KEY POINTS:
It's reassuring these days that after any World Cup exit, there is a ready-made explanation for the media and public: lack of mental toughness.
But the mental toughness argument isn't just for World Cup campaigns. It's just as handy after any defeat. Or victory.
If people are talking
sport anywhere, someone is bound to play the mental toughness card and, in the right company, it will trump everything. Old heads nod and young heads tilt in recognition of the phrase which has become a mantra.
The Black Caps lacked mental toughness, cried scribes and pundits, when it came down to the crunch at the cricket World Cup. The New Zealand players even said the wrong things before the semifinal against Sri Lanka. Proof they were mentally weak or just mental, said some.
Sri Lanka prevailed and therefore can add mental toughness to their national gifts, along with tea. Australia, meanwhile, have mental toughness coming out their ears, reportedly.
The big problem with this mental toughness argument is where it's coming from - the brain.
The brain, of course, would love you to think it's responsible for deciding sporting contests.
Never mind that, say, the Black Caps mightn't have had the skill or the Lankans bowled with freaky arms. Brains love to pump out the mental toughness line because it makes them feel superior to other brains and aligns them with winners, even if the winners' brains are pathetic.
People talked about Michael Jordan's mental edge, but was the great basketballer's edge simply that he knew he was better than anyone else so he might as well take the shot?
If he was so mentally tough, why did his brain tell him to play baseball at which he was a failure?
The brain plays its part admirably in a sporting contests but we can't let it get ahead of itself. Sport is one of the few domains where you don't need brains. Let's keep it that way.
There are exceptions, like yachting, but if your boat's a dunga then your brain is going nowhere fast.
Yes, I concede that in sport, you can be out-thought and that choking is a mental (rather than a throat) issue.
Cricket's mental component can't be denied, too, but when someone's flinging a ball at someone else, it can often come down to skill.
And if a team from a country of four million is up against more one from a country of 20 million (the population of Sri Lanka and Australia), and it's the number one sport, there's a chance they'll be up against better sportsmen. Some of them might even be mentally tough. Some of them could be total drongos.
In sport, sometimes it doesn't matter.
Prop punished
What kind of bizarre punishment was it to put the gruff and no-nonsense Carl Hayman on the catwalk to model the new All Black jersey?
The big prop rejected the NZRU's offer of a farm to stay in New Zealand, so what better way to put him in his place?
Hayman looked distinctly uncomfortable modelling the jersey as the farmer was forced to strut down the catwalk and pose like legendary male model Derek Zoolander. In contrast, Ma'a Nonu revelled in the role.
Tributes roll in
After the Black Caps were knocked out from the World Cup, the Herald website's message boards ran hot. An overwhelming majority said Fleming's resignation as one-day captain was long overdue.
"This is the best news I've heard!" said Lionel Wilson. "Fleming is the No 1 reason that NZ Cricket is wallowing in the depths of despair. His leadership is non-existent and never has been."
Although that last sentence doesn't quite gel, neither did the Black Caps and that's the gist of Lionel's point.
"No, he was not a great captain," wrote Eduardo. "He was always more reactive and not pro-active enough in his field placings."
Sandy: "Passed his use by date . . . arrogant."
Tim: "He doesn't look motivated and hasn't looked motivated for a while."
Nevertheless, Fleming's decision to continue as a player is excellent news. New Zealand can't afford to lose someone of his calibre.
Cricket loses a lot of talent before school's out. Gifted all-rounder Ryan Nelsen chose soccer a decade ago, while last year teenage fast bowler Israel Dagg chose playing for Hawkes Bay. The lure of the Magpie is still strong.
The Piri precedent
South Africa has two brilliant halfbacks in Fourie du Preez and Ruan Pienaar but first-five is a quandary.
Good old New Zealand rugby has helped them solve it by shifting halfback Piri Weepu to No 10 in the Super 14. Pienaar played flyhalf in age-group rugby and, as a bonafide matchwinner at Super 14 level, the Springboks would be better off with him on the field.
Crouch, touch, what?
Rugby scrums are a total mess and you don't have to be one of the boys from Queer Eye to want to clean them up.
The key question: Why does there have to be such a big initial hit as the two packs collide?
There wasn't in the '60s, according to players from that era, and it worked okay then. Today's engagement causes injuries and slows the game down.
So why can't the two packs ease in and then shove?
Or is the problem that it's not manly enough? Time to soften up then.
