Public Address - Field Theory (Home)

Wellingtonista and Want-mas | Dec 09, 2008 13:13

It's that time of year again. When the jolly man with the beard comes to spread joy to everyone!

I am of course referring to Samuel F. Scott and the Bunnies on Ponies who will be playing at The Annual Wellingtonista Awards (the TAWAs) next Thursday (18th). Last year's awards were spectacular, and this year will be much the same.

Voting opened two weeks ago and we have almost 900 votes (last year had 500, the year before 50) and just like last year the competition is fierce. So make sure your vote counts, yes we can.

And then make sure you make it to the awards (Mighty Mighty, Thursday 18, 7pm, $10) because not only is there Bunnies on Ponies, there is also Lonesome Cowboy and the Lap Stealers, and the first 50 peeps through the door get gift bags and we've got spot prizes to give away too: with swag from Adidas, Epic Beer, Good Magazine, The Back Bencher, NZonScreen, Pretty Pretty Pretty, The Film Archive, Linden Leaves, SuperVery and Webstock as well as some other potential sponsors. (and if you are a sponsor and want to add some stuff drop me a line)

You know you want to come along.

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Emma's post reminded me that I had written (and then lost on my hard drive somewhere) something about my favourite time of year: Christmas! Or rather, the time of the year that's really busy, you give presents to each other and drink and eat waaaaay too much. I love it!

Obviously though people forget the reason for the season… um… Saturnalia?

Actually all I know is that when I constructed my Christmas list (used as a guide for family so I don't get crap I have to pretend to like) I completely drew a blank. This is despite subscribing to Gizmodo, Engadget, Uncrate and other "want" oriented websites.

I had already mentioned casually to Amy how I would quite like things such as a science tshirt, and that I seriously need things like a big vinyl yeti. And while I do understand that it can be a perfectly enjoyable Christmas without USB "port" wine, I just can't imagine how.

Yes it's shallow but I really do love the giving/getting at Christmas. It's so much fun spending time with people and making them happy with gifts and food and company. I'm an atheist so I get no spiritual enjoyment from the holiday; I just get a big kick out of the smiles.

So, I have to ask, what's on your list?

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If he did it | Dec 08, 2008 20:24

As far as falls from grace go, OJ Simpson's one was spectacular, long and very public. To mix my sporting metaphors: Simpson is the Greg Louganis of grace-falling.

When OJ entered the National Football League as the first pick of the 1969 draft he was a Heisman Trophy-winning running back from USC (a traditional football powerhouse). In 1973 he won the league MVP and became the first player to rush for 2,000yds in a season. When OJ retired in 1980 he was the second highest on the all-time rushing list and was inducted into the Pro-Football Hall of Fame in 1985. Even his nickname, The Juice, ranks as one of the best ever.

He was a big star at a time when professional football was really taking off in America. His personality and big smile was a big hit with advertisers and OJ was destined for off-field stardom as well.

He had bit-parts and cameos in TV shows even before joining the pro-leagues including a role in Roots in 1977. His roles in the Naked Gun films didn't bring critical acclaim, but didn't hurt either.

Then came the 90s. The murder trial. The police chase. The gloves. The incredibly strange media frenzy. The Juice became a polarising figure; he was not only a high profile celebrity accused of murder; he was also a black man, and this was, after all, only three years after the LA riots. More than half the US population watched the verdict on live television. And even after his acquittal the opinion that OJ had "gotten away with murder" was mainly held by whites. And of course then the hunt for "the real killers" began.

OJ by then had become a strange character and icon. As I write this I'm struck by how many catchphrases have come from the trial: the real killers, trial of the century, if the glove does not fit… etc.

Later Simpson was found guilty in a civil case for wrongful death and was ordered to pay $33,500,000 to the Goldman family. As this is where the fall accelerated.

With all of his earnings going to Goldmans, Simpson started trying for more and more TV appearances, earning money from the murder. All this mugging and winking at the camera culminated in the book "If I Did It" in which Simpson wrote how he would've killed Brown and Goldman … if he had done it. Naturally, the book was cancelled not long after it was announced due a very loud chorus of "WTF?" from the general population (interestingly the book was later released by the Goldman family)

But the fall wouldn't end for The Juice until this weekend when Simpson was found guilty of "masterminding" a robbery in Las Vegas. He was sentenced to 15 years in jail.

