Chris Rattue: Good news from the provinces

COMMENT

"Geez, we're pretty rough on our sports stars," a long-time rugby administrator reckoned as we mulled over the weekend's NPC rugby on Sunday.

This bloke comes from the provinces, and - true, folks - he was feeling bad on behalf of the Auckland rugby team.

The reason? He had just taken his life into his hands by listening to talkback radio, where the Auckland team was getting a right going over after being given a right going over by Waikato in Hamilton on Saturday afternoon.

Normal transmission has resumed, I thought. There's only so much Olympic spirit anyone can stomach.

We've had two weeks of all that glory-of-sport mush, and we, the punters, have had enough.

We're like a big lion who's been lazing around in the sun then suddenly gets a few hunger pangs. It was time to tear something apart.

"What's wrong with Auckland rugby" is apparently the question of the moment.

Maybe it's better to look at it this way - "What's right with Waikato rugby?"

Because to dwell too much on Auckland's abysmal performance takes the gloss off one of the great provincial displays.

Waikato were as outstanding as the 59-11 scoreline suggests. From the brilliance of Sitiveni Sivivatu, to the clever running and passes of the rookie loose forward Liam Messam, to the constant involvement of veteran fullback Todd Miller, to the inspiring work of their new captain, Steven Bates, it was a colossal effort.

Sivivatu will be an All Black next year, fitness allowing. He is a rare talent - the best wing in the land right now and a potential world rugby superstar.

Who knows what lies ahead for Messam? The rugby world would seem to be at his feet. I'll say this in hushed tones, but there are some who utter his name and that of Zinzan Brooke in the same sentence.

Miller's body seems to have had more breakdowns than the string of motor cars I've owned. On one hand, you keep expecting him to throw his hands up and retire in frustration. And on the other, you get the feeling he'll still be on the Waikato team sheets in 10 years.

Through the ups and downs of injuries and brief All Black selection, Miller's greatest strength has probably been his humble attitude to life - an acceptance that with the good comes the bad. He is clearly one of the most important leaders for Waikato.

And Bates must have revelled in Saturday's performance.

The Mooloo No 8 was a face that didn't fit in Auckland.

Having had a rugby league background as a youngster, Bates had no overwhelming desire to hang around in the name of the blue and white hooped jersey, and quite easily found a new home in the Waikato.

After a sterling Super 12 season with the Chiefs, he had his greatest provincial moment on Saturday, leading a team rated as significant underdogs by the TAB to an overwhelming victory.

John Mitchell's side was hardly in the best of health for the game.

Apart from their four missing All Blacks, they had front rowers Deacon Manu and Michael Collins coming back from injury layoffs, and other top and experienced footballers including Tom Willis, Greg Smith, Regan King, Roger Randle and Mark Ranby on the sideline.

They had no right to smash up Auckland the way they did, yet they smelled blood and went in for the kill.

Like Taranaki against Bay of Plenty later in the day, the Waikato players were playing off the same page and ready to do the hard graft in the name of the team.

In comparison, the champions were a shambles, a collection of mainly talented individuals completely out of their depth and unable to even find a cause to die for. Pat Lam came to the Auckland coaching job from European rugby with plenty of new theories, including a willingness to try players like Orene Ai'i and Bradley Mika in new positions.

But now that Lam's reinvented wheels have fallen off, it will be up to the old hands, led by Xavier Rush, to sort the situation out. That in itself presents a problem, because Lam and Rush etc are barely acquainted.

The 10-team NPC is a sporting sprint, and Auckland require a huge and hasty repair job.

It's a bit early to write them off, but I don't fancy their chances of a third consecutive title.