I can be a bit of a snob when it comes to Rugby, and I make no secret that my preferred ball sport besides playing a round of golf is Rugby (aka Rugby Union). There's a number of reasons for this, I'm sure growing up in South Africa supporting the Bulls was one of them, another being the flow that the game can be played with. But honestly, I think one of the reasons is the class with which it is played and the crowd who follows it. Lately, a line I have pulled out a number of times is that the ladies at a Rugby Union match are much prettier than that of Rugby league, identified by the fact that most still have their own teeth. yep, bad joke, but one I'll stick with for a while.

Tonight, that statement will need to be altered slightly in that it's true of Rugby in Australia, but perhaps not so of New Zealand...
The most annoying crowds I've been to so far have been played against NZ teams. With NZ supporters almost starting fights in the stands at the Hurricanes match at the start of the season and tonight getting a headache courtesy of the Chiefs fans. And the language coming out of the 10 year old Chief's fans sitting with their parents 2 rows behind us were not what I'd expect of a merchant sailor!

Rant over. Bad news - Queensland Reds lost again. Once again giving away a penalty within 10 minutes of the final siren and thus losing the lead/game (same thing happened against the Lions 2 weeks ago). At least the match fixing and associated activities (as seen in Cricket World Cup) aren't apparent - who would need to pay money for the Reds to lose a match?!?
Next game is against the NSW Warratahs and it's always a good one (and one that Qld normally wins, regardless of how the season is going), so looking forward to that.

Rugby - the game played in heaven...

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