Yet, OJ still has his fans. They followed him on the Gridiron, they bought the orange juice he peddled and they bought his jerseys. Go to a Buffalo Bills game today and you will see throwback jerseys with #32 and "Simpson" on the back. These people want to remember the man who carved through defences like butter and made them proud of their team. Not the bizarre rambling man in the blue prison uniform.

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Intense Uniformity | Dec 04, 2008 16:21

Anticipating the cries of "Shill!" I have to say: I like the new Super 14 uniforms. I also like the idea of having home and away strips.

It makes a fair bit of sense. American leagues have been doing it for over 100 years now (baseball has always has "home whites" and "road greys").

But to get the most information I rang Greig Bramwell of Adidas New Zealand to talk about the new uniforms (audio coming soon).

Beforehand I was sent high-res images of all the new jerseys to pour over (they're all in this Flickr set for your enjoyment). My first thought was that "these are actually pretty cool" and "I'm glad I'm a Chiefs supporter". The advertising is kept to a minimum (Ford front and back, Rebel Sport on the sleeves) and the colour schemes work well (no crazy ideas).

The most "outrageous" design might not be the Highlanders away strip (in Southland maroon) but the Crusaders away strip in "platinum" and red, and after twisting Greig's arm he conceded that it would be the one he would least like to wear. And while he's a Hawkes Bay man, the Blues away strip is the most stylish in his opinion. Personally I don't hate the grey and red (the sword's probably a bit much) but I really like the Chiefs away strip.

But why away jerseys now? Well, as Greig pointed out, the teams have had alternate jerseys for a while now and this is just the next continuation of where the NZRU, the franchises and Adidas want to go to with the uniform design. And that's an important point: the franchises and the NZRU wanted this.

And we know why they want to wear different strips, to look different from the other team. And the players like that. By having an official away jersey the players don't necessarily feel like they are being forced out of their usual colours.

So the teams sit down with the Adidas designers and look over concepts and designs and choose what they want and what colours they want. It's a long process too and many of these designs have been in the pipeline for many years.

Of course there is money involved. This is the first time consumers have been able to purchase the away jerseys. I asked Greig if he expected this to mean greater sales and he said that in an ideal world (for him) every fan would buy a new home and away jersey but he knows that naturally they're not gonna do that. Instead fans can now get to choose a colour. Don't look good in Hurricanes yellow? That's ok, buy the grey jersey.

But what will happen when the Highlanders go to Christchurch or the Hurricanes travel to the Sharks? Well this weekend there is a meeting with all the franchises where all the jerseys are laid out for each game and potential colour clashes are sorted then.

But to the nitty gritty of the jerseys. They are all created with ForMotion, which is Adidas' technique for creating clothing so that it can "enhance the natural motion of sport". So for example in rugby the arms are often held out from the body (especially if Sione Lauki's carrying the ball) so players need their jerseys to give them that freedom.

But surprisingly this still allowed for the jerseys to be constructed differently. Check out the difference at the shoulder on the Hurricanes jersey compared to the Crusaders, compared to the Highlanders. The backs all look like they have the same construction though (but I can't say I like the Chiefs "fanny panel").

The shorts (which I don't have pics of) were also constructed to be better for the players. They are cut so that they are longer on the inner leg than on the outer (rather than straight across like traditional shorts). This was again done because players find them easier to run in. Also the Blues will be the only to have the same shorts and socks for home and away as the team felt that their away strip might be too white.

This may shock some of you who are sticklers for tidiness. The jerseys are designed to be tight (making Richard Kahui fans happy) and that means they don't have to be tucked in. But they better bloody well have their socks pulled up!

Some of you might have noticed that some of the jerseys are embossed with a design. The Chiefs have a koru pattern, the Highlanders have a Celtic shield, and the Hurricanes have their swirly logo. This was an Adidas suggestion that was taken up by the teams. The Blues and the Crusaders also went for details, though theirs are more obvious.

I asked Greig which way the development of uniform technology went and he informed me that all the new and most high-tech stuff goes to the All Blacks and then filters down to the Super 14.

And because Grieg was on the line I couldn't let him get away without asking the most burning uniform question I had all year: were the numbers on the All Black jerseys bigger this year? Not only was I the only one pedantic enough to notice, but it was actually a new font, chosen for its visibility. It is something to note because the new Super 14 jerseys will be using the same font, replacing the hard to read font of last season. Sadly Greig didn't know the name of the new font but I am trying to find out from the NZRU and when I find out I'll tell you (because you're dying to know).

