Sean Fitzpatrick knows what it takes to win a Rugby World Cup, having been part of the New Zealand team who lifted the Webb Ellis Cup on home soil in 1987, so is well qualified to give his thoughts on this weekend’s Sydney semi finals.
The legendary All Black hooker is confident the current crop of men in black can prevail over Australia in the first semi final at Telstra Stadium tonight, a victory he believes could just set them on the road to even greater success.
Favourites
“I think in terms of the way the All Blacks are playing you could say they would be the favourites going into that game anyway, just in terms of what they have achieved so far,” Fitzpatrick, the most capped All Black with 92 caps between 1986 and 1997, told rugbyworldcup.com.
“But in saying that the World Cup has produced some funny results at this sort of time in the Tournament. The All Blacks only need to look back to the last World Cup when they lost in the semi finals to France [after] going in as hot favourites.
“This team has got a lot of fire power and I just don’t think the Australians have the same ability to punish the All Blacks in the way that the All Blacks can punish the Australians.”
How then does Fitzpatrick, who played in every match in the 1987 Tournament after an injury to captain Andy Dalton, rate this 2003 team to the only All Black team to win the Rugby World Cup to date?
“It is hard to compare [the two teams really], but I think there are similarities,” reasoned Fitzpatrick, who also played on the losing team in the 1995 final when a Joel Stransky drop goal gave South Africa a 15-12 victory.
Young side
“The current team is a very young team where maybe in ’87 there was a lot more experience, but this team has huge potential and if they get through this and win the World Cup they will go on I am sure to be one of the great All Black teams.
“This is the business end of the competition and as I said funny things have happened at this stage and how do players react under extreme pressure. That is when the older heads [are important].
“I am sure that is why England is still such a threat, they have got experienced guys that have been there before, they know how to win and maybe for the younger guys they struggle to step up to the plate.”
Talking of England, how does Fitzpatrick think the second semi final between pre Tournament favourites England and France will pan out at the same venue on Sunday night?
“Well that is going to be a lot closer I think,” predicted Fitzpatrick, one of the panel that will select the International Player of the Year to be announced at the IRB Awards on 23 November.
England to improve
“Everyone is sort of tipping the French to win that. You could say on current form they are probably the form team of all the four finalists, they would be the number one team of the moment, but I just have a sneaking suspicion that England are going to play a lot better than what they have.
“They are big time, big game players and you can say what you like about the Welsh and those sort of teams … no disrespect to the Welsh, but the English probably didn’t prepare as well as they should have, but I am sure they are under no illusions about the French and what they are capable of and they will play accordingly.
“I think they will try and shut the French down and keep the game very tight and maybe go back to their more traditional forward orientated game of knock the ball into the corners, using Wilkinson to kick into the corners and wait for the French to make a mistake.”
Put on the spot for the last time, the 40 year old, whose father Brian played 22 times for New Zealand between 1951 and 1954, inevitably listed some All Blacks among the players to have impressed him in the Tournament.
“In the French side I think [fly half Frédéric] Michalak has shown he is a world class player and obviously in terms of the New Zealand side there is a number of the players there that have really stood up.
“I think for me [hooker Keven] Mealamu is going to be a player that will really go on and I enjoy watching Carlos Spencer, but I think [full back Mils] Muliaina for me has been the standout player of the Tournament so far.”