McCaw still top of the heap

Click photo to enlarge

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Crusaders and All Blacks captain Richie McCaw. Photo by NZPA.

A year has passed since the unveiling of the inaugural Otago Daily Times power rankings of New Zealand athletes. Sports editor Hayden Meikle updates the list.

A quick reminder for those of you who missed our (well, my) first power rankings almost exactly a year ago.

The idea comes from the Americans, who always love a good list. It's about who is hot, right now.

Athletes only. No coaches, administrators or golf caddies.

My list is based on achievement, status, profile and good old-fashioned bias. Oh, and the need to include at least one winter sports star so the snow and ice people don't overload my email.

The figure in parentheses represents where the athlete appeared in last year's power rankings.

~ THE TOP 10 ~

1. Richie McCaw (1)
Richard the Lionheart
Yes, his Crusaders just got beaten and he's been playing fairly poorly by his own exceptional standards. But you won't keep McCaw down for long. He's still our best rugby player and still our most important sportsman. And if he lifts that World Cup, he passes Colin Meads as our greatest All Black. Yes, he does.
2. Benji Marshall (9)
Super stand-off
Not everyone will be on board with listing the Whakatane Express this high, especially after his run-in with the law earlier this year. But isn't he close to being the best rugby league player in the world? He's an NRL rock star in Australia, the face of the game and the only New Zealand player everyone on the other side of the ditch could automatically recognise. Marshall has also inspired the Kiwis to multiple wins over the Kangaroos in crunch games.
3. Dan Carter (8)
The golden boy
The greatest All Black first five of all time? Or someone who peaked in 2005 and has never quite recaptured his genius? Most probably favour the first description. Carter has breathtaking class and composure, and has a remarkable mass appeal that has seen him gain millions of fans and the bucks to match. He was a non-event at the past two World Cups, so will have intense personal motivation to guide the All Blacks to victory on home soil this year.
4. Valerie Adams (3)
Queen V
Had a little bit of a disappointing year, often finishing second behind Belarussian rival Nadezhda Ostapchuk. But Vili is returning to her best form, is our best chance for gold at the London Olympics next year, and is still the biggest (literally and figuratively) global figure we've got in women's sport.
5. Sonny Bill Williams (new)
Excitement machine
Oh, how we scoffed. A disloyal, money-hungry wannabe boxer was never going to come back to New Zealand and fit into the All Blacks. How wrong we were. SBW is not only the most exciting thing we've seen on a rugby field in years; he is the star attraction of the sport, full stop. It might be fleeting - the lure of big bucks overseas may take him away again - but the SBW era has been great for rugby.
6. Ross Taylor (16)
The new boss
A big lift in ranking reflects Taylor's appointment as Black Caps captain. He is our best batsman, when he isn't responding to those little voices in his head telling him to swing wildly over cow corner. But he must now match talent with reliability and leadership, and he has big boots to fill.
7. Ryan Nelsen (4)
Ryan of Rovers
Slips a little because the All Whites have naturally dropped off the radar since the glorious high of the World Cup. But how many New Zealanders are first-choice in a major European league? That's right, just one.
8. Kirk Penney (12)
King of the Breakers
Remains our best hoopster and one of our most friendly and marketable sporting faces. Penney gets bumped up into the top 10 after leading the Breakers to a breakthrough victory in the Australian league in April.
9. Brendon McCullum (11)
The dynamo
Would have been an exciting choice as Black Caps captain, but missed out to the more temperate Taylor. McCullum is aggressive and exciting. But his double century as an opener in India late last year showed he can also apply himself.
10. Casey Williams (14)
Inspiring leader
Might not be feeling too cheery right now after New Zealand's extra-time loss to Australia in the world netball championships final six days ago. But you couldn't really blame Williams. Even on one good leg, the captain and defensive ace was arguably the Silver Ferns' best player.

~ THE REST ~
11. Kieran Read (new)
Now an automatic pick at No 8 for the All Blacks and a likely future captain.
12. Daniel Vettori (2)
Will still be a key player for the Black Caps but has shed the responsibility of captaincy.
13. Scott Dixon (7)
Keeping consistent on one of world motorsport's biggest stages.
14. Irene van Dyk (6)
Those legs are understandably fading but she's still pretty darn good at getting the ball through the hoop.
15. Owen Franks (new)
Anyone still worried that Carl Hayman decided to stay in France?
16. Kayla Sharland (new)
Leading from the front as the Black Sticks climb the world rankings.
17. Hamish Bond/Eric Murray (new)
Rowing's golden boys.
18. Nick Willis (new)
An unfortunate omission last year. Our classiest runner for a generation.
19. Alison Shanks (17)
Robbed of a chance to win the individual pursuit at the Olympics but will chase gold as part of a team.
20. Mahe Drysdale (5)
Lost a lot of fans with his anti-All Whites comments after the Halberg Awards. Has also struggled with injury.
21. Jacko Gill (new)
How long before the athletics wunderkind is in our top 10? The sky's the limit.
22. Jossi Wells (new)
The freeskiing king got a massive boost with the news his sport had been added to the Winter Olympics.
23. Marina Erakovic (new)
Coming back into form and made the doubles semifinals at Wimbledon.
24. Paige Hareb (23)
Getting better all the time and just finished seventh at the world surfing games.
25. Julian Dean (13)
Still the only Kiwi in the Tour de France.

