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Watching the opera at Eden Park |
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Written by the Hoarse Fan in the Stand
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Thursday, 12 October 2006 |
It happened with less than 10 minutes to go. A previously mouse-like Auckland supporter, driven to distraction by our incessant chanting, cut us down with a witty one-liner. “Look at the scoreboard!” With his team 4 converted tries ahead, he was hopeful we would be reduced to a depressed silence. We then made even more noise - let’s face it, if we only made noise when confident of victory over Auckland, we would remain as quiet as their “fans”.
The general atmosphere at Eden Park was slightly less rowdy than the Aotea Centre during a performance of “Madame Butterfly”. We therefore felt compelled to raise the volume level and although small in number, I think we managed to convey our Bay-related messages. We also complained about the refereeing of course, the forward pass to Howlett for the first try, the body check on Latu that went unpunished. Behind the posts and 100 yards away on the terraces we could see everything. A 15-14 half-time shoreline suggested that we were still in the game. But we had already used up a large chunk of luck fighting back with 2 tries and Auckland soon killed the game off in the second half. As is usually the case with Auckland, they profited hugely from turnovers and we generously offered them plenty. There was the good news/bad news of Auckland being reduced to 14 men. Even the Auckland fans seemed please to see Lavea leave the park. In the second half, we did everything but score a try. Warren Smith failed to take a Latu pass that would have led to a try and we managed to make an error whenever we were close to the line. It would have been pleasing to register the points that we deserved and punish Auckland for some of the wild passes that they continued to throw. If this does turn out to be Nili Latu’s farewell Bay game, what a fantastic player he has been for us. I have always had a mathematical problem with the phrase “110% commitment” but it is 110% appropriate for Nili. With Super 14 squad selections (and non-selections) coming soon, we hope there won’t be more farewells for Bay players, we know well enough how tempting the offers are from overseas. 5 reasons to enjoy the defeat at Eden Park.
- We had a great day out.
- No crowds to battle through and no queues to get into Eden Park.
- Simms Davison is as fast as David Smith.
- We kept 15 on the pitch and they didn’t.
- We departed at the same stage as Canterbury – and we didn’t depart in a pitiful manner like the current Shield holders.
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