Kiwi fans spewing as TVNZ won't be showing All Blacks on Friday - it'll be Coronation Street instead
NZ Herald
It’s the game no one wants to play – and TVNZ will not screen the All Blacks‘ playoff for the Rugby World Cup bronze medal with Wales on Friday night.
Instead Kiwi fans will have to put up with Coronation Street.
TVNZ confirmed to the Herald today that it will not be covering Friday’s bronze medal match and will air Coronation Street instead, saying “it’s not our choice”.
“TVNZ was given rights to cover 12 matches and unfortunately the bronze game wasn’t one,” a TVNZ spokeswoman said.
The game will be broadcast live on Newstalk ZB and Radio Sport.
Coro fans will be jumping for joy knowing they won’t have to wait another week to see Evelyn rip into Bethany and Gail reaching out Shona as she grieves a loss like no other, according to TVNZ’s synopsis.
The playoff for third kicks off at 10pm on Friday night, but Coro St screens from 9pm-10pm, followed by 1 News Tonight.
All Blacks supporters have been left in shock that the state broadcaster doesn’t have the ability to show the swansong clash for All Blacks head coach Steve Hansen and skipper Kieran Read.
The All Blacks were outclassed and outmatched, but also outsmarted as part of their game plan fed right into England's hands, writes @bensmithrugby #ENGvNZL #RWC2019 #AllBlacks https://t.co/1n0S7gQKQa
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 28, 2019
“[It’s] arguably a more important game than any of the pool stages after the defeat in Yokohama,” one fan told the Herald.
The TVNZ spokeswoman said Spark Sport would be streaming the match live.
Despite the agony of their semifinal defeat loss to England the night before, the All Blacks are intent of putting in a performance they can be proud of at Tokyo Stadium on Friday night.
For several, including skipper Kieran Read and coach Steve Hansen, it will be the last time they are closely involved with the All Blacks.
“We’re playing, obviously, so we will treat it like any test match,” Read said yesterday.
“It will be a bit different for us but we’ll prepare as well as we can and perform as best we can. We’re All Blacks so it’s a chance for us to pull on the jersey again.
“For some of us it may be our last chance. There are a few things there what we’ll work through this week and come Friday we’ll be ready to go.”
It’s likely several players not involved in the England loss will get a run; men such as Ben Smith and Ryan Crotty are likely to play, along with Sonny Bill Williams, on the bench for the last two games here.
Hansen said it wasn’t for him to comment on whether the playoff for what is effectively second and third losers should be played. Like it or not, it’s a test, and he and his men still have a remarkable record to protect.
“The fact is the game’s there and the fact is we have to get up,” he said.
“They’re the inconvenient facts. How do we do that? Well, we get connected again and set ourselves an immediate goal and work hard to make sure that we really enjoy this week. It will be the last week that this team is together and we have an opportunity to do it well.
This article first appeared in the NZ Herald and is republished here with permission.
Comments on RugbyPass
Nice article. Shades of Steinbeck. They can win the final if they take the game seriously; but only if they take it seriously.
1 Go to commentsWhat a sad way to end a glittering career. Somebody should tell him to delete his social media accounts and face the consequences of what he's done. Then he should slip away quietly into obscurity. This isn't likely to happen, something tells me he'll be back in The Sun / Daily Mail sooner rather than later.
3 Go to commentsguys its fine! he understands why he did what he did and has taken accountability for it; why should he have to be accountable to a court? after all he did was abuse people in person - its not as if he was engaging in _online_ abuse!
3 Go to commentsChiefs flanker Kaylum Boshier yellow-carded for collapsing the scrum as it rolled towards the line. It was a maul….
1 Go to commentsyou know, i’m a leinster fan so I want Northampton to lose and it is gonna be tuff with Cortney lawes, Alex michell and the other guys🏉 lets go leinster🏉
1 Go to commentsWelcome to the Pro ranks. Those hard teams of old do hit the sole better though. its a dog fight at the top.
6 Go to commentsCan someone fill me in please, I've read a number of Ben Smith articles now and it seems he's got something again South Africa? Surely, this game was over and done with 7 months ago. Can't we have something a bit more interesting and relevant, or is this the calibre of journalist on this site?
228 Go to commentsNot sure what the Welsh are moaning about. They’ve had far more players off England, than England have had off Wales. Guys like Josh Hathaway and Kane James will play for Wales in the end. And they’ll be fsr better players for having played in the Gallagher Premiership, than they ever would have been had they stayed mired in the shambles that is Welsh rugby.
3 Go to commentsThis is all being blown totally out of proportion. First of all, since half the Irish team isn’t Irish - it’s very likely that none of the Irish players said that at all and, thus, we’re not being arrogant. Second, since half the Irish team is Kiwi - it’s very likely the Kiwi players were predicting a NZ SA World Cup final. Which they got spot on. Good on them!
163 Go to commentsAha. An Irishman with logic! Follow the flow: - Ireland peaks with a >80% win record between 2020 and 2023. And then… - crashes out of another QF at the WC; - Beat a poor French Team; - Beat 6N wooden spoonists Italy; - Play shite against eventual wooden spoonists Wales; - Lose against the most boring, “the worst English team ever” , a team widely regarded as unable to attack; - scrape through against Scotland. This article, No - Trimble, is on the money! Except for one glaring statement: _The Springboks have a few aces in the hole in this debate being the reigning world champions and official world number ones_ There is no debate, boys and girls. There it is. In black and white. “Reigning World Champions and OFFICIAL world number ones”. Come July, the overrated Andy Farrell and this overhyped team are going to enter into a world of hurt.
86 Go to commentsI’d like to know what homoerotic events Daniel enjoyed at 8th man. I clearly missed out!
19 Go to commentsThis article is missing some detail, like some actual context or info about what led to him abusing the ref.
2 Go to comments*They used to say that football is a gentleman sport watched by hooligans and rugby is a hooligan sport watched by gentlemen. How times have changed.*
3 Go to commentsexcept ot wasnt late wasnt late at all so dont know why you all saying its late he commits early and its your fault fir not paying attention
30 Go to commentsNot sure the Bulls need another average utility back in their ranks. Chamberlain has been ok for the Sharks but is by no means an X-Factor player. Bulls bought several utility backs which they barely use. A typical example would be Henry Immelman who plays mostly Fullback. The Bulls however have rarely played him this year and he has played wing or centre. Bulls want to build depth but seems like they have too many surplus players
1 Go to commentsABs lost against a side playing without a hooker - The guy playing, had one shoulder. Line outs were a gimme for the ABs, and the last 8 minutes 14 played 14 against a team that had been smashed 3 weeks in a row… Yet with all that possession, with all that territory, with all the advantages they actually had, especially in the last 8 minutes, they couldn’t buy a point. Those last 8 minutes determined if they outplayed the Boks or not. History will show that the Boks completely outplayed the ABs, especially in those last 8 minutes, the business end of any rugby match
228 Go to commentsWould’ve, could’ve, should’ve, didn’t.
228 Go to commentsKok will become a fan favourite
1 Go to commentsI am really looking forward to Leigh Halfpenny playing his first Super rugby game for the Crusaders Playing a long side his former Welsh and Scarlets team mate Johnny McNicoll.Johnny has been playing great, back in a Crusaders jersey.The attack has strengthened big time. Also looking forward to David Havili at 10. David is a class act, it also allows Dallas McLeod to remain at 12. A good thing.
1 Go to commentsIf he had stopped insisting on playing in the backrow, instead of wing, where everyone told him he should, he would have been a Bok years ago….
11 Go to comments