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'Arrogance' of All Blacks hands World Cup to Australia

Tim Glover
Sunday 10 March 2002 01:00 GMT
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New Zealand was coming to terms yesterday with an act of brinkmanship that overstepped the edge and cost them the World Cup. Behind the extraordinary decision to relieve them of the honour of co-hosting the global showpiece next year lay a performance by the New Zealand Rugby Football Union that was beginning to look like a spectacular own-goal.

Four years ago New Zealand accepted in principle the obligations laid down by Rugby World Cup to co-host with Australia the World Cup, but last week they began to raise serious objections. When the parties met in Sydney the New Zealand delegation prevaricated to such an extent that the International Rugby Board postponed the tournament draw and gave them five days to sign an agreement. Just before Friday's deadline the NZRFU said it had signed the agreement with the Australian Rugby Union. "Unfortunately there were so many conditions and caveats it bore no relation to the original contract,'' an IRB spokesman said. "It was totally unacceptable.''

The New Zealanders then proceeded to lambast Rugby World Cup and Vernon Pugh, chairman of both the IRB and RWC. "They overplayed their hand and completely misread the situation,'' an insider said. "Their arrogance was breathtaking.'' Pugh and the directors of the RWC board washed their hands of the NZRFU and handed the whole shooting match to Australia, who had signed the agreement last November.

Yesterday Malcolm McCaw, chairman of the NZRFU, had not ruled out the possibility of the All Blacks boycotting the competition. "You don't know where these things end up,'' he said. "Our issue is with the IRB, not the Australians. We had agreed to the proposals last Christmas and sent them to the IRB, who rejected the document without any discussion. I'm prepared to talk to Vernon Pugh any time, anywhere.''

The Australians, twice winners of the World Cup and co-hosts with New Zealand of the inaugural tournament in 1987, can't believe their luck. Given 21 days to put together an alternative plan, John O'Neill, managing director of the Australian Rugby Union, said he would have it ready in a week. "I'm confident we can deliver a compelling proposal,'' he said. Australia successfully staged the 2000 Olympics and the Lions' tour last year, when the economy received a considerable boost. With 48 matches, the World Cup is a much bigger deal.

New Zealand (they had already angered Australia and South Africa by withdrawing agreement to increase the Super 12) first complained that their National Provincial Championship overlapped the early stages of the World Cup. WRC suggested a compromise that would allow the NPC semi-finals and final to be played during the World Cup, but not at RWC venues. Then New Zealand recoiled at demands for "clean'' stadiums in which only World Cup sponsors have advertising space around the grounds and use of the hospitality boxes.

Of the 48 matches, New Zealand would have staged 23, the semi-finals would have been split and Australia would have staged the final. New Zealand were unhappy that two of the biggest commercial attractions, England and South Africa, would play in Australia (it means incidentally that England will have to beat South Africa to avoid the All Blacks in the quarter-finals), and pointed out that they will receive NZ$20m from their provincial championship compared to $5m from the World Cup.

While New Zealand says it cannot afford to lose its domestic sponsors, the IRB says the same of its World Cup backers. "The World Cup is our sole source of funding, and we have to feed an ever-increasing family. New Zealand knew that certain conditions were not negotiable and there is no time for further talks,'' a spokesman said.

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