Saturday morning will not be time for a sleep in for many New Zealanders this weekend.
Instead, we will be up with the dawn chorus for the first game of Rugby World Cup 2023, France v the All Blacks.
The cup is taking place at a time when much divides us. The normal political tensions between left and right, liberal and conservative, rural and urban have been exacerbated by a pandemic and a cost of living crisis, and then stretched still further by the imminent election.
It is a cliche, but that does not make it any the less true.
A few short weeks ago all of New Zealand was willing the Football Ferns on to score a potentially historic goal in their match against Switzerland in Dunedin, and a year ago the Black Ferns took the country on the ride of its life as they won the women’s Rugby World Cup.
Can the All Blacks similarly get the country in behind them?
Simplistically, if they start off with a win and keep winning, of course. Everyone loves a winner.
The All Blacks’ recent results have some doubting whether they really can regain the William Webb Ellis Cup, but at the very least the aura of the team’s history means New Zealand can never entirely be considered without a hope.
But what the women’s teams had in their favour when it came to capturing the public’s imagination is that they were long shots: the Football Ferns were aiming to make history by simply winning a game; the Black Ferns had had an awful build-up to the tournament and the likes of England looked insurmountable.
Coupled with being underdogs - and Kiwis like an underdog - was that each side was chock-full full of personalities.
The media brought these women’s stories into our homes, and it was easy and satisfying to cheer for Hannah Wilkinson or Ruby Tui.
A few weeks removed from the cup the average punter on the street might battle to name anybody from either side, but for a brief moment in time they were intellectually interested and perhaps even personally invested in their success.
The All Blacks, rigidly media-managed and only available to the press in small doses, are a harder side to fall in love with, even if they are the international team in the country’s national game.
It is interesting that team management seems to have realised that in recent days and let the players show some personality.
Tamaiti Williams’ journey of discovery as he found out about his tupuna and their World War 1 history was enthralling, and even a taciturn figure like prop Ethan de Groot let the guard down to enjoy Southland Boys’ High School’s utterly commendable winning of its first National Secondary Schools First XV Championship title.
It is a long journey from the rugby nursery that is the first XV to Stade de France, but that is the trip that the 33-man All Blacks squad has taken. The biggest stage awaits.
Hopes are always high, even if the more sober observer of the All Blacks’ recent efforts might have lowered expectations.
But wherever you live and whichever Chris you favour, from the opening whistle to the final hooter, enjoy cheering for the All Blacks. They are our team; this is their time in the sun.
