AUCKLAND, NZ – There was every indication that this match was going to be a one-sided affair in favor of the All Blacks. Yet, it was Les Blues that heroically dominated the match, playing with a nothing-to-lose abandon, forcing the depleted All Blacks to simply hang onto a tenuous 1-pont lead as the tensely ticking clock finally ran itself out.
With the final hooter, years of frustration, tension, finger-pointing and puzzlement ended. When their beloved and battered captain, Richie McCaw hosted the Webb-Ellis trophy, history indeed repeated itself and Eden Park was once again Eden for the home team, and Hell for France.
8-7 in the lowest scoring Final in Rugby World Cup history, but it scored high with this viewer, who finds tying sans fingernails somewhat discomforting.
It was a match for all of New Zealand to cherish, relish and collectively exhale. The drought is over.