DROPPING OUT:
• Shane Smeltz (10)
• Dean Barker (15)
• David Tua (18)
• Winston Reid (19)
• Conrad Smith (20)
• Michael Campbell (21)
• Sean Marks (22)
• Sarah Walker (24)
• Brad Thorn (25)

Sunday, July 03, 2011

The Last Word: July 2

Don't blame us
Otago people should be feeling equal amounts of surprise and guilt at the anaemic ticket sales for the July 22 test at Carisbrook.

Equal, as in zero.
It was always going to be an exceptionally tough sell, this test, even with all the goodwill surrounding the money it hopes to raise for the Christchurch Earthquake Appeal.
The reasons are threefold:
1 We've already said goodbye, at All Black level, to Carisbrook. That all happened last year. That was an easy sellout because people wanted to see the last test at the 'Brook. They got T-shirts made up and they held on to their ticket stubs.
2 Just around the corner is the Rugby World Cup, with no fewer than four big games in Dunedin. It's a fair assumption that both casual and devoted rugby fans are much more excited about that.
3 It's Fiji. And, rightly or wrongly, the Fijians are regarded as cannon fodder on the rugby field. They are asking people to pay $60 to $120 to watch a rugby game they know will be brutally one-sided. The old theory that people go to watch the All Blacks simply doesn't stack up.
I actually have some sympathy for both the Otago union, which is trying hard to promote a game it probably didn't want, and the New Zealand union, which wants to give half a million dollars to Christchurch.
But it would be unfortunate if (a) the real last test at Carisbrook was a half-full dud, and (b) that was seen as seen as some sort of sign Otago people don't support the All Blacks.

• Otago ...
One of the more disturbing trends in sport has been the attempt by organisations to distance themselves from their provincial support base.
That was the biggest problem I had with the stupid Highlanders green jersey. It wasn't the colour; it was the misguided notion the franchise somehow had to separate the team from its provincial background in order to establish a new identity.
What's at the heart of sport, besides the glory of competition and the dual quests of improvement and achievement?
It's identity. Representing something - and somewhere - bigger than yourself.
The Highlanders ditched the "Otago" name a long time ago, and fair enough, given the team has a broader reach. But they must not forget they only exist because they represent the people of the South.

• ... and proud of it
More worrying, two genuine Otago teams - both of whom should probably focus more on winning games - appear to be trying to ditch the name of the province that gave birth to them.
The Otago Nuggets have been in our ear for two years, trying to force us to call them the OceanaGold Nuggets.
And now the Otago rugby team slathers all of its promotions with the "Razorback" tag.
Add in the fact we lost the Otago Rebels, our only high-profile netball team, and many of our representative teams and athletes compete under a "Southern" banner, and it appears "Otago" is in danger of becoming extinct in sporting circles.
That would be sad, given Otago sport's decades of glorious history. And it would make it difficult for Otago-based teams to appeal to Otago people on an emotional level.

• Making the cut
That was another typically dominant performance by the New Zealand under-20 team (why has the Colts label been dropped?) at the world junior championships.
An interesting exercise for rugby fans is going back to old age-group teams and seeing which young men kicked on and which disappeared.
I picked two teams, the 2002 New Zealand Schools side and the 2005 New Zealand Colts, and looked at the rosters.
The Schools side featured five future All Black backs (Joe Rokocoko, Luke McAlister, Stephen Donald, Benson Stanley and Ben Atiga) and three future All Black forwards (Jamie Mackintosh, Liam Messam and John Afoa).
There were also some solid provincial players: Scott Cowan, Jimmy Gopperth, Tim Boys and George Naoupu.
But what happened to Chris Aho? And Tai Talaia?
The 2005 Colts had Kieran Read and Ben Franks and Hosea Gear and Andy Ellis and Isaac Ross, but they also had Marcel Cummings-Toone and Miah Nikora and Karl Haitana.
The kid I always think of in recent years is Zarhn Commerer, the New Plymouth Boys' High School flanker with the spectacular name.
He was named most valuable player in the 2005 transtasman schools test, in a New Zealand team that had Sam Whitelock and Sean Maitland and Winston Stanley.
Googling Commerer reveals, sadly, he was in court in March for cultivation and possession of cannabis for supply.

• Mum knows best
There is a nice little follow-up story to the Otago tennis women winning the Nunneley Casket for the first and only time (150 Greatest Moments, Tuesday).
I was speaking to Jeff Wilson, whose mother, Lynne, was part of that team in 1970.
The golden one described his mother as an exceptional tennis player well into her 40s, and recalled their own battles on court.
Jeff, one of the most competitive men you will ever meet, lost every clash until finally beating Lynne for the first time when she was 48.
He promptly informed his mother he was retiring on top and refused to play her again.

• A ton of ticker
Double heart-transplant recipient Erik Compton cannot wait to compete full-time on the PGA Tour.
Compton almost guaranteed full tour rights by winning the Mexican Open last week, Reuters reports.
The 31-year-old American was diagnosed with an enlarged heart as a child and had his first transplant at the age of 12 and his second in 2008.
"I proved I'm more than just a guy with two heart transplants," Compton said.
"To think of what I went through and to have all the support and love of everyone around me, it's almost unreal.
"To be able to say I'll be playing on the PGA Tour only four years after my heart transplant is unbelievable."
- Otago Daily Times