I also asked why there were no poppies on the All Black jerseys when they played Scotland before Armistice Day. The reason was the players decided against it. In fact all decisions like that are made by the players and the NZRU.

All in all we have very little to complain about in the uniform department, unlike these poor bastards.

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The Return | Dec 03, 2008 09:53

Super busy today so just a quick note that Rattue has returned and with some great lines like:

The most significant achievement by far during this series was Australia's ability, under Robbie Deans, to pull back from the brink of a disaster that was facing the sport across the Tasman.

He would have been my coach of the year, by a long chalk.

Still clinging to the one loss in the World Cup as the sign that All Black rugby is now, and always shall be less than the best.

We did actually hold a number of teams try-less. Including the Welsh team that beat the significantly achieving Walabies (Warren Gatland, coach of the year).

Rattue really can't find a nice thing to say:

The high point was the Tri Nations triumph, but let's be realistic here because it was against an Australian side that doesn't have the necessary spread of quality players yet, and a South African squad under the command of an excitable novice and with a backdrop of familiar infighting.

For godssake Chris, cheer the fuck up!

Also the 2009 Super 14 jerseys were revealed. I'll do my proper "analysis" tomorrow (ps. If anyone from Adidas reads this drop me a quick line, cheers)

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Analyse This | Dec 02, 2008 09:43

So we finished the "Grand Slam". We knocked off, in varying fashions, two poor teams, one mediocre team and one good team (I'll let you decide which was which). Where to from here?

First of all a two-finger salute and a raspberry to Chris Rattue and all of the other Robbie Deans fan club members.

Second we reflect on the wins and ask so who was the best of our Mighty All Blacks? Duncan Johnstone at Stuff did an "analysis" of the players and came up with Ali Williams and Ma'a Nonu as the players of the tour. I was dubious. What about Richie or Mils or Sivi? What variables did Johnstone analyse to come up with this?

Like most New Zealand rugby analysts it was a qualitative analysis done on "what I reckon". Hence the perception of the commentators during the England game that Jimmy Cowan was one of the "best players on the tour" didn't gel with me, my friends or Johnstone.

Qualitative analysis is a real skill, and to do it properly is more than just making some observations. You can argue that an experienced sportswriter should be able to make inferences and judgements that others can't. But I'm also dubious of the bias that they can apply to their analysis. Think of the amount of times that New Zealand commentators notice that the All Blacks are infringing compared to the amount of times English commentators might.

So that's why I found this graphic (pdf) of the game from the Times to be extremely informative including the very good pie charts at the bottom showing exactly how the All Blacks dominated. (Also interesting is that Delon Armitage was wearing Adidas boots with his Nike uniform). And then there was this graphic (jpg) showing that (during this tour) New Zealand were the best Tri-Nations team in carrying the ball, second best in lineout percentage and a woeful 68% in goal kicking.

These are real numbers and should be reveled in, they're not a "I think Conrad Smith is better than Richard Kahui" style of analysis. Though to be fair on our rugby analysts, the NZRU does not collect statistics for overseas games so they may not have much to go on.

You may think passion is hard to quantify. It is not. Just look at the results and the 18% [Six Nations victories over Tri-Nations since 2003]. There is a burning intensity in the All Blacks and the Springboks that is light years ahead.

And that came from Stephen Jones. He also wrote:

The south are better because they want it more. In Europe, our players think they are passionate, they hang their heads when they lose, they sing their anthems lustily and know when the camera is on them as they are doing so.

Goodness gracious Stephen!

Oh and the 2011 World Cup pools have been announced. There doesn't look to be any Pool of Death this time around, which is a little dull.

Well it's a long hot summer ahead of us now and we can all kick back and look forward to the cricket season. The Windies heading into a rather awkward marketing campaign in Dunedin, further losses to the Aussies, and maybe some even uglier uniforms (why did the Black Caps play a test match in t-shirts with bibs on them?) At least until February when the rugby starts again.

*******
ps. I apologise to anyone who heard me on bFM on Sunday morning. It was far from being my best performance. When asked to list the best sporting moments of 2008 I completely had a brain freeze and forgot everything. From the Olympics to the Rugby League World Cup to the U17 Women's Football Cup. I even forgot who won the Super 14! My excuses include the following: half asleep; car towed due to stupid Santa parade; racing to the airport to catch a flight.

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