We Did IT

I don't think that I've felt quite so het up about a match in any sport at all since the days when I was a member of the Lancashire Cricket Club in 1975 and used to follow cricket pretty intensively.  Perhaps the occasional Ashes match since then has got the adrenalin running.  One of the things about living in New Zealand (even only part time as I do) is that it is virtually impossible not to get carried away with the enthusiasm for sport.  So today when the All Blacks were playing France in the final of the Rubgy World Club I could hardly cope with the excitement I felt.  Until the match started with the ABs not playing well and Piri Weepu missing three kicks in succession it had never occurred to me that the ABs wouldn't carry the day and be the World Champions.  It came as a rude awakening when the ABs were struggling against a French side which had hardly covered itself with glory and was (in my eyes anyway) only in the final because of a bad refereeing decision in the semi final against Wales.

It may surprise those of you not in New Zealand that a recent poll showed that 40% of the population of New Zealand were more concerned about who won the RWC than who won next month's General Election.

To make life more challenging for me David supported the French so there were some, er, interesting moments during the match.  Now he's taken Molly for her belated morning walk and I'm left to finish the champagne on my own.

Captain Richie McCaw shakes the hand of Prime Minister John Key