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Greg Growden | March 23, 2009
MONDAY MAUL
You had to be quick to pick it up, but it was a classic television moment. At the end of the Waratahs-Crusaders match, the visiting skipper Kieran Read was asked by the Fox Sports interviewer how he felt about the win.
It was understandable that Read was excited, relieved and animated, as the Crusaders have had a wacky season so far, punctuated by unexpected defeats. A win over the Waratahs had put the Super 14 titleholders back on track.
When asked what had prompted the form turnaround, Read replied: "We knew we would have it over them if we played with a bit of width. We played with the ball, and it was f---ing great."
As soon as Read had said the F-word, he suddenly realised where he was. He produced a stunned look, like a mischievous five-year-old who had been discovered pilfering his sister's presents on Christmas Eve. The reaction was pure gold.
Read sheepishly made a quick exit right, before a filthy Phil Waugh was brought in, and the Waratahs skipper went for the barb. When asked if the Waratahs, with two losses in a row, were under pressure, Waugh snapped back: "The only pressure is coming from you blokes."
Oh no, those mongrels in the media are again the big problem out in Waratahland.
But it is the memory of Read's faux pas that will remain, and will comfort the hearts of all those interviewers and media types who have grown sick and tired of the modern player, who has been brainwashed by the team spin doctors into saying the bleeding obvious.
Yeah, we know the score is on the scoreboard, that they take the season one week at a time, that they can't get ahead of themselves, that it was all due to their teammates, and that they don't read the papers. Sure, sure, sure. But all that is seriously boring.
So when a player tells it as it really is, and gives a brief glimpse of how much the win means, it revitalises your belief in the human spirit.
Sadly, this doesn't happen too often. That's why the rugby "oops" moments have lived long in the memory. Such as when All Blacks forward Peter Jones came off the field during the epic 1956 series against the Springboks, and announced live on radio: "I'm absolutely buggered." Pretty risque stuff. The oh-so-conservative Shaky Isles blushed.
And the legendary Rex "The Moose" Mossop who, before making his name in the league playing and broadcasting ranks was a feared Wallaby, is reputed to have said when beckoned to the microphone after Australia won the 1949 Bledisloe Cup series: "Hi Dad! Hi Mum! Hi Kirk! We've beaten the bastards. You beauty!"
Microphones have always been a problem when Australian and New Zealand teams confront each other. When the 1949 New Zealand Maori team toured Australia, the Australian Rugby Union decided on the innovation of placing microphones on the sideline. A great idea until Maori hooker Kingi Matthews bellowed out before a scrum. "Put the f---ing ball in!" His words reverberated around the SCG, and shortly afterwards the microphones disappeared.
In 1934, ground microphones even inspired a Wallabies win over the All Blacks. Australia were down 11-6 at the SCG. During the break, a radio microphone was brought out onto the field, and the New Zealand manager A.J. Geddes sent a message to those listening at home, that they had the game in the bag. According to Geddes, the longer the Test went on, the further the All Blacks would forge ahead. The Australians heard it, vowed revenge, and won 25-11.
We can only hope for more Read moments. It's a reminder that the players are not battery hens, and that to triumph is actually f---ing great.
http://www.rugbyheaven.com.au/news/n...656770640.html
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