The power of passion
rugby365.com columnist Steve Farrell takes a look at a weekend that saw several farewells – including the likes of Lawrence Dallaglio and Robbie Deans. However, he says it is Dallaglio’s singing that has impressed him most!
This past Saturday saw the rugby fraternity bid farewell to arguably the greatest ever singer of ‘God save our Queen’ in England and Wasps legend Lawrence Dallaglio.
Dallaglio’s farewell could not have been scripted any better as his London Wasps team overcame a powerful Leicester outfit to be crowned Guinness Premiership Champions in front of a record 80,000 fans at Twickenham.
A World Cup winner in 2003, the outspoken flank has enjoyed an illustrious career on and off the field. There is no disputing his rugby playing ability. His track record speaks for itself and he is he clearly is a leader that his teammates seem to hold in high regard.
But it’s his over zealous singing that will be sorely missed. Dallaglio is without a shadow of a doubt the most passionate singer of a national anthem that’s ever graced a rugby field. He probably has the purest voice too, not that I have been subjected to Dallaglio’s singing! In 2005 it was revealed that at the tender age of 13, Dallaglio sang backing vocals for Tina Turner’s hit, ‘We don’t need another hero.’ In addition to that, he also sang at the wedding of Andrew Lloyd Webber, clearly showing that he is a multi-talented individual!
Farewell Lawrence. You will be missed! Maybe we’ll see him on the next edition of Idols…
Further South, the mighty Crusaders won their seventh Super rugby title at the AMI Stadium on Saturday. No surprises there as the chorus of “Reuben Thorne, Reuben Thorne, Reuben Thorne” rung out around the stadium for the umpteenth time.
It has become customary that whenever the Crusaders win a Super Rugby title, which is more often that not, the squad perform their rendition of the now famous ‘Thorne song,’ which came into being in 2002 when the Crusaders went through the season unbeaten.
It was a fitting farewell to a man that has serves the Crusaders and the All Blacks with distinction over the years. But just as significant was the departure of their coach Robbie Deans. The Crusaders’ triumph on Saturday was Deans’ sixth in charge of the conquering Christchurch franchise. It is a record that is likely to stand forever which proves just how valuable Deans is.
But perhaps Deans’ greatest achievement is his humility that he as displayed throughout his distinguished time at the Crusaders. He goes about his business without the fanfare so often seen with modern day coaches. He treats every one with the utmost respect and Australian rugby is sure to go from strength to strength under the tutorship of this great man.
Another Crusader who bid farewell on the weekend was Caleb Ralph. The wing has been a great servant to the seven-time champions, accumulating over 100 caps in the process. He is second on the Super Rugby try-scoring list with 58 touchdowns and his only one behind Doug Howlett.
Another remarkable achievement is that Ralph played in 103 consecutive Super Rugby matches for the Crusaders spanning an astonishing seven years. That alone is a mark of his ability and contribution to the Crusaders’ domination over the years.
As we say cheerio to a few legends, South Africa is on the verge of an exciting new dawn.
The Springboks play Wales in Bloemfontein on Saturday in their first test of the year. It will also be Peter de Villiers’ first test in charge of the world champions. He has made no secret of his desire to play a more expansive game, and judging by his possible selections, it is clear as to what the gameplan of the Boks will be.
There is talk that Adrian Jacobs is going to wear the No.13 jersey ahead of Frans Steyn. It was at the beginning of the Super 14 season that Sharks coach Dick Muir branded the stocky centre a supersub. But injuries and loss of form during the season necessitated Muir starting with Jacobs at the tail-end of the competition. There has always been a question mark surrounding his defence but his ability on attack is what De Villiers is after.
I have my reservations about Jacobs starting for the Springboks. Yes he can create opportunities on attack, of that there is no doubt, but in modern day Test rugby, defence is just as important, if not more crucial, than attack.
The Springboks won the World Cup because they had a water-tight defence. Jake White built his champion side around defence. Whether Jacobs fronts up on defence remains to be seen, but in saying that, the former Falcon deserves his chance to prove his worth.
De Villiers also looks like he’s going to go with Pierre Spies over Ryan Kankowski at No.8. I would have gone with the Sharks No.8 on this one.
Kankowski was brilliant throughout the Super 14 and showed what an immense talent he is from the back of the scrum. His try against the Crusaders where he picked up from the scrum and handed off three would-be tacklers (including the Richie McCaw) was an absolute cracker.
Spies is also supremely talented and has a great future ahead of him. His was superb in the early stages of 2007 before being sidelined for eight moths due to a lung disease. But it was his comeback for the Bulls against the Blues in the Super 14 that proved just how good he really is. He played the full 80 minute and looked like he hadn’t missed a week of rugby, let alone eight months.
But Kankowski deserves his spot at No.8 purely because he is the incumbent and if anything, has enhanced his reputation since making his Bok debut against Wales at the end of last year.
I suspect the Boks will be too powerful for an injury-ravaged Welsh side who have never won on South African soil. They simply have too much firepower on attack not to beat Warren Gatland’s side. It will be disjointed early on and that’s understandable. It’s the first Test of the season and combinations will need to get used to each other. But just like last season when the Boks opened the flood gates in the last half an hour against England in their first test of 2007, Peter de Villiers’ chargers will do the same in Bloemfontein on Saturday.
Did you enjoy Steve’s column? Throw your ‘brickbats and bouquets’ at him by clicking here!
