Summary
THE reverberations from France's against-all-odds victory were felt far beyond rugby. In New Zealand, there was a ferocious backlash against the All Blacks, with many supporters complaining that the side, by then the focus of a massive and farreaching commercial operation, had betrayed their origins in the country's rural heartland and had lost their competitive soul.
One leading New Zealand journalist summed up the mood of the nation: "It is sad to relate that the All Blacks have become soft," he wrote, "living the life of luxury week after week in posh hotels, away from the real world, and becoming part of a money-making entity that seemed almost to lose sight of the team's objective - to win the World Cup.See the full content of this document
Extract
The Aftermath
"They were pampered like gods and movie stars. They became the Spice Boys. They need to toughen up. Ther...
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