Kiwis whinge about travel
12 Apr 2009
Hurricanes coach Colin Cooper has slammed Sanzar as his team’s travel arrangements have been ‘just too hard’.
His team had a two-match tour of South Africa and then had to fly back to Perth to play the Force on Friday. His team only had one training session before the clash but to even try compare this to the South African teams is ludicrous.
The Lions had a similar arrangement where they only had one practice before the Chiefs clash due to flight cancellations, while all the South African teams stay away for a minimum of four matches.
But Cooper is still upset about the travesty of his team’s injustice as he hopes for an expanded competition that will alleviate the Kiwis’ ‘travel problems’.
‘They need another team and conferences,’ said Cooper as Sanzar considers its options about an expansion. ‘The travel is just too hard. I believe this game should have been Saturday night or Sunday.
‘To arrive from South Africa on Tuesday and have one training run and try to get over that time zone and play on Friday was really, really tough,’ he said.
‘I know the game was supposed to be Sunday. How it got to Friday and slipped under the radar a little bit was a bit disappointing.
‘My players were really, really struggling to get back into the time zone and we should be treated a bit better than that really.’
This is yet another push from the Kiwis to expand the competition that would lower the standard of Super Rugby even further. Cooper hopes the standard of play will somehow improve by increasing the number of teams to form a glorified NPC.
‘It’s a bit unrealistic to have these players performing to the level they are supposed to be performing. I don’t think any other teams in any other competition have to put up with this travel factor.
‘That then becomes a mental factor and that’s why everyone is knocking everyone over. It’s such a mental game.’
Obviously rugby has never had a mental aspect to it, according to Cooper.
446 Comments
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12 Apr 2009, 23:36 pm
#395 Number_46: I think so. We know her as Springbok Sarah.
12 Apr 2009, 23:37 pm
#398 JimT: Number 46 is Luke Watson and if you don’t know who he is you have been living underground for the past few years
#399 Bul-a-bhloo: bulimia is such a horrible thing…
12 Apr 2009, 23:37 pm
#399 Bul-a-bhloo: So Hannah is a friend of Sarah !!
12 Apr 2009, 23:38 pm
#400 JimT: that’s her. We call her Springbok Sarah too… amongst other things
12 Apr 2009, 23:39 pm
#401 Number_46: Not underground just the other side of the hill where I will see y’all on another day, bye.
12 Apr 2009, 23:40 pm
#402 JimT: well yes, I dated her cousin and we became close through rugby
12 Apr 2009, 23:40 pm
#403 Number_46: I trust she is a friend?
12 Apr 2009, 23:41 pm
#404 JimT: bye
12 Apr 2009, 23:41 pm
#405 Number_46: OK that’s cool, bye now.
12 Apr 2009, 23:42 pm
#406 JimT: read 405
12 Apr 2009, 23:43 pm
it’s getting quite late, I should be off.
bye Bul-a-bhloo
12 Apr 2009, 23:45 pm
#410 Number_46: Bye all.
12 Apr 2009, 23:52 pm
Is this not classic?? You have a Kiwi coach acknowledging (at last)that travel is an issue for his team, and then…….baba69, cane and even chch (come on bud I expected more) getting all precious when us Saffas have a little “I told you so” vent. Respect would have been huge for you guys if you had just said…..”yeah, we know you got a point” and moved on.
Baba69, you the type of bloke I would loved to have played against……one tug of your jersy and you would have over reacted and swung a punch or something……..10 in the bin for you dude
12 Apr 2009, 23:55 pm
#412 whatever: hi there
Sharks the shock of the week?
12 Apr 2009, 23:58 pm
#413 superBul:
Jeez, you right there SuperBul…….did not see that comming. Good for the Cheetahs though….hope they can keep it up. Your boys ground out a good win!
13 Apr 2009, 00:09 am
#414 whatever: Watching the US Masters , great golf.
The Bulls did what was needed , win. But there is a lot of flaws in our game plan, if FdP is not dictating the rest looks around for a leader, hope Bakkies gets of free.
