Forward Thinking: Tackling the Cup, onscreen and off

The Rugby World Cup will be an entertainment extravaganza - for rugby and non-rugby fans alike. Photo / Getty Images

Stop it right now, you naysayers. Here are 10 reasons why the Rugby World Cup will be an entertainment extravaganza - for rugby and non-rugby fans alike.

Party central will rock

No, really, it will. Forget Kronic, the natural high that you will feel down at Cloud Nine - as we fondly refer to it here at TimeOut - when Dan Carter slots the drop kick (practise, Dan, practise) to win the final will be better than anything Matt Bowden and his mates can offer. Celebrate good times, come on.

Summer rugby

Okay, a slight exaggeration, but there is nothing better as far as a sporting spectacle goes than rugby played in the warm spring sunshine. Okay, another exaggeration, because there are very few afternoon games - although the All Blacks play Canada at 3.30pm in windy Wellington on October 2. The thing is, daylight saving kicks in halfway through the competition, so sunset kick-offs will be a beautiful thing indeed.

MySky

Freeze-frame, rewind, and, most importantly for non-rugby fans, fast-forward the game at your leisure. Though this technology has revolutionised TV sport-watching, oddly enough it's killed it off as a spectacle at the same time. I say this because of all the Super 15 games I've watched this season I don't think I've watched one in its entirety. Why watch the crouch, touch, pause part of the scrum, when you can fast-forward straight to the engage? However, given the sense of occassion surrounding the Rugby World Cup, I have vowed to watch whole games (but I'll still record them).

Kiri will sing

The great Kiwi diva will be doing a special gala concert with the NZSO at Vector Arena the night before the final on October 22. Which is great, but what would be more useful is if she trotted out on to the field and sang the national anthem on finals day.

Watching the minnows

Not to sound patronising, but there is something adorable about watching fledgling rugby nations such as Russia, Namibia, and, er, the US (who have been playing for years but still can't get used to throwing the ball backwards) go hammer and tongs against the big boys of the competition. It's like that oh-so-cute feeling you get watching midget rugby as the kids swarm their way around the field until one little tackler breaks free from the group and scores in the corner.

The Aussies will be served on a plate

Wouldn't that be nice? Well, it's not going to happen with Quade and Kurtley in the Wallabies. However. Australian chef Sean Connolly is the subject of fly-on-the-wall reality show Under the Grill, to screen on TV3, following him as he's given 100 days to set up a new restaurant in Auckland in time for the cup.

Sonny, Dan, Quade

So one of them plays for Australia, but he was born here and together these three are the pin-up boys of the competition. One for the ladies, then.

It's a game of two laughs

The Rugby Comedy Fest at ASB Theatre on October 22 is a show dedicated to the banter, bottom-patting and bear-hug culture that develops between rugby players. Maaate. It should be a cracker. Rugby's a laugh, pass it on.

It's not about winning, it's about taking part

Not a disclaimer if the unthinkable happens, more like an inspiring slogan for the people of New Zealand - that's all of us, not just rugby-loving folk - to get out and have a beer with our friends from around the world.

It's free

This is key for casual rugby fans. You need not pay excessive amounts for tickets to the outer reaches of a stand at Eden Park when you can stay home - or slip down to your local - and watch the important games for free. And I'll tell you what, you're likely to get a far better view of Sonny Bill's tats and Richie's rough and tumble on telly than you will at the ground. In saying that, there's nothing quite like grabbing a hot dog and chips, a few really expensive beers and watching a good game of footy from the stands.

- TimeOut