Herald on Sunday editorial: The best rehearsal for rugby's big repeat

The World Cup remains so vivid in our memory it's hard to believe the next one will kick off in England in less than a year. Photo / File

Opinion

Can it really be that three years have passed since that unforgettable night when the nation held its breath, the All Blacks scrapped and tackled and somehow stayed on-side defending a one-point lead for 30 aching minutes?

The Rugby World Cup in New Zealand remains so vivid in our memory that it is hard to believe the next World Cup will kick off in England in less than a year.

It may be easier to believe this morning if England have surprised the All Blacks in their match a few hours ago. The World Cup already seems to be energising the English rugby establishment.

But the All Blacks have not been resting on their laurels either. If their World Cup victory seems like yesterday, consider the players we were yet to see. Few had heard then of Aaron Smith or Brodie Retallick, Beauden Barrett or Julian Savea.

The infusion of those players, especially Smith, has enabled the team to play so much faster than three years ago that it is probably better than it was when it won the Cup. Its chances of becoming the first All Black team to win the trophy outside New Zealand will entice many Kiwis to make the trip next year.

They may need to book soon. England's event organisers are already doing the ballotted ticket sales we saw in the lead-up to New Zealand 2011. Despite the greater capacity of the London venues, the Weekend Herald's Dylan Cleaver found officials confident they would see out the 90,000 seats in Wembley Stadium for an All Blacks pool match against Argentina.

With Twickenham's capacity now 84,000 and London's new Olympic Stadium capable of seating 80,000, the next World Cup will be a big income-earner for the International Rugby Board and the game in all countries. It should be the pay-off the IRB is seeking after the lower returns it knew to expect from the event in New Zealand.

It also knows security precautions will need to be tighter. Britain is an active participant in air strikes against the terrorists that have taken over parts of Syria and Iraq, as is Australia. John Key this week acknowledged that heightened precautions will be needed for the Cricket World Cup in Australia and New Zealand in February. London will be prepared.

If the worst disaster, from New Zealand's viewpoint, happens on the field, it might not cause the national agony of our last World Cup match in Britain.

The 2007 catastrophe against France in Cardiff has been buried by the success of 2011 and the years since.

Its northern tour caps another commanding season and gives us a dress rehearsal for even greater things next year on rugby's London stage.