Veteran protestor John Minto and a few of his followers protested outside the ASB Tennis Centre in Auckland today, as is their right, and called for Israeli tennis player Shahar Peer to pull out of the tournament.

Minto had already indicated that his group, Global Peace and Justice would do so in this press release and a letter to Peer herself. The reason I find this protest so disgusting, apart from the hate in his press release, is that Peer is just a person going about her normal business. I can understand people protesting the 1981 Springbok Tour, as that team represented South Africa, was chosen along racial lines and gave some legitimacy to the regime, but Peer is a professional tennis player representing herself, she just happens to be Israeli.

On the eve of the tournament last Sunday evening we wrote to Shahar requesting she respect international calls for a comprehensive boycott of Israel and withdraw from the tournament. The letter highlighted the attacks and invasion of Gaza by the Israeli army and the heavy death toll of Palestinians which includes over 100 children.

I’m not sure where these calls for a comprehensive boycott of Israel are coming from, but is he seriously suggesting that she should be unable to earn a living internationally based solely on where she was born?

The sports boycott of Israel is a key part of any boycott campaign because it is much more visible than a trade or investment boycott and can have an important psychological impact. We saw this with the successful sports boycotts against apartheid South Africa which had a big impact in South Africa and around the world.

The difference there is that sports plays a huge role in the South African national psyche, much like it does here, and that particular boycott was mostly applied to national teams, representative of the country, not the case with Miss Peer.

A new website has been launched this week at www.big.org.nz (BIG = Boycott Israeli Goods) which has begun to highlight Israeli goods for sale in New Zealand and calls on shoppers to boycott these products and the stores that continue to stock them.

Did you know Israel is one of the world’s largest manfacturers of pharmaceuticals?

Here’s some excerpts from his letter.

We are writing to request you to withdraw from the ASB Tennis Classic as part of a comprehensive international boycott of Israel.

Again, here’s this comprehensive boycott of Israel we’ve heard so much about…

Israel’s attacks on the Gaza strip are indefensible

And Hamas’s lobbing rockets into Israel from land that was given up in exchange for peace is? There is no right and wrong in this conflict, just degrees of wrongness, but Hamas’s rocket campaign is akin to whacking a big dog repeatedly with a stick and then complaining when the dog turns around and bites you.

Of course, this ignores some of the facts around the latest conflict such as Israel calling neighbours of Hamas buildings and warning them that they are about to be bombed, giving them time to get out, or the fact that Hamas cowards use women and children as human shields, then parade their dead to the media so that Israel is portrayed as the bad guy. Here’s a tactic for you, if you don’t want your women and children killed, stop deliberately putting them in harm’s way!

We realise as a professional tennis player this is a significant sacrifice you are being asked to make.

It’s so easy to be moralistic and tell others what to do when your lively hood doesn’t depend on it.

However it is much less than the sacrifice being made by Palestinian families under siege by Israel.

And this is the crux of it all. Because Israel punished Palastinians solely based on where they were born, in Minto’s eyes, he then thinks it is perfectly acceptable for him to try to do the same thing to someone else. What ever happened to “do unto others”?

The behaviour of the crowd on Saturday night at the cricket left a great deal to be desired, while most were sensible there was still a large number of people who drank too much and then seemed to make it their mission to disrupt the enjoyment for those around them. Obvious examples include the idiot who ran out onto the field with no pants, winning himself a free night in a police holding cell, an even bigger idiot who threw a water bottle at a player (fortunately it missed) and the kind gentleman next to me who kept deliberately bumping me as I attempted to make notes (Where is my press pass New Zealand Cricket?)

But the thing that worries me the most, is that this behaviour is really nothing remarkable. At the Super 14 opener there seemed to be some people who thought the point of going to the rugby is to consume as much alcohol as possible in 80 minutes. At the Wellington Sevens, which is a two day long costume party, many fans were interviewed on TV between games and most slurred their words and looked like they were having trouble standing.

Binge drinking has long been a problem in New Zealand, and some claim this is a youth problem, but when combined with a sporting event the problem transcends age groups, with a number of those overindulging being middle aged men. That is not to say that drinking at sporting events is a bad thing, quite the opposite in fact, but drinking to the point where your behaviour spoils the event for other is not on.

