The target of his opprobrium was the opening weekend of Spark Sport's pioneering streaming-only coverage of the ninth Rugby World Cup.
Spark's worst fears came to life when, after an apparently seamless start to the tournament, its service hit technical glitches for many customers during the All Blacks' opening pool game against South Africa, promoting the telco to turn to the safety net of its free-to-air deal with TVNZ.
Eventually, anyone who wanted to watch the game - and see a crisp picture beamed in from Yokohama of Kieran Read and company doing the business - was able to do so, but the damage had been done. Exactly how much damage has been done to Spark's image, or to the levels of confidence in fans that future games will not be affected, is up for debate.
Spark, as expected, has hit the PR trail hard over the past 48 hours and is making all the right noises. The issue was not Spark's, but an external provider. Only one game was affected. A range of refund options would be offered.
Both head of sport Jeff Latch and Spark chief executive Jolie Hodson were here, there and everywhere as they expressed full confidence in the streaming service working well for the remainder of the tournament. Mr Latch was positively bullish as he all but guaranteed every remaining game would be delivered "perfectly".
That is the obvious - if slightly risky - approach for Spark to take, but it is cold comfort for those who waited four years for the biggest event in the New Zealand sporting calendar, got to grips with the challenges of embracing steaming technology, and were badly let down in the first meaningful game.
For many, this was the tournament that changed everything. Long used to reliable, if expensive, service from Sky via the traditional method of delivery, they had no choice but to embrace the brave new world if they wanted to watch their beloved All Blacks live and legally.
New Zealand rugby fans now feel like guinea pigs for future generations that will be entirely unfussed by streaming-only services. And some of those guinea pigs feel like they have been plonked in a frightening cage.
Spark Sport might indeed perform well over the next six weeks - there is a groundswell of support from people who want the new way to work - but it is clearly on notice. Any repeat of Saturday night's debacle could be close to fatal to its chances of becoming a major player in the world of sports broadcasting.
This could be the event that breathes new life into the debate over whether the Government should introduce laws to make events of national significance free to everyone. Or, it could be a mere footnote if the service works well from here and the All Blacks charge to a third straight world cup victory.
What we all can agree on is that it is getting tiresome to be talking about technology when we would all rather be gripped by the action on the field.
