(This is the Online column, written for The Southland Times)
I know the Rugby World Cup is just around the corner but for some reason I cannot get excited about the whole thing.
The hugely discounted HP Touchpads that went up for grabs on Tuesday were much more exciting, even though I didn’t buy one.
When it comes to our national sport, for me, the Ranfurly Shield and Bledisloe Cup are what it’s all about, and right now I’m happy that the Bledisloe Cup is held by its rightful owner. Go the All Blacks.
But I digress. Maybe I was scarred for life after the 2003 RWC semifinal and that is why I can’t bring myself to feel excited about the impending tournament although many of the other rugby fans I work with/drink with are starting to buzz about the big event, counting down the days (14 sleeps to go) and there is a lot of chatter online about it.
However, there’s not as much buzz about the coming general election (92 sleeps to go), so maybe we need to rethink how we run the thing.
Instead of all those political types flitting around the countryside and blathering on about all the good stuff they will promise us, perhaps we should run the election a bit like a rugby tournament. We could have Paul Henry doing the commentary and the panel from 7 Days could provide the coaching expertise. We wouldn’t have enough teams to do the whole pool thing but a round-robin tournament would sort things out nicely.
Failing that, we could run the election like a professional wrestling match. All our politicians (and wannabe politicians) would have their signature moves. I can already picture Winston Peters strutting his stuff, resplendent in Lycra tights and waving a giant hand, just like Hulk Hogan used to. Or maybe he’d opt for a length of timber in the style of Hacksaw Jim Duggan.
Am I showing my age here?
And let’s face it, after listening to some of the bull … um, debating that goes on in Parliament, I’m sure they’d all easily cope with the acting required.
Oh, and speaking of how close things are: 121 sleeps until Santa comes. And I bet there’s someone out there who has already completed their Christmas shopping.