NZ Rugby – Battle Of The Hemispheres
- October 25th, 2011
- Posted by EUEditor
The French Rugby Union has not only had to take second place; its defeat by New Zealand on Sunday has been followed by a A$4000 fine, for “breaking cultural ritual protocolâ€.
French players edged up on top of the All Blacks as they were doing their pre-match Maori war dance, the haka.
It was a good riposte, and almost worked.
The New Zealand team, hungry to win a World Cup final, after a 24-year drought, before an Auckland home crowd to boot, had been dominant during a seven week tournament – then just squeaked in at the end, 8-7.
The World Rugby Board on Tuesday determined that the French creeping-up attack, (not advisable presumably against an actual Maori tribe in arms), had edged over the half-way line a bit – an offence warranting punishment.
In keeping with the half-contrived habit of Rugby fixtures to produce clashes between Northern and Southern hemispheres, Australia played off with Wales for third place, the Wallabies winning tonight (25.10.11).
They lost two key players through injuries and limped home in another close one 21-18.