13 Apr 2009, 01:52 am
Travel is NOT an issue. It’s simply a part of the pro game. Everyone has to do it and nobody likes it much. Griping about it is just silly. And pretending that YOUR travel is intrinsically worse than everybody else’s travel is just sad and pathetic. Get over it.
13 Apr 2009, 07:30 am
Ha! soon as the kiwis start taking a bit of strain they start to moan, I love it.
13 Apr 2009, 10:01 am
Welcome to our world Cooper. Try whining some more- it’s helped us a lot over the years…
13 Apr 2009, 11:15 am
I remember a few seasons ago the Waratahs played 4 in a row away from home, and lost all 4. They complained bitterly that it was unfair they had such a demanding travel schedule.
Funny thing is only one or two Australasian sides have to do more than 3 games away ewach season and yet they feel hard done by when their countrymen dont have such demanding schedules.
13 Apr 2009, 11:24 am
#416 TheTackler: Don’t know about you, but if I were a NZder or Ozzie I’d much prefer to play 2 away games in SA before returning to the creature comforts of my own home for the next game, before possibly taking a short hop accross the Tasman for another away game 2 or 3 weeks later (to return home after a 2/3 hour flight the Sunday after the game), rather than, say, 5 away games on the trot.
I don’t see why NZ and Oz teams shouldn’t be required to play 4 or 5 away games on the trot, just like the SA teams, to even up the odds.
13 Apr 2009, 20:18 pm
Cooper you are a charlatan. Complain about your chocolate cake whilst we feed on bread crumbs. Well, your team made my sh!tlist. Hope you lose badly at home (just not against the Stormers, I like them less).
13 Apr 2009, 23:13 pm
#156 Crouching Tiger Hidden Bokke:
???Where have you been in the last 10 years,thats all you guys do it bleat about travel,or dont you do that now??.
#176 Loosehead:
Correct but still i am proud of where we are in the rugby arena at the moment.OK we lose a few every 4 years but make you guys look like a bunch of school boys in between.
OK what gets me is that Cooper complains about travel and all you guys on here says the Kiwis complain,and why is that?Cooper complained not me and believe me i dont know of anyone in NZ (well i do now ) that has bleated about travel.One kiwi does and you all think we are complaining.
Ok over the last few months their have been complaints about racism in SA rugby,now do all us Kiwis jump on here and call all you guys racists? I think its time you guys have long hard good look at yourselves
14 Apr 2009, 02:28 am
#422 Hurricane:
Jeez, dude you get so heated, so quickly. You and baba69 related?
14 Apr 2009, 03:01 am
#423 whatever:
Whos Baba69??
Whatever,do you know what i am getting at though,one Kiwi makes a stupid remark and what Cooper is saying i think is silly and we all get painted with the same brush.I find the travel excuse lame,always have and always will.Maybe it true but to be honest leave your excuses at home unless of course you get poisoned or reffed out of a RWC match then they are legit excuses
14 Apr 2009, 03:57 am
#424 Hurricane:
baba69 = pappa69, renamed cause he bleets like a baby
I get your point about generalisation mate, but if you honestly do not think that the travel is a factor then I do not know what to think about you to be fair. In denial maybe?
But, having said that, it is an old excuse and SA Rugby has accepted it for 20 odd years so quite frankly they only have themselves to blame.
The problem is that your commentators use it as an excuse in build up’s to games and one or two other NZ/OZ teams have mentioned it when they get a bit of a rough draw. What we as Saffa’s are saying (and I’m generalising here), is that this has been a problem since day “dot” for SA teams and that it’s almost a justification for some of the complaints that some supporters have made. You certainly do not hear much from the teams/players/coaches about it anymore?? I don’t anyway, only from some supporters. And, again, you can’t generalise can you?
Oh, and one error by a ref should not be where you lay the blame on your failed WC campaign in 07. You lost it before you left NZ. Why? cause you thought you had already won it. Call it arrogance, complacency, bad mental coaching, whatever, but it was not lost in Wales, it was lost in NZ.
