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We had six weeks in the nicest hotels in every stop and everybody wants to meet you, if you know what I mean."Brian Moore [of England] wrote in his book that I was hungry when I went to New Zealand, which he could tell by the amount of food I ate. Having little digs is fine, it's water off a duck's back to me. Brian was a great player but he played in the side that lost two Tests; I didn't. We had Barnes not being picked ahead of Andrew, and Carling not being captain instead of Gavin Hastings, and it was a recipe for disaster. Barnes was a flipping connoisseur of wine, the amount we got through at dinner-time."At the final whistle of the series-clinching Test in 1974 the XV on the field turned spontaneously to the non-playing Lions in the grandstand and applauded them. In 1997, save the occasional training-ground punch-up, the Lions socialised solidly with the tour song "Wonderwall".
Four years ago Colin Charvis reacted badly to the disillusionment of a top player who realises the Tests are beyond him. This year's Lions have two coaching teams to enable the midweek side to be looked after but if anything the dirt-trackers' fixtures are tougher, with Auckland at Eden Park looming between the climactic Second and Third Tests.Cronin believes Woodward's "all for one" philosophy could easily backfire. "We had only 30 players then; now they have taken 45 guys with quite big egos on tour, and you want them both fighting for places and bonding as blokes. I assume that Clive is hoping the players are more professional than we were, they'll use team skills from a business management course and they should be told 'odd room numbers on that bus, even on this one', so no cliques develop. But how professional can you be?"Clive needs to merit every player he's got quickly before it starts to get serious. Against Argentina they picked Michael Owen, a No 8 who looks to me like a second row, as captain at 24 years of age Bad decision.
If Clive is single-minded, why be swayed by wanting a Welshman as captain in Cardiff? Did McGeechan pick the side and Woodward pick the captain? We don't know."It's Woodward's way: he likes having a lot of people around him. Personally I think he's brought all the coaches on board so it's Eddie O'Sullivan's job to calm the Irish boys down, McGeechan's job with the Scots boys and so on The English will be the worst If they don't get picked, there'll be discord. It's no good throwing your toys out the pram like Matt Dawson did last time, going to the papers. The rivalry will be almost more interesting to watch than the Test matches.". The Lions were making the three-hour drive from Auckland to Rotorua today for a powhiri: a traditional New Zealand welcome featuring waiata songs, kapahaka dances and, perhaps appropriately, the karakia, which means prayer.
