Variety is the spice of life
It's international time again for us rugby fans and I should be licking my lips with anticipation. The thought of seeing the creme de la creme of World rugby battling it out should be enough to raise the hairs on the neck of even the most apathetic fan.
Yet the prospect of watching meaningless encounters between 'A' sides leaves me with a feeling that is akin to Sunday lunch with the Mother-in-Law. There is a sense of duty to do so but in reality you would rather stay at home.
The fact that most of the Home Nations foremost players are doing exactly this means I am left to watch a clutch of fringe players doing desperate battle to prove their worth, of which there is little. The harsh actuality being come September the bulk of the present tourists will be back where they belong, slogging it out in domestic bliss.
However it is not so much the standard of the games, or lack thereof, that is bothering me the most, it is rather the specific match-ups. The Home Nations, rather moronically, all opted to tour a country from their respective World Cup pools.
The logic behind this madness appears to be in an effort to strike an early psychological blow ahead of what will almost certainly be pool deciders in September. Either that or the Union officials plumped for the most suitable destination for their end of year sojourn.
Blinded by the images of picturesque beaches and scenic mountain ranges the Union officials have failed to see the bigger picture. In days gone by, and how I miss them, the prospect of South Africa playing England was a mouth-watering one. Such is the regularity of likewise encounters in the modern era, with a seemingly endless number of tours, that they no longer carry such an appeal.
The current predicament needs to be resolved promptly, if not for the benefit of the fans at least for the players. Questions have to be asked when, by the end of the 2007 Rugby World Cup, certain sides could possibly have played each other five times in a single calendar year. Quite simply it is a preposterous situation, and one that should be rectified with the upmost urgency.
However it would appear that the respective Unions have a gentlemanly agreement along the lines of, 'you tour our country and we will tour yours'. The approach needs to be centred around variety, after all familiarity breeds contempt. Until these trends do abate then we will continue to see inane matches being played out for the sake of it.
So by the time September rolls around and the quest for the Webb Ellis trophy is in full swing the so-called big clashes will hold as much appeal as a round of Russian roulette. The encounters that are less common on the world calendar will be so one sided they may as well be played at Lords or the SCG.
By Marcus Leach