Dana Johannsen: Match of the day held nation in its thrall

It had all the hallmarks of a classic rugby battle.

No matter where your allegiances lay you had to appreciate the passion, grit, and determination that was on display. The atmosphere was electric with the raucous crowd riding every high and low, as the favourites went on to secure a comfortable win.

The scoreline probably could have blown out even further if a certain No 10's goal-kicking radar been more finely tuned.

Yes, Southbridge's brilliant 34-13 win over Hornby at the weekend in the premier division of Canterbury's Ellesmere sub union competition captivated the nation.

And isn't it great to see club rugby back in the spotlight?

Southbridge are the toast of New Zealand rugby, leading all the Saturday night sport bulletins.

They seemed to pay a lot of attention to that underwear-model-turned-rugby-player at first five-eighth, I forget his name now. He doesn't look to be much chop anyway - he only converted two of his six shots at goal. But that's television news for you, always looking for some sort of tabloid angle.

Apparently this poor guy is embroiled in a bit of a scandal after racy photos of him were put up for auction online. Someone should tell this Perpignanpatty who is trying to peddle these sordid shots that they are probably nothing more than can be found on billboards in every metropolitan area of New Zealand. It's such a shame that such unseemly business can detract from Southbridge's impressive performance on Saturday.

I can't wait to hear about how they go next week.

* * *

To the other big match of the weekend.

It occurred to me, as I shuffled down the stairs at 3am yesterday, that it's been a long time since I've let the All Blacks interrupt my eight hours sleep.

It used to be, no matter what time you had to rise, there was always a certain buzz and excitement about watching an All Blacks test. Getting up in the middle of the night to watch them take on the Springboks in the Republic was simply what every hardy fan did.

Nowadays, more often than not, I'm quite happy to wait for the replay at a more civilised hour.

Had it not been for a rib injury that serves as a natural alarm clock, I may not have bothered getting up to watch the All Blacks open the South African leg of their Tri-Nations campaign. So, with a sense of doom I dragged myself out of bed hoping the All Blacks could for the second week in a row pull off an unlikely Tri-Nations victory.

The result was inevitable as much as it was ominous.

It is hard to know exactly which part of the All Blacks gameplan failed as there was little evidence of any gameplan being put into effect at all - other than to kick the ball infield as they clearly didn't fancy their chances against the Springbok lineout.

But then the All Blacks didn't seem to want to run the ball either.

On the few occasions they did spread the ball and play a more expansive style, they looked dangerous, with midfielders Conrad Smith and Ma'a Nonu proving if probed, holes can be found in the Springboks rush defence. But more often than not, helter skelter rugby prevailed.

This was in stark contrast to the Springboks' patient and clinical approach that saw them easily win the battle for territory and possession.

Yet, for all their struggles to stamp their authority on the match, the All Blacks weren't without their chances to win it. Thanks to some shoddy goal-kicking from controversial No 10 selection Ruan Pienaar, the Springboks failed to fully capitalise on an extremely tentative start from the visitors, leading by just 11 at halftime. The All Blacks then worked their way back into the contest on the back of a superb individual try by Smith.

Trailing by just four points heading into the final quarter the All Blacks looked as if they could once again get themselves out of jail. But there was to be no great escape this week. A couple of misfires at lineout time, brain explosions in the backline and poor handling saw the momentum shift back the way of the Springboks in the final 15 minutes.

There is no shortage of areas the All Blacks need to address as they look ahead to the rematch in Durban next weekend. Their unwillingness to compete in the lineout for one, along with their inability to capitalise on their dominance at scrum time, and an exorbitantly high number of defensive errors.

* * *

The "swimsuit" world championships got under way in Rome overnight amid the furore over new-generation swimsuits.

It used to be a huge achievement when a swimmer broke a world record, such feats becoming the talking point of an event. Yet I doubt anyone will bat an eyelid when the records tumble in Rome.

You see, since Speedo raised the bar in the lead-up to the Beijing Olympics in 2008, other companies have rushed to jump over it and then some. The newest swimsuits off the production line feature technology that aids buoyancy, allowing increased speed through the water. Critics have labelled the new generation suits "technological doping".

Alarmed by more than 100 world records in the past 18 months, most from swimmers wearing new technology suits, FINA have decided to reassess the standards. The world body passed the following new rule: "No swimmer shall be permitted to use or wear any device or swimsuit that may aid his speed, buoyancy or endurance during a competition."

It has only come, oh, about 18 months too late.

Certainly their actions weren't swift, nor decisive enough to prevent the championships turning into a complete farce, with the rule not coming in to effect until after the event, thus ensuring every medal in the pool will be qualified by which swimsuit the athlete wore.

The question will be who, or what, deserves the accolades: swimmer or swimsuit?