And I don’t believe in fairy tales so I’m not even going to comment on “suzy”
14 Apr 2009, 04:52 am
#425 whatever: wow, intelligent comeback… you are the worst bleater on here… whats the matter, the fact that NZ consistently smacks SA really really bugs you doesnt it, get over it man… when your team actually starts competing on a regular basis, instead of consistently propping up the 3Ns table, then be a smartarse…
14 Apr 2009, 04:58 am
#425 whatever: and whats your comment on giving someone a gold watch BEFORE they ref the final, suspect much ??
and the excuse for losing to NZ by 50+ points not once, but TWICE ??
and whats your excuse for the 19-0 result last year ??
and whats your excuse for losing to England (yep, you read it right, England) by 50+ points ??? and the Aussies almost got to 50 ???
and I would love for you to show me where I have solely laid the blame at Barnes feet for our 1/4 loss ?? seems we cant complain about bad refs, but for years all we’ve ever heard is Aussie/NZ reffing alliance ??
14 Apr 2009, 05:42 am
#426 poppa69:
You are one bitter and twisted sick puppy arn’t you? Get over yourself and chill a little. Also, have a wee re read of your posts. You will find that you jump down anyones throat who has anything critical to say about your precious AB’s, no matter how valid or analytical that crit may be.
Basically how you have reacted in the above two posts is exactly how I expected you to react. Exactly…..
The only thing that bugs me mate is your absolute denial that the WC means anything……..and all that shows is a bitter little man. Give me the WC over the TNations anyday. You obviously disagree and I’m buggered if I know why??
14 Apr 2009, 05:51 am
#427 poppa69:
Speaking of watches I’m guessing that you have never heard of the problem Clive Norling had with his watch in ’81??
I have no excuses for the losses you mentioned above, (take them on the chin) as much as they pained me, but I sure as hell did not make up any fairy tale excuses about some friggn so-called waitress, that’s just pathetic!
14 Apr 2009, 06:24 am
#429 whatever:
Hear, hear, whatever.
You’ve clearly touched THE nerve again…you know that Kiwi one, the one that likes to pretend that the WC plays second fiddle to a number one ranking, the one that hunts for and finds excuses, regardless how lame, to explain WC losses, the one that invents characters with bags full of food poisoning muti.
As you say, it’s frigging pathetic.
14 Apr 2009, 09:13 am
Guys…I think you are missing the point….his complaint is that they travelled back and played in 3 days….
But it is still rich for a NZ and AUS team to complain about any form of travel as the worst travel time for the NZ/Aus is still not equivalent to that of SA’s…the exact same thing happened to the LIONS and they travelled 3 or 4 times zones further with 2 stopovers if not mistaken…plus theirs was caused due to flight cancellations….
Need to know why the Chiefs only left Tuesday? Never the less their flight was direct…but I do agree that no team should play a Friday game after an Indian ocean cross…no matter which way…but travelling east does have a worse effect on a person physically…
The teams usually (not all can be accommodated) have a bye before they travel to or from SA so they have time to adjust to the time zone…you obviously only have one bye so you will always have a travel either way to contend with the time zone issue…the only teams that did not benefit from this at all are the Sharks, Crusaders, Blues, Highlanders, LIONS if memory serves…
14 Apr 2009, 09:20 am
#125 poppa69:
I have my doubts that you are a Kiwi. I buried the hatchet yet you still want to continue, very unKiwi like.
Are you sure you are not a pom with fake tattoo’s?
14 Apr 2009, 12:08 pm
#430 Joe Maher:
Get a life dude,i was only having a joke with Whatever and you come bounding in like his savior.If you think your excuses are all real, like the made up e-mail going around about all refs to pick on the poor South Africans,that is a joke and you guys believed in it and what proof,an e-mail?? lol ,an e-mail.One of my kids can make up an e-mail address and call it whoever he wants.
You think all your complaining is justified and yet anything a Kiwi says you guys go off the hook.You wana see pathetic,have a look on here come tri nations time,how about archive some tri nation threads on here and i am sure Joe Maher would be in the threads complaining,so how you say…… its friggin pathetic
14 Apr 2009, 12:09 pm
#432 DEE DAH:
You mean you buried the wooden spoon,i am sure you have a few of those lying around
14 Apr 2009, 12:19 pm
#425 whatever: “Oh, and one error by a ref should not be where you lay the blame on your failed WC campaign in 07.”
