RWC: All Blacks scare others, Telecom Rugby Picking and more stuff for the 2 million ticket holders

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15 DAYS TO GO!

NZ-based Rugby Cup Challenge - sign up and beat me (MiramarMike).
Oh, and you could then join in with the Hayman's Beard Challenge, and beat me there as well!

And it seems there's only one team that everyone thinks will win the world cup, the New Zealand All Blacks (who had one last hit out today, no-one injured, before flying out on Wednesday) - no other team is generating so much focus from the other countries (see if you can spot the pattern in this list)
And I suspect the focus is a wee bit weighted towards Mr Daniel Carter - profile from the NZ Herald.

I'm glad that O'Driscoll retains the Irish captaincy and I am now putting them as my second favourite team behind All Blacks/Wales (joint 1st - I'm a Welsh Kiwi, get over it). Mind you, he must have some sort of magic working for him

England decides to take the whole of Harley Street along with them which gives Will Carling the total confidence to say, "I fancy England's chances" - at what he isn't so confident :-)

I agree with Campo re: We must do more for the minnows - but the IRB won't. It promised to last time in Australia ... and it hasn't. Why would the top 5-10 nations bother, they're in the money!

It seems my dream of 'warm up matches' finishing last weekend was just that, a dream. The eternal slog continues and if we're not careful we'll discover that this is actually the first round! Wales v France this weekend and, well god-love-em, they're confident.

And if you're one of the 2 million ticket holders to what the competition for the, so called, Webb Ellis Cup- on ya, have a blast for me in one of the stadiums (photos)

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