Only the great sports tournaments can bring people together in bars and clubs, which is really the second best place you can be, bar actually being in the stadium, no matter what Philips and Samsung say about their television sets. There's nothing like being slap bang in the middle of a racuous crowd, drinking pints and pints of beer, and riding the waves of reactions like a true-born surfer.
Case in point, last night's Rugby World Cup quarter final between France and New Zealand. The tournament hosts versus the tournament favorites and number one ranked team in the world. Picture a bar where the sides are evenly split across the room. Imagine hearing Allez les Bleus, and the Haka all at the same time. For every try, score, penalty and tackle the crowd cheers ferociously.
The biggest pop of the night came when Sebastien Chabal came on for France, which changed the momentum of the match fully in French favour. Now, even if you've never watched a game of rugby before in your whole life, you will recognize Chabal. The guy is huge, scary, intimidating. The commentators herald his coming as unleashing the monster on a hapless New Zealand team. Chabal carries a big black beard and long dark manes, which make him look like Asterix and Obelix. And he is just as strong as them. As soon as he came on, three All Blacks went off with injuries. I can see why France doesn't put him in from the start, it just wouldn't be fair.
France thus went on to upset the All Blacks, and move on to the semi finals of the World Cup, where they face the English. Last night, the French got decent support from the English crowd, who probably didn't want to face New Zealand... I'm pretty sure that will change next Saturday.
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