Of course it is not just the fans who are prone to booze fueled mischief, how many stories have we heard of athletes getting themselves into trouble while under the influence? After Saturday night’s game, Black Caps opener Jessie Ryder punched a toilet door at 5.30am, tearing a tendon in his hand which required surgery and will keep him out of the tour to England in May.

Many stadiums have various policies in place to try and mange the amount of alcohol available to fans, for instance AMI Stadium stops selling beer at rugby matches 20 minutes into the second half. But they also make a good profit on the sale of alcohol, so putting them in charge of limiting consumption is a little like having the wolf guarding the hen house.

In the end it comes down to individual responsibility, something that New Zealanders are not very good at handling. Sports is our national pastime, we enjoy having a drink with mates, but until we break the link between sporting events and binge drinking there will always be a minority who spoil it for the rest of us.

The Super 14 is the only international club rugby union competition in the Southern Hemisphere featuring teams from New Zealand, Australia and South Africa. It was born out of the success of the 1995 World Cup and a desire to take rugby into a fully professional era. With the introduction of pay TV coming at around the same time, News Corporation bought the television rights and the Super 12 was born.

The Super 12 was made up of 12 teams, 5 from New Zealand, 4 from South Africa and 3 from Australia. Each nation decided how it would field teams into the new competition, South Africa fielded the top four teams from its domestic Currie Cup, while New Zealand combined some provincial teams. At the time Australia only had two state teams, Queensland and New South Wales, and used the players who were unwanted by both states to form the ACT Brumbies.

The format of the Super 12 was simple, a round robin followed by semi finals and a final. The inaugural Super 12 tournament was won by the Auckland Blues in front of their home crowd against the Natal Sharks. The Blues dominance continued in 1997 when they recorded the competitions first ever unbeaten record, 10 wins and 1 draw in the round robin, followed by wins in the semi final and final to claim their second title.

1998 saw the Blues fail to defend their title when they lost the final to the Canterbury Crusaders. The Crusaders would go on to win the title again in 1999 and 2000. For the 2000 season all Super 12 teams were renamed, having previously been referred to by a region and nickname, teams were now referred to only by nicknames, so the Waikato Chiefs became simply the Chiefs.

In 2001 New Zealand teams’ strangle hold on the Super 12 title was finally broken as the ACT Brumbies claimed the title. Also in 2001, no New Zealand team made the semi finals. 2002 saw New Zealand teams return to prominence as the Crusaders achieved 11 wins from 11 games and went on to win the final, their first final win at home.

The Crusaders would make the final again in 2003, only to lose to the Blues, in 2004, losing to the Brumbies and in 2005 when they beat the Waratahs.

In 2006 the television rights for the Super 12 came up for renewal. News Corp had been very happy with the success of the Super 12 concept and opted to expand the competition to 14 teams, with a new team for both Australia and South Africa. And so the Super 14 was born.

Super Rugby, a term used to refer to the Super 12 and Super 14, has produced some fantastic rugby but has also been lampooned by some Northern Hemisphere journalists, claiming Super 14 teams have poor defences due to some of the high scoring games, or that Super 14 places too much emphasis on back play. These claims are largely dismissed in the Southern Hemisphere as jealousy and certain writers wanting to return to the days of 6-3 score-lines.

Currently the Super 14 is contested by five teams from New Zealand (Blues, Chiefs, Hurricanes, Crusaders and Highlanders), four from Australia (Reds, Waratahs, Brumbies and Force) and five from South Africa (Cheetahs, Sharks, Bulls, Lions, Stormers).

The 2007 Super 14 has already been one of the most competitive Super Rugby tournaments ever, partly due to the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) holding back 22 top players from the first half of the Super 14 for a conditioning program. With the return of several top All Blacks only a week away, the 2007 Super 14 is about to get a whole lot better.

Several teams have already suffered injuries to key players with Hurricanes captain Conrad Smith likely to miss several weeks with an eye injury, Force playmaker James Hilgendorf out with a groin strain and Highlanders game breaker Nick Evans is yet to recover from a preseason knee injury.

