KEY POINTS:
Much attention is being lavished upon the number 1000 - the days until the next Rugby World Cup. And a lot of thought is being given to the tournament's other big numbers: the millions of dollars to be spent and then hopefully recouped; the hundreds of thousands of spectators the games will draw; the tens of thousands of asparagus rolls to be consumed during corporate hospitality binges.
But the numbers that really matter are 15 and one. The first represents the players who will be tasked with restoring this country's national rugby pride, the second the monkey they'll be desperately trying to prise from their backs.
One World Cup in 24 years. One. That is the number the 15 men who will pull on the black shirts - 22 if we're being pedantic - will not be able to escape. It will be with them today, tomorrow and every one of the 998 days after that. It will be with them in the dressing room before the kick-offs.
The question is, will it still be with them after the final whistle of their final game at the tournament?
One thing is certain, the All Blacks will start raging hot favourites, just as they did last year and four years before that.
British bookmakers have already installed them as 11/10 ($2.10) favourites. By comparison, Australia and South Africa are at a distant 5-1 ($6).
New Zealand's TAB has yet to open a book but provisional odds it supplied the Weekend Herald roughly match those of the British bookies.
Those odds are based on current form, after a year in which the All Blacks rebounded from what coach Graham Henry simply refers to as "Cardiff" - a year in which the coach clung on to his job and then successfully plugged the gaps left by the traditional post-World Cup exodus of many of the country's best players.
Jerry Collins, Carl Hayman, Anton Oliver, Keith Robinson and Luke McAlister - all players who started in Cardiff against the French - departed in short order. Chris Jack, Aaron Mauger, Nick Evans and Doug Howlett - either on the bench or left out for the 18-20 defeat - joined them.
Despite the defections, the All Blacks still retained a hardened, experienced core. It was that core, coupled with the injection of fresh talent, that allowed the team to retain the Bledisloe Cup, the Tri Nations title and make a blissfully untroubled Grand Slam swing through Europe.
The biggest question over the 2011 team is whether that core will still be around, and still be effective, in three years' time.
Depending on what side you butter your bread, the 2011 All Blacks will either be a hardened group of veterans, steeled by experience and galvanised by previous disappointments - a team not dissimilar to England's 2003 Dad's Army - or a team riddled with broken-down old codgers.
Of course, that sort of conjecture relies on current players still being around in 2011. Of those so far contracted by the NZRU until the World Cup, captain Richie McCaw and first five-eighths Dan Carter are the key names.
The group also includes John Afoa, Ma'a Nonu, Andrew Hore, Richard Kahui and Neemia Tialata - all players likely to be central to the team's fortunes in 2011.
Having adopted the sensible strategy of locking down match-turning superstars such as Carter and McCaw first, the NZRU is now turning its efforts to extending the contracts of the next tier of players.
Announcements are expected soon, with players such as Ali Williams, Tony Woodcock, Sitiveni Sivivatu and Mils Muliaina all off contract at the end of next year and in line for extensions.
Of the current squad, only lock Brad Thorn, who will be 36, looks an extreme long shot to still be around in 2011.
Other positions where the passage of time may force change are hooker, where incumbents Andrew Hore and Keven Mealamu will be 33 and 32 respectively; and fullback, where Muliaina will be 31.
Muliaina has openly pondered a move overseas, although that may simply be a negotiating tactic.
As well as retaining key players, the NZRU is actively encouraging some of the departed to return.
Recent events suggest prop Carl Hayman will be back in the frame sooner rather than later, while others such as McAlister have signed contract terms that would allow a pre-World Cup return.
Projecting a likely 2011 team is a fraught affair, with variables such as form, injuries, availability and even the emergence of a bolt from the blue a la Jonah Lomu before the 1995 Cup likely to come into play.
But a position-by-position analysis suggests the All Blacks should have a fearsome front row and a mixture of youth and experience in the second and third rows of the scrum. There is also the potential for a vastly experienced back three, an established midfield and a superstar first five-eighths in Carter who should still be in his prime at 29.
Fullback
Much will depend on whether Muliaina decides to commit himself to the cause. If he does, and his form holds out, he will likely head into the tournament with around 90 tests under his belt. Beyond Muliaina, though, the depth isn't great. Leon MacDonald, sidelined indefinitely with concussion-related problems, will be 33. That leaves an improving Isaia Toeava as the most likely alternative, with Israel Dagg a potential bolter.
