The 2019 Rugby World Cup kicked off in Japan on September 20th.
The New Zealand representative All Blacks played their first match against the South African Springboks on the 21st and won brilliantly (or rather, of course!). However, the All Blacks have yet to show their true potential. After all, they are the ones who gradually improve their form from the qualifiers to the final league. Naturally, we have high expectations for their performance as they aim for a third consecutive victory.
Here we bring you three New Zealand news stories related to the All Blacks' first match.
Is there any Kiwi who doesn't have a connection with the All Blacks?!
The All Blacks are the biggest stars of New Zealand. But do all the Kiwis have some connection to a former or current All Black?
"A Kiwi who doesn't have any connection to the All Blacks is definitely not a Kiwi."
They say. In the middle of the World Cup, this was even a topic of conversation on New Zealand radio.
The themes covered in the program
"Tell me your flimsy connection to ABs!"
Listeners call in to share their own connections.
"My cousin dated Dan Carter before he was married."
"I went to school with Tana Umaga."
"My husband coached Beauden Barrett when he was a kid. I still watch him on TV and say, 'I taught him that kick.'"
"Dan Carter came to get takeaway from my parents' old fish and chip shop."
"I took shelter from the rain in Jeff Wilson's car."
"My brother asked me to take him to a party, but it turned out to be Steve Hansen's house. He wasn't there."
"My mom played hockey with Honor Carter (Dan Carter's wife) and Dan Carter came to watch practice."
And many more...!
By the way, here are the three Kiwis I have had contact with in the past week:
"I used to work for NZ Rugby."
"Our kids go to the same school, and when I went to pick them up, Justin Marshall was there to pick them up too."
"Zinzan Brooke used to come to the gas station where I worked part-time in high school."
Well, they all look like this.
Stories like this are only possible in a small country with a population of 4.7 million. (By the way, there are more than five times as many sheep as people.)
I recommend downloading the Rova app to listen to NZ radio and podcasts for free. You can listen to "The Shallow Connection with the All Blacks" on the Podcast Jono, Ben and Sharyn on 9/23.
There's a problem with the live streaming in the US! I can't watch the second half!
The first match of Pool B, All Blacks vs Springboks, was held on Saturday 21st September.
During the match, a problem occurred with the paid live streaming service provided by Spark (a New Zealand telecommunications company), and the match was suddenly broadcast for free on terrestrial TV.
Was it because it was rugby that they were able to switch to free-to-air broadcasting so quickly?
Even so, the process leading up to this broadcast is extremely complicated.
First, the footage and commentary are sent to New Zealand by satellite, then to TVNZ, the New Zealand national television station, and then for some reason to an American partner company, where it is made available to users on various devices via the Internet before being distributed.
Apparently there is also the option to send video footage and English commentary data directly from Japan to the US.
In any case, I hope they can do something about the troubles during the All Blacks games...!
However, there was an incident with Spark where they introduced the Tongan flag as the Samoan flag during a program, which is a bit worrying.
▶ Rugby World Cup 2019: Spark gaffe sees Tongan flag mistaken for Samoa on TV
Beloved superstar Dan Carter gets slammed by humble Kiwis
Dan Carter is considered one of the best players in the history of the All Blacks. He retired from the All Blacks after the last World Cup. After playing in France, he joined Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers last season and is a player with many fans in Japan.
Carter has collaborated with Louis Vuitton to release a rugby ball to commemorate the World Cup. Japanese people may not think anything of it, but it caused a huge stir in New Zealand. It was also featured on the website of a major New Zealand newspaper.
That's because Kiwis are not particularly interested in brands and have a very modest disposition. They don't care about what others think, they don't care about the season, they wear what they like when they like. And many of them value cost performance, so most Kiwis don't understand the meaning of spending 100,000 to 200,000 yen on high-end brands like Louis Vuitton. Especially rugby balls...
"I hope he was paid well for this rubbish collab. I suppose that's to be expected from a great ex-AB guy, but even so, this is awful."
"How many people want it and can afford it?"
"Dan...what are you doing..."
"I support everything Dan does and I think LV is a great brand, but I'm not sure about encouraging such blatant consumerism."
The Kiwis' comments were quite harsh.
Still, I wonder how these 112 rugby balls, which are only available in Japan, will sell...?
By the way, 112 is a reference to the number of test matches that Dan Carter played as an All Black. The documentary film "A PERFECT 10" is currently being shown in New Zealand. Will it be available in Japan someday?
▶ DAN CARTER: A PERFECT 10
