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Richie McCaw announces he's out of rugby for six weeks. - Source: ONE Sport
All Black hero Richie McCaw was on the Breakfast couch this week talking about among other things his foot injury, the Super 15 and of course the Rugby World Cup.
In the course of the interview I asked if the incredible pressure of winning the World Cup had got to him at all and does he worry about how badly New Zealanders might react if we don't win the thing?
He responded by simply saying that all he liked to think about was how cool it would be to win.
I loved this response. It expressed both a confidence that we can win the thing and a modesty that we should not be expecting to win.
That of course would be foolish as rugby followers know that even with a home crowd and a full strength team of world class players, there is always the chance in a high pressure test match that things can go wrong.
As a pessimist by nature I struggle with the idea of letting myself go and thinking about what it would be like to win the Cup.
By nature I want to think the worst first when it comes to big All Black matches. Fear of failure is the dominant force.
I do this so I am protected in the event things do go wrong. If we lose, I can console myself by saying: "Ah well I knew we weren't going to win."
This softens the blow. Although sadly it does also dampen the joy of when we do win. Which is most of the time.
As you may have guessed, rugby for me is a purely irrational and emotional experience. And I like it that way.
My heart really does race before big games and I often jump out of my chair and scream at referees.
What can I do? I grew up in Canterbury, played for many years and lived and breathed everything rugby for the first part of my life.
So while I'm very excited about the year's World Cup, I'm also a little wary of the toll it could take.
That fear of not winning is already starting to creep into my mind.
From time to time I have visions of my childhood idol Robbie Deans drinking from the World Cup in front of crying All Blacks, Nooooooo, not the Aussies ... please.
But you know what? When push comes to shove; I will steel myself and jump on the World Cup rollercoaster one more time.
I will let myself believe. It won't be easy, but hey if McCaw's going there then surely we can too. And, let's face it, this World Cup could be the last one we ever host.
Recession risk
Now McCaw's notion that he doesn't like to focus about the bad stuff also got me thinking about the economy this week too.
Earlier in the week when talking to Prime Minister John Key he admitted that there was a risk the country had slipped back into recession in the second half of last year. Although he was quick to remind people that the outlook for this year was better.
It raises questions about how much store we - and I guess by that I mean the media - place on the negative when it comes to the economy.
Should we just brush it off as old news and focus only on the future outlook?
I know some Breakfast viewers feel we talk about the negative stuff on the economy too much.
They argue in feedback that negative talk about recessions can itself drive public sentiment down.
This is possible as confidence amongst consumers is a powerful force and the media does need to be responsible in the way it reports economic stories.
But I don't think the media has had that much to do with this latest bout of economic weakness.
The fact is the economy surprised most commentators last year and stalled all by itself. There was little talk in the media of recession last year.
Actually most of the talk at the start of last year was positive. The rebound was coming was the mantra. It just never happened.
So while there's certainly no harm in applying some "Richie McCaw" positive thinking to the New Zealand economy, we should not expect miracles.
There are big forces at play with the New Zealand economy, which thinking positively alone cannot fix.
Time is also required. (Whether we have time is of course another matter).
At the top of the list is debt.
After a long boom the private sector in New Zealand is too heavily indebted. Kiwis have woken up to this fact and are paying off debt and being cautious with their spending.
A rebalancing is underway and it could take years before we get back to the spending patterns of the early 2000s. A sobering thought.
But where there is reason to be positive is exports.
There are encouraging signs on this front. Prices are great for our core farming exports. Eventually these farm returns will flow through to the economy, as farmers get on top of their finances.
This should provide some sustainable growth.
It will also take time. But it will happen. Just ask Richie.
* Dann hosts Breakfast with Petra Bagust each weekday morning and writes weekly for tvnz.co.nz. Read all his articles here .
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Add a Comment:
Post new commentAlmer said on 2011-08-06 @ 10:42 NZDT: Report abusive post
Not Helen Clarks anti-smacking bill. Try Sue Bradford
getsmart 99 said on 2011-04-02 @ 18:01 NZDT: Report abusive post
Hello , All this talk about cutting the budget . The National Government has sadi they will not touch Super but I wonder if they might means test it . Some people really depend on this when they get older . Continueing to work passed 65 is fine for those able . Maybe their earning could be taxed at a higher rate , while they collect their Super. Just a thought . I wonder if this might be something Bill has up his sleave > There are many way s to skin a cat.
hayleywhitz said on 2011-04-01 @ 19:12 NZDT: Report abusive post
This government is just so short sighted. They are only looking at quick fixes. They have no big picture thinking at all. It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that investing in high quality early childhood education is an investment in the future of Aotearoa New Zealand. It should be seen as exactly what it is, an investment, rather than a cost! It is clear that this government is focused on helping the rich get richer and bugger collaboration and collective responsibility.
exporter said on 2011-04-01 @ 17:30 NZDT: Report abusive post
What's this doing in the business section? More lightweight coverage of business matters like the rest of New Zealand's media we really don't need. When are your reports going to address the issues facing the New Zealand economy?
nztifosi said on 2011-04-01 @ 16:37 NZDT: Report abusive post
As a teacher aide at a decile 3 school in Auckland, the future of New Zealand with another National Gov' budget is easy to imagine - more children coming to school with no shoes and no breakfast, while their teachers are told to get them up to the 'national standard' with no support. One idea though - perhaps the truancy officers can use the new BMW's to ferry children to school - great use of resources on the 'front line'!