Wings
If they stick around, Joe Rokocoko (28) and Sitiveni Sivivatu (29) will still be the right side of 30, with a plethora of caps and tries under their belts. Sivivatu, whose contract expires next year, seems the most likely to fly the coop, while Rokocoko is contracted until 2010 and will only need to extend by a year to be in the frame. Pressure for the Fijian pair's jerseys seems most likely to come from rising star Zac Guildford and this season's breakthrough player Hosea Gear.
Midfield
Looks to be a case of fitting three into two. Conrad Smith just enjoyed his best season in a black shirt but the challenge of Richard Kahui is unmistakable. Both are certain to be around in 2011, presenting a happy conundrum for a team that has made a horribly unsuccessful habit of pressing fullbacks into service in the 13 jumper in the last three tournaments.
After a breakthrough season, the second five-eighths jersey appears to be Nonu's to lose, although the return of McAlister could cloud the picture, and injuries could leave the position looking worryingly thin.
First five-eighths
Potentially the team's greatest strength and weakness. Carter at his best is a player to rank among the all-time greats. But if the champion playmaker is struck by injury at a second successive cup then the All Blacks could be in all sorts of trouble. Stephen Donald is still an unconvincing back-up option and the national scene is destitute.
The Blues, for example, will this year choose between veteran journeymen Tasesa Lavea and Jimmy Gopperth. Much ado has been made about Wellington youngster Daniel Kirkpatrick but he was shunted aside for Piri Weepu in the big games this year. With the halfback picture congested, thought might even be given to making Weepu's shift to five-eighths permanent.
Halfback
At 25, Brendon Leonard should be in his prime in 2011. But there are serious questions over the dodgy knees that have sidelined the Chiefs star indefinitely.
If he does make a successful return, Leonard could well establish himself as the top choice from a field that already includes Jimmy Cowan, Weepu and Andy Ellis. If he doesn't, Cowan and Weepu appear set for a lengthy scrap for the job.
Loose forwards
Like the back three, the potential for a Dad's Army combination is there. Richie McCaw will be 30 and should have clocked up 100 caps, while Rodney So'oialo will turn 32 during the tournament.
The other incumbent, Jerome Kaino, will be 28. So'oialo seems the most likely to be ousted, probably by the excellent Kieran Read. Another possible scenario would see a declining McCaw switched to blindside to accommodate a young flier such as emerging Hawkes Bay talent Karl Lowe.
Locks
At 36, Brad Thorn will almost certainly be gone, opening up a spot for a power second rower. Thorn is considered a key component of the scrum and the selectors would likely try to replace like with like. Anthony Boric has been groomed for the job. Ali Williams, the team's key lineout forward, will be young enough at 30 but there must be questions over whether a body that has taken a fearful amount of punishment over the years will hold up. Ross Filipo
and Jason Eaton were preferred for the recent Grand Slam tour but Jeremy Thrush, a former world junior player of the year who has yet to earn favour with the current selection panel, seems a more likely long-term option.
Hooker
New Zealand's reigning player of the year, Andrew Hore, is under contract until 2011. But Hore will turn 33 during the cup and could be coming to the end of his shelf life. His main rival in recent years, Keven Mealamu, is a year younger. Should age weary either or both, Hawkes Bay product Hikawira Elliott, who debuted on the Grand Slam tour, could overtake them.
Prop
The chances of the All Blacks heading into the next World Cup with the same first choice props they fielded in the last one appear high. Hayman's return looks probable, while Tony Woodcock continues to grow in stature. Although the All Blacks coped well enough without Hayman, with John Afoa and Neemia Tialata stepping up, the return of the big man would give them an extra edge.
The coach
Graham Henry will be faced with one of the biggest decisions of his life when his contract comes up for renewal at the end of next year.
Should he continue in the job and lead his team to glory in 2011, Henry's quest for redemption would be complete.
With eight mostly successful years under his belt and a World Cup, the coach's legacy would be secure. Last year's debacle might not be forgotten, but it may at least be forgiven.
But, should Henry continue in the job and oversee another calamity, history will not be kind. His decision to stay on after 2007 - in doing so denying Robbie Deans a shot at the job - would look particularly self-serving.
Henry has had to justify that decision this year and in doing so he has stuck to two themes: he didn't want to walk away from unfinished business and he didn't want to walk away from his players and fellow coaches.
Henry mused that, having instilled in his team the importance of never quitting, he could hardly quit himself.
What chance, then, of Henry walking away at the end of next year?
With his assistants, Steve Hansen and Wayne Smith, having fallen in behind him, the scene is set for the panel to continue through to 2011. You can bet the three wise men will be among those counting down the days.