Forward pass was THE SMALLEST error, really. Complains were about his total refusal to penalize French AT ALL in the 2nd half. Plenty offences in their own zone, zero penalties awarded.
You think that’s whinging? I remember people going bananas here about the referees in every single S14 round.
14 Apr 2009, 12:19 pm
Is this article the biggest load of hypocritical B*LL*CKS ever ?!
A Safa calling a Kiwi a WHINGER about travel ?
oh sorry, its just that we’ve been listening to it for 14yrs already !
Actually, this game WAS set down for Sunday so it got pushed fwd 2 days. Its THAT that Cooper was primarily annoyed about, not the travel per se.
And this beauty:-
“This is yet another push from the Kiwis to expand the competition that would lower the standard of Super Rugby even further. Cooper hopes the standard of play will somehow improve by increasing the number of teams to form a glorified NPC.”
Oh gee, we’re sorry but the last time we looked it was the SARU trying to convince us that they needed a 6th team – 1 more than anyone else – despite having 60% of yr teams in the bottom of the table.
What Planet is this guy on ??!!!
14 Apr 2009, 12:25 pm
#425 whatever: “The problem is that your commentators use it as an excuse in build up’s to games and one or two other NZ/OZ teams have mentioned it when they get a bit of a rough draw. ”
Strange. I watch every single game and have never heard that during the games. Exactly the opposite thing – I have heard plenty of times when commentators mention things like “very hard tour”, “horror draw” etc. regarding touring SA sides, especially Cheetahs this year.
As for tough draw – there’s none. All games this season are reversed mirror image of the previous season. Nothing have changed at all.
14 Apr 2009, 12:32 pm
Hahahaha I love all the Kiwis going mental on this article! Its classic.
I wont even reply to the over-the-top defensive comments being made, its too sad.
14 Apr 2009, 12:48 pm
#438 bokfan1: yeah I love too reading bollock articles – especially before 3N. Priceless.
14 Apr 2009, 13:13 pm
#438 bokfan1:
So you havnt replied with you post about over the top comments being made……..lol.
14 Apr 2009, 14:05 pm
You know if No 46 is the so called “Puke Watson” he really needs to find time to do something better than try blast a team that didn’t consider him good enough to be their captain, boy how the mighty have fallen, or so called mighty.
But again the mental aspect has been shown as to why it is so vitally important to be ever present in any encounter because again they didn’t show up and again the bottom feeder like the rubble reds killed off my beloved sharks,
oh well they’ll pick themselves up for sat against the saders always gotta feel for the next weeks team hopefully and re-encounter of perth with a 5 pointer after a bad display in the prior week.
14 Apr 2009, 16:30 pm
#435 Nils:
I actually thought he let NZ get away with a few things that could have been panalised…
14 Apr 2009, 17:11 pm
#442 Hmmm: Indeed, he not always penalized them, too, sometimes they got away. Still for me is strange, that mostly attacking team (in the 2nd half) gets penalized (not in all instances, yes), but mostly defending – never.
I do not imply he did this deliberately and in the 1st half he penalized more or less equally both sides.
I’m just wondering how that might be, that’s all.
Just asking for equal description of things. If the same situation would have been with the Boks, people here would be raged till this very day and, of course, that would not be a ‘whingeing’, would it?
14 Apr 2009, 23:33 pm
#429 whatever: and where have I made the excuse about a waitress ??? seems you like to label me by assumption. show me the post where I say the WC isnt important ??? you wont find one…
I challenge you to find a post written by me proclaiming that Susie was real ?? I have always categorically denied that allegaion, but you seem to think that I believe in it whole heartedly…
yes Im kiwi, grew up in west auckland, place called Glen Eden…
and I will vehemenently defend my country and the AB’s, especially from Saffas like yourself…
so, before making false accusations about my opinions, perhaps you should research a little and actually see what my stance is on the matter, instead of assuming…
14 Apr 2009, 23:38 pm
#432 DEE DAH: if you look back mate, you will see I apologised to you , but you obviously missed that post ??
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