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NZ advertising campaign set to mock Irish rugby team
By Ian Cameron
A tongue-in-cheek advertising campaign is reportedly set to mock the Irish rugby team when they arrive in New Zealand for their three Test tour in July.
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According to the NZ Herald, betting company TAB NZ are set put up a number of billboards that will poke fun at the Irish when they land in New Zealand later this month.
The boards are set to be placed at the airport, near to the player’s hotel and at other key locations.
“0 wins in NZ” and “Think the flight was long? Try a 28-year unbeaten streak at Eden Park” are two of the planned ads.
Maybe the most snarky ribs the fact that the Irish team has four New Zealnders among their number. “4 Kiwis in the team. That might help your odds a little,” taunts the sign in reference to scrumahlf Jamison Gibson-Park, centre Bundee Aki, flyhalf Joey Carbery and wing James Lowe, who will all be travelling back to the land of their birth.
It’s an interesting take given that New Zealand have traditionally relied heavily on players born in Samoa, Tonga and Fiji. Indeed five of the six uncapped players named for the series hail from the islands.
“From when they arrive in New Zealand until the moment they step onto the field, TAB NZ will be there to remind them that their odds aren’t looking good,” the company’s general manager Marketing and Customer Experience Jodi Williams told the NZ Herald.
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“You have to go all the way back to 1994 to find the last time the All Blacks had a loss at the Garden of Eden. That was the same year Forrest Gump hit the big screen, and Friends began its glittering 10-season run on TV.
“Based on Ireland’s strong showing in this year’s Six Nations, this should be a great three-test series that will keep fans of both sides on the edge of their seats.”
The campaign maybe betrays the fact that New Zealand are more nervous about an inbound Irish tour then anytime in their history.
Indeed the men in green have beaten the All Blacks in three of their last five matches, since breaking their long standing duck against the side in 2016. Most recently, Ian Foster’s side were hammered in Dublin last November in what was arguably one of the greatest Ireland performances of the professional era.
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As the campaign points out though, the Irish have never beaten the All Blacks in New Zealand, despite coming close on a number of occasions down through the years.
Andy Farrell’s men will take on the All Blacks on July 2, 9 and 16 in Auckland, Dunedin and Wellington respectively. Ireland will also play the Maori All Blacks in two mid-week matches in Hamilton and Wellington.
One thing is clear: this series is heating up nicely.
As a Kiwi I simply cringe reading this story. Does Jodi Williams seriously think this is a) clever; b) funny; c) not likely to backfire? New Zealand humour is a whole lot better than this. Clottish.
Do they need any more motivation? How dumb is this?
Tab will be eating them words . Irish will win 2-1
Those who live in Glass houses shouldn't throw stones. Sounds like somebody is nervous. Only spurs us on . Thanks .
Gee, many thanks for the motivation lads, much appreciated :-)! Irish rugby fan with a Kiwi Mrs, so really looking forward to this series! May the best team win and may it be 🇮🇪
Thanks TAB NZ. Every little bit of motivation helps! 😉
"When they land in New Zealand later this month" Bro they've been here for 5 days already. They landed on sunday. Do your research
Firstly if you want to expose how little you know about New Zealand rugby then do what this anonymous chicken of an author did (and Eddie jones) and compare New Zealand's "heavy reliance" on pacific islanders who develop their rugby in New Zealand to the people who leave NZ as fully professional players. Or you could simply look up the Tongan and Samoan international rugby teams and see that literally 90% of their squads are NZ born. Secondly Rugby is bigger in New Zealand than any other country so naturally the media will play on that. Aint no advertising like a little controversy. Not that its truly controversial. Thirdly new zealand is probably more welcoming than any other country. Especially if you are here to play rugby.
It's a bit silly, really - but I doubt the Irish will care much about it. As an All Blacks fan, the side is the worst its been in 20 years, so not sure now is the time to be trumpeting performance of the All Blacks. I would hope and expect they send a message in this series and bring back the "fear factor" - but let us leave that up to the players.
It is worth adding, as others have said, that it gets tiring reading "NZ relies heavily on Samoa, Tonga and Fiji" - it is worth checking where players are born, before insinuating mass poaching takes place. Northern commentators seem to forget NZ is a Pacific Island country, with an abundance of 3rd, 4th and 5th generation NZ-born Pacific Islanders. Last time I checked, people from these nations were well within their rights to migrate to NZ.
The All Blacks would rarely name a matchday 23 with more than 2-3 players born overseas. I am sure NZ-born Pacific players would be aggrieved to be labelled as foreign ring ins.
A moronic idea. They’re not even funny.