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Scotty Stevenson: A free rugby final and a classic match-up. Your move, Aucklanders.

By Scotty Stevenson
Akira Ioane. Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images

Last year Auckland won just three games in the National Provincial Championship, recording their worst finish in their history. Twelve months on, the famous blue and white hoops are on the cusp of winning the title. It has been a dramatic turnaround for a provincial side that has put respect at the top of its wishlist; now it wants the fans back, too.

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We have spoken every week about earning the respect of the Auckland rugby community,Sir Graham Henry says on the phone to RugbyPass. It has been central to what Alama Ieremia, Filo Tiatia and Tai Lavea have brought to this team.

Sir Graham Henry knows a little bit about earning respect. The former Auckland, Blues and All Blacks coach likes winning, too. In fact, he once said – rather pointedly – during an interview that he hates losing. He hissed it. As if the very word losingwas such a bitter syllabic coupling that he could not bear to think of his facial muscles even contorting to form it.

He has mellowed as the years have passed. Winning the world cup in 2011 with the All Blacks helped. He jokes about that these days: We smashed France 8-7, didnt we?”  Yes, he has mellowed but within him there still burns a winners furnace. When he coached Auckland, the side won four consecutive National Championships, between 1993 and 1996. He then coached the Blues to back-to-back titles in 1996 and 1997. He returned to the Blues as a technical adviser in 2003 and they won their third (and last) title.

And now here he is, back asits hard to say really. Perhaps just being Sir Graham Henry is enough these days. He hovers in the changing sheds, takes it all in. He sees patterns with well-trained eyes, tries to understand why these young players are so relaxed all the time, offers a titbit here and a snippet there. He gives all the credit to the coaching team of Ieremia, Tiatia and Lavea – marvels at what they have done with this side. He is just there, and being there is what Auckland Rugby want from their fans tomorrow.

You see, theyve opened the doors, extended the invite to all, given away every ticket. They have done what no other province would (or could) do and said, come on down, it wont cost you a bean to get inside!It is an extraordinary gesture, in an extraordinary time for the provincial game. And I sure as hell hope it works, because if it doesnt then where to next for our domestic game.

This cant have been an easy decision for Auckland rugby CEO Jarrod Bear, an Auckland Rugby man through and through who played for the College Rifles club and started his tenure with the union in last years season to forget. This is a ballsy call, although the punitive cost of hosting playoff matches certainly would have made it easier. It is tough enough to turn a buck out there without having to pay a premium for actually performing on the field. Hosting home finals comes with a hefty price tag and the provinces arent exactly flush. Bear and his commercial team have laid down a big advance here: get them in, then earn their loyalty.

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It is a risky move in anyones books, and an unprecedented move, too. That it is being heavily backed by Eden Park – itself on a quest to maintain the loyalty of the Auckland sporting public – and by benefactor Peter Thompson – the Barfoot & Thompson Real Estate kingpin whose loyalty to events in Auckland is legendary – makes it all possible, but it will be for nought if the fans dont feel it’s enough.

It should be enough, even without The Feelers being unboxed for added Kiwiana appeal, or the big screen showing the All Blacks test afterwards while fans sit on the famous turf and picnic their way through the evening. It should be enough because these teams are worth a price of admission, and much more than $0.00.

This is Canterbury against Auckland, inarguably this is the greatest hate match in all of provincial rugby. Yes, theres still that old school niggle between Hawkes Bay and Wellington (but Hawkes Bay have a beef with everyone) and sure, Otago and Southland love a good old dust up, and yes, North Harbour and Auckland has a Rebels-Yankees feel about it, and okay, they once almost had to call off games between North Auckland (as it was) and Auckland in the 1960s because, well, shit had got real, but this is CANTERBURY AGAINST AUCKLAND and that should still mean something to anyone who loves the game.

It matters not that the All Blacks are currently instagramming their way through Japan, you dont need them (with respect) to feel like the sport is worthy. Thats largely the reason why so many of the provinces are struggling – the feeling that the national championship has become a D-league for Super Rugby; a starless constellation in the rugby cosmos. Not a chance. The Mitre 10 Cup is a futurists pleasure, a stargazers dream. You only see the faraway stars when the sun disappears. Just like you only notice TJ Faiane and Tumua Manu and Harry Plummer, and Robbie Abel and Salesi Rayasi when you are not agonising over the fitness of some more famous name.

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Auckland, built upon a clear mandate to toughen the hell up, have certainly earned the respect of their rugby community, and now they face the team that took their record for consecutive titles (Canterbury won six straight between 2008 and 2013, Auckland twice won four on the trot) and has won nine of the last ten titles. Auckland hasnt won since 2007, but they won the last game these two teams played. That was in Christchurch, too.

Now they are at Eden Park, where the fans used to switch ends at halftime so they could watch Auckland scoring all the tries, and where titles were once a fait accompli. All they need now is for the people to take them up on their offer of free entry, and for a couple of kids to remember the day they got to go to Eden Park, to watch the rekindling of one of the great rivalries in the game, where they decided that one day they want to be playing out there, just like Akira.

Maybe even Sir Ted would smile at that.

See more from Scotty here:

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Adrian 1 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

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Trevor 4 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 8 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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