A question of experience

Razor seeks more of it, whereas the Black Caps might have too much of it.

The old in and out move. Getty Images

A much shorter than usual Friday newsletter but don’t get mad because I’ll be back with a Sunday Spesh.

We can get awfully All Black-centric when it comes to rugby, so I took note of this diversion from the script from commentator Elliott Smith, who made a decent case that Australia might be doomed to a future of mediocrity as the West Indies of the rugby world.

Similarly to the Windies, Australia enjoyed a golden era of players — Horan, Little, Gregan, Larkham, Eales and more — but failed to capitalise on their success, while Super Rugby [expanded] too quickly and diluted their talent pool as fans switched off when the results began to get worse… The current generation of Wallabies players look several rungs below the side that made the 2015 World Cup final (so do the All Blacks to be fair), who were again not as good as their 1990s predecessors who won two World Cups and rallied to reach another final in 2003.

The depth in Australian rugby is non-existent – 16 debutants this year suggests there are a group of players all at a certain level (“mid”, as the kids say) and Joe Schmidt is trying to find a diamond in the rough that maybe he could meld into something. That’s more hit-and-hope than anything. And it rarely works.

It’s potential bulletin-board material, if anybody believes in that sort of psychological kidology any more.

Meanwhile, back in All Black-land, there is interest in Sam Cane becoming the 13th man to raise a century of tests for New Zealand and when you think back on some of the bad luck he’s encountered down the years, 13th feels about right.

TJ Perenara gets a start on his home ground — the All Blacks bogey ground — in his final test in New Zealand, which seems like a needless nod to sentimentality rather than picking the best starting XV to win a test match. Or maybe that’s too harsh.

Patrick McKendry writes on 1news.co.nz that Scott Robertson is quickly learning that in the test arena, experience is a vital commodity.

Robertson has told friends that the way South Africa can retain their experienced players via overseas contracts following World Cup cycles is one of the Boks’ greatest strengths.

That was brought home when the world champions twice fought their way back from deficits to beat the All Blacks recently — mainly through the quality and composure from their experienced bench — and it partly explains why Robertson has felt Cane’s selection in the No 7 jersey quickly became a non-negotiable this year…

Robertson said of Perenara: “He’s shown a lot of fortitude, he’s AB tough, he’s fought back from injury, he’s a competitor and a winner, it’s great that I could be a part of his career and see what he’s given to this team.”

Perenara’s long-time combination with Beauden Barrett, who is starting at first-five for the All Blacks for the first time since late 2022, likely got him the nod over the excellent Ratima, but it is a testament to the 32-year-old’s resilience and form that he has forced Robertson’s hand.

The beleaguered Damian McKenzie has been moved to the bench.

These are all nice little talking points but the overriding sense ahead of this test is that fans are seeking one thing and one thing only: something approximating a decent 80-minute performance.

NZ v Australia, Wellington, tomorrow 7.05pm, SS 1

On a different continent, the Rugby Championship will be decided between the best team in the world and the best team in South America. If the South American team wins the title, I’ll eat a bife ancho and wash it down with a jeroboam of malbec¹.

Eben Etzebeth is about to break a cherished record.

South Africa v Argentina, Mbombela, Sunday 4am, Sky

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When Sail-World’s Richard Gladwell says he’s not that “enthused” by the America’s Cup, you have a problem.

Gladwell has been covering the America’s Cup since 1983. He would normally be waterside… but this year he is having to cover it from Auckland, due to costs and the program.

“I’m not that enthused with the way it’s being run either,” he told The Detail. “It’s completely Barcelona-orientated, they want to run an event that is quite sterile, whereas the America’s Cup is not about that, it’s all about the biffo.

“That starts on shore and continues on the water. The way they go about the design, and everyone is trying to second guess… it’s spy versus spy type stuff. That has completely evaporated this Cup… The PR people have really got this event by the throat.”

Meanwhile, media partners Stuff have little choice but to remain 100 percent devoted to the cause, and they are pumping out the content as Luna Rossa and the Brits are at 1-1 after the first day of racing in the Louis Vuitton final.

If it was on at a slightly more attractive time, despite the detractors, it should actually be a cracking challenger final.

Luna Rossa v Brittania, races three and four, midnight, Three Now and Stuff

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Liam Lawson gets the RB seat he’s been craving for the rest of the season. Will the seat come with a cushion or a bunch of sharpened spikes?