The new scrum engagement process also moves into its second week and is getting mixed reviews. Many spectators are saying that the new four stage process has ruined the scrum as a spectacle and made defending at scrum time much more difficult. While All Blacks and Hurricanes prop Neemia Tialata has endorsed the new sequence.

Chiefs vs Hurricanes

This weekend’s round kicks off with an all Kiwi affair from Hamilton. Both teams are coming off narrow losses last week and are better than their previous outings. The Hurricanes have lost captain and centre Conrad Smith to injury but his replacement, former All Black captain Tana Umaga, is more than capable of filling Smith’s place in midfield. The Chiefs’ only injury to come out of last week’s game against the Brumbies was to reserve first five Tasesa Lavea.

Both teams played well at times in last week’s losses and could have snatched at least a draw with better goal kicking. A loss this week will make the battle for a semi final spot an uphill battle. The Chiefs forward pack performed well despite having both Jono Gibbs and Marty Holah spending time in the sin bin, while the Hurricanes forwards competed well during the first half against the Reds. Injuries to two props meant the Hurricanes played uncontested scrums for most of the second half, this placed too many forwards in the back line and ruined any chance for the Hurricane backs to cut loose.

This game will close and whichever team makes the fewest mistakes will likely come away with the points. Home advantage means I am picking the Chiefs.

Stormers vs Force

Another two teams coming off first round losses, both will be looking for good performances to boost their confidence. The Force played poorly against a sub-standard Highlanders team, going down 8-7, while the Stormers could only manage 3 penalties in their 27-9 loss to the Cheetahs. Force playmakers James Hilgendorf is out with a groin strain, forcing new signing Matt Giteau into the pivot role.

Like last year’s team, the Force look good on paper but are yet to really fire, while the Stormers need to score points at home before embarking on a long tour to New Zealand and Australia. This game will likely be won up front, and in this area the Stormers hold an advantage. I’m picking the Stormers to win this game.

Sharks vs Waratahs

This game will be the first real test for both teams. The Waratahs easily accounted for the hapless Lions, while the Sharks were able to grind out a victory against the Bulls. The Waratahs will doubtless feel more at home in sea level Durban than the high altitude of Pretoria, however the Sharks will provide a far sterner test than the Bulls.

Both teams will be looking to improve on their poor handling last week, although the Durban humidity will make that a difficult task. In this match both forward packs match up extremely well and this game will likely be won by one of the many game breakers like Lote Tuqiri for the Waratahs or JP Pietersen for the Sharks. I think the Sharks will win this match.

Crusaders vs Reds

Saturday night’s matches kick off with what could be the match of the round. The Crusaders have not lost a home match in almost three years, a record that could be in danger this weekend. The Reds played a conservative, forwards based game against the Hurricanes and will likely use similar tactics again. The Crusaders had their chances against the Blues, but too many handling errors and missed tackles cost them the game. Rua Tipoki and Casey Laulala swap positions in mid field giving the Crusaders a stronger defense in close, while allowing Laulala to range wider where he is far more effective.

The Reds have not beaten the Crusaders since 1999 and this trend will likely continue if the Crusaders can shore up their defensive wall. The Reds kicking game worked well against the counter attack minded Hurricanes, however the more conservative Crusaders’ back three will handle this game plan better. Look for the Crusaders to win this one.

Brumbies vs Blues

In this top quality clash, two genuine contenders meet in Canberra. The Blues dealt to the defending champion Crusaders last week, while the Brumbies looked a bit shaky against the Chiefs. With All Black Luke McAlister returning to the Blues line up in place of the injured Isa Nacewa the Blues have strengthened their back line, while Wallaby Stephen Larkham returns for the Brumbies. Last week Brumbies’ first five Julian Huxley controlled play with his long kicking game, but with Huxley now at fullback he will have to look to run more often against a Blues team who will attack from anywhere.

The Blues forward pack dominated the Crusaders in all aspects of the game – especially at scrum time, an area the Brumbies struggled in. Both teams kept to their game plan and showed excellent discipline, if they repeat this, the fans will be in for an excellent game of rugby. I pick the Blues to win, but not by much.

Bulls vs Cheetahs

The Cheetahs were held scoreless for almost the entire first half of their last game by the Stormers before coming away with a comfortable win. The Bulls, however, only managed 3 points against a sub par Sharks. The