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Off-field battles. Gatland versus the media

By Martin Devlin
Lions coach Warren Gatland.

As is often the case with touring UK sports teams, ongoing battles are fought both on and off-field. Take this Lions tour, e.g., where most folk only ever get to see the sporting contest. Yet equally ever-present is the conflict played out at (almost) every press conference between tour management and the travelling media throng.

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No, it’ll never be worth its own admission price but, for those of us on assignment here at home, it certainly provides a level of theatre & drama very rarely seen. There’s a noticeable difference in approach and vibe displayed by the two media ratpacks, clearly divided across hemispheric lines.

For some members of the “foreign press” Warren Gatland seems like a target and is visibly wary as a result. The body language, eye contact, voice tone and carefully considered answers all evidence of a more guarded demeanour with them than when dealing with us Kiwi lot.

Many of the overseas scribes will ask questions with obvious intent, almost craving a prickly response. They’ll happily regurgitate past issues/conflicts no matter how old, tired, boring or irrelevant – mostly in hope of an over-reaction in reply.

One or two bods have obvious history with Gatland and that clearly not of an affable nature. Most times the coach will politely answer, deflect, dilute, even try and make light of something he plainly wishes wasn’t asked. Every so often, as we saw at the pre-Blues presser when queried about his “Warrenball” gameplan, Gats can be provoked.

His swearing reaction when thinking the mic’s were off was of a man sick & tired of answering the same old questions, with those doing the asking also knowing full well he would be.

For us in the NZ sports media it’s a level of friction we’re never really exposed to. The relationship between All Blacks hierarchy & local journos is currently akin to the sort of camaraderie you see among common-interest colleagues. And, yes, having a world champion side that almost always wins absolutely helps keep everyone calm!

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To be fair to the travelling ratpack Warren could, and should at times, make life a lot easier for himself. Saying things like (in the aftermath of the Blues loss) “our squad is working hard and we are seeing improvement in the performance both at training and in the games” seemed needlessly provocative.

‘Training? Really?

Who cares how well the squad “play” at training? You just got beat by the Blues, Warren – the worst of our Super Rugby sides’

That leaves just the best four still to play. And NZ Maori. All before you tackle the World Champions (twice) at a ground where they haven’t lost in 23 years. “Improvement” is all well and nice but I think what the press/people back home want to hear are (things like) when is your team going to hit top gear, how are you going to beat the ABs and exactly what weaponry do you have in reserve for when it really matters?

Tell them you’re way better than what’s been seen thus far. Confidence Warren! Instil belief in the team’s supporters, convince them that your side is in fact the menace we’ve been led to believe. Attempting to argue there’s only a minimal gap in ability between NZ Super sides and the All Blacks was plain nonsense – and something every reporter in the room was bound to jump on.

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The one remaining question is, does any of it really matter? And the answer to that is Yes!

Especially to Warren. Like it or lump it, the media relationship is part of his job. If Mr Gatland is a Super Rugby coach then the travelling media are the comp’s finals format – unwieldy, clumsy, frustrating and manifestly unfair. Yet (also) it is what it is and isn’t going away. Warren knows, or should by now, that however much he resents it he’s got no choice but to grin and bear it.

 

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Trevor 1 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

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Bull Shark 5 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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