48 hours: Certainties crashing down

Remember the days when there used to be some certainty in life?

Those safe and predictable times when everyone knew their place and things were just accepted; Canterbury would beat Otago at rugby, North Harbour would choke in the netball final and Roy Keane would always play for Manchester United - possibly even posthumously.

Talk about a shift in tides.

By the time we'd arisen this morning a trio of myths had already been exploded and the sporting landscape was looking a shade unfamiliar, as if a couple of skyscrapers had sprung up overnight.

It started at Carisbrook, where unfancied Otago managed the unthinkable and took maximum points off Canterbury, in the process cementing themselves a semifinals place with a game to play.

Otago had been tipped for slaughter in the lead-up to the match, northern commentators suggesting that Canterbury would play with ruthless abandon after being freed of their Ranfurly Shield responsibilities.

In fact, the exact opposite transpired, to the extent that Canterbury were 24-0 down as halftime beckoned, a lapse that would have almost certainly led to a corruption inquiry had the combatants been wearing flannels.

However, it still would have been hard work for Otago supporters when the gap was narrowed to five points late in the game, given the southern men's well-deserved reputation for blowing leads on the wire.

This, remember, is the side that lost the NPC final to Auckland on a last-second penalty-try, and a Ranfurly Shield challenge against Canterbury on a penalty conceded within the dying minutes.

If anyone was wondering how anxious life can get for provincial rugby fans, they should remember that Otago hasn't held the shield since September 28, 1957; the day that Taranaki came knocking.

It must have felt a tad similar for North Harbour netball supporters after their side crashed and burned in the past two national provincial finals and made the semifinals on a host of other occasions.

But in another Dunedin-based sporting drama, North shook the monkey from their backs on Saturday night and turned the tables on recent nemesis Waikato, in what became a perfectly-scripted farewell for stalwart coach Yvonne Willering.

Willering, the former Silver Ferns boss, could be scratchy with the media and was well-known for her obdurate moments, but will be remembered as a forward-thinking coach and a tireless servant for Auckland, North Harbour and New Zealand netball.

The other tireless servant who was in the news at the weekend was Keane, a man so steeped in Manchester United history that it's difficult to imagine him wearing any other emblem.

But there he was, telling all and sundry that he expected to leave Old Trafford at the end of the premiership season, although it was noticeable that he still left the door ajar on the subject of his contract status.

Arsenal's Arsene Wenger had an interesting take on the situation, saying he wasn't convinced that Keane wasn't simply attempting to get the upper hand in contract talks: "He could be saying, 'Come on Manchester United, if you want to keep me for another year then it's time to wake up as I have some other offers on the table'," said Wenger.

He may be right. But if Manchester United have any sense of vision for the future, they should be arranging Keane's farewell party now, if only to underline their intention to move on.

Keane is not the same player these days; his influence on the park is waning and he's playing a more defensive role.

His best days are gone and, in the rarefied atmosphere of European competition, he's in danger of becoming a liability.