The best of the best
With Rugby World Cup winding down, only true contenders remain
10/20/11
What’s the favourite sport of this rubgy-ball-shaped dome? Hm... Photo by Katrhin & Stefan (flickr)
As of the writing of this article, we are in the final days of the Rugby world cup, hosted in New Zealand. By the time you read this article, the semi-finals will have just finished, and we will have our Final matchup, which is to be played on October 23rd. However, all four semi-finalists have demonstrated champion worthiness, with the perfect, delicate balance between the high-energy, emotional side of the game, and the technical side of it.
The semi-final matchups include Wales vs. France and Australia vs. New Zealand. All four got to this point because of a common determination, togetherness, and focus on the offensive and defensive ends equally. Passion and pride have huge parts to play in this sport, but throughout the tournament it was clear that team dynamics and cohesion were among the X-factor ingredients.
Gareth Rees from TSN.com writes that it is “clear that team dynamics and cohesion are as important at the top level as they are in the lowest division club game. Any energy and focus lost in dealing with off-field issues has cost teams who are no longer in the running for the Webb Ellis Trophy.”
He illustrated his point by going on to say, “Ireland has no shortage of passion and they came to play in their quarterfinals against Wales [22-10 for Wales]. They are on a plane because they were found wanting on the technical side. They were far too predictable and although committed as we have come to expect, they didn’t have the tools to unlock the Welsh defence.” While there is no clear favorite out of any of these four teams to go all the way, it is clearly going to take that right balance and fit for everything to come together. In this way, whomever is crowned after the 23rd of October, they will be the clear-cut champion after having run this gauntlet.
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