F1.com’s Lawrence Barretto explains how we got to this point, and concludes with a warning for those who assume the 22-year-old Kiwi is set for a long and storied career in the sport’s top flight.

For Red Bull, they continue to be as generous and brutal as they’ve always been. With one hand, they gave Ricciardo a route back in. With the other, they ruthlessly took it away when they deemed the results weren’t good enough and it was time to move on.

Lawson now has a chance to sink or swim. Best of luck to him.

Radio New Zealand’s Dan Gilhooly profiles Lawson.

Whenever Liam Lawson returns to New Zealand for a break from the motor racing circuits of the world, he seeks down time by jumping on a jet ski.

That says it all about the 22-year-old adrenaline junkie from Pukekohe, whose permanent high-octane setting has led to a second short-term Formula One driving contract.

I’m not sure it says it all, but it says something. 

Under the Fort Pt VI*

Dinesh Chandimal, ton up. Sri Lanka Cricket / SLC

Sri Lanka 306-3 (Chandimal 114, Mathews 78*, Kamindu Mendis 51*)

Three short and to the point notes from day one of the second test at Galle.

1. NZ are the slowly boiled frogs of test cricket.

More on this post-test, but the worst thing about this is that not only are they the frogs, but they’re the ones who filled the pot and turned the element on.

New Zealand were 0-1 down in a series facing a must-win test, so what did they do?

They chose dogma over difficult decisions.

2. The road to victory.

In black-and-white text it’s so simple: they have to take seven wickets at the cost of no more than 150 runs, find a way to match or better Sri Lanka’s total at a rate of about 3.5 RPO or better, slice through Sri Lanka quickly in the third innings and then scrape and battle their way to the 190 needed to win on a tricky but not impossible fifth-day wicket.

And yes, before you start, I had a sardonic smile on my face as I was typing that.

3. What’s worse…

… Being bad or being boring?

New Zealand somehow managed to be both on day one.

The selections were unimaginative, their plans were tedious, the execution of basics was terrible. When you combine those three factors it adds up to (checks notes)... not good.

Three dropped catches, one of them a goober at first slip that would have had the hosts reeling at 10-2, an awful missed stumping and a wicket off a no-ball would have been inexcusable had they occurred coming in cold in the first test but were something even worse than that with a week’s hard cricket behind them. A multiverse of fine margins, was how Cricinfo described them, but that’s way too kind. The most comical piece of fielding might have been one of the few successful moments, when they almost butchered a run out despite both Dimuth Karunaratne and Dinesh Chandimal being at the same end of the pitch. 

At various points I just stopped watching and did other things, telling myself that if I checked in on the live scoring and saw anything interesting happening, I’d catch up later. 

I’m the type of guy who, if out and about driving somewhere on a Saturday afternoon, slows down around suburban grounds just so I can watch a second-grade clubbie bowl nude spinners to a batter who has the bat-behind-pad forward defence and the slog to cow corner as his only two shots. Yet here was a test played in a tailormade time zone for some serious watchage and I opted instead to try to balance my books on Xero.

Yep, admin was a preferable way to spend a Thursday evening.

* This was written before day two started. Although New Zealand picked up a wicket early on day two through Glenn Phillips, the above still applies.

Sri Lanka v NZ, day two, started 4.30pm today, Sky 

WATCHING BRIEF

It’s a huge weekend of sport in Australia, with two NRL semis and the biggie, the AFL Grand Final.

Only one match is clear cut for me but if you’re forcing me to pick a trifecta, here goes: Melbourne Storm, Penrith Panthers and Sydney Swans. The first one is a coin toss for me, Penrith should be too good for Cronulla and I don’t know enough about AFL to offer anything more than a hunch that the team that used to call South Melbourne home will finish over the top of the team that used to call Fitzroy home.

Melbourne v Easts, Melbourne, tonight 9.50pm, Sky

Sydney v Brisbane, Melbourne, tomorrow 4.30pm, Sky

Penrith v Cronulla-Sutherland, tomorrow 9.50pm, Sky

There’s a bit more on, but that will do for now. See youse all back here on Sunday!

1. Having been vegetarian since I was a toddler, I will do nothing of the sort, so this is written purely for effect - which is worse than a lie, really.