Tommy Wilson: Kiwi rugby pride surges

All Blacks' Brodie Retallick gave the French a lesson in running rugby.

The Cardiff curse has been lifted like a lineout jumper and sat fair and square on its derriere.

Every one of the four million couch coaches will have their reasons as to why we flogged the French by 62-13, as do I, and for us 44 Te Punians who laid down a korowai of karakia (cloak of prayer) when we were in the same stadium three weeks ago, it was almost as good as being there watching our BroBlacks win.

Both teams in the opposition wore red jerseys and both got a hammering of more than 100 points against them so, yes, our karakia were answered - with interest.

To say the nation had been nervous this last week is about as stupid as saying you have sacked your coach a few days out from a quarter-final playoff and, sacre bleu, he may well get the "frappe la rue" (hit the road) after the Frenchmen's performance yesterday.

I listened to many predictions and gave a few of my own (we would win by 30-plus and backed it on the tote) but the conviction of our commitment as a country of loyal royal rugby supporters can be best summed up by my mate's Koro, who is a patient in Tauranga Hospital and due to have a leg amputated today.

When assembled around the 88-year-old's bedside on Friday morning the seven surgeons and doctors politely informed him he would lose his leg on Saturday, to which he replied: "Firstly you may as well take the other one as well, save me coming back again, eh boy."

And then the kicker: "No way you're chopping my waewae off this weekend. I'm watching the All Blacks flog the French. Losing a leg - no problem, even both of the buggers, but losing against the French? No bloody way."

And to their credit the seven surgeons and doctors gathered around his bed agreed to postpone it until post-match.

So good luck, Koro, and tumeke to your commitment for the ABs. I guess that's called giving an arm and a leg for the team. But commitment was ever present everywhere on and off the hallowed turf of Cardiff.

I guess you had to feel for the French un petit?

But in all honesty not even the Foreign Legion could have rescued them from the brutal lesson of running rugby they received. From the first two tries by Big Brodie and the Skud Missile it was obvious the boys in black were on fire and in synch, as they clicked like a new pair of South Island shearing shears.

You can almost hear the headlines of Le Monde, the French daily tabloid: "Sacre Bleu - Sack The Coach".

Too little too late on that call. We already have a sugar bag full of frogs' legs that will be crawling back to Paris at a snail's pace wondering what the hell hit them at Cardiff.

When I messaged my good mate Fabrice who kindly hosted us in France and asked him what went wrong, he simply said: "Beth and her 86-year-old mother Shirley Girley Sparks could have played better than our boys." Or was that me who stuck the bursting boot of pride into an already very wounded French warrior?

The Flying Kiwis, aka the army of black shirts backing the All Blacks, will be in full voice, and after the Cardiff hangover has passed they will carkoi in convoy up the M4 motorway to take on South Africa at Twickenham.

I am expecting the BroBlacks to remain on the same game plan that has seen them take apart two world cup teams wearing red jerseys by 100 points - and that should scare the pants off the Proteas and make Koro jump or hop for joy.

Allez les Blacks - Au revoir Les Bleus and bring it on Les Boks.

-broblack@xtra.co.nz

Tommy Wilson is a best selling author and local writer