dull as piss. The reporting was all "one toe lost it for us" but that's simply not true. Not being good enough to win lost it for us, and if we'd been a better side through the rest of the match and not been so insistent on turning the ball over then we'd have won. There were dodgy decisions, yes, but we don't make such a song and fucking dance when those decisions go in our favour, which they do from time to time.

[rudi]

I don't buy the "it used to be better" line though.

The Observer reported how the ball's in play twice as long nowadays than it was in the seventies/eighties. Fewer mistakes are made, making scoring difficult, but that rather rewards actual fans, even while it's baffling and boring casual observers (see also: low scoring American Football/baseball games).

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

It means the outcome of the match more often isn't decided until later on, which logically should maintain interest.

This doesn't mean I'd not rather watch two attacking teams score half a dozen great tries in a 30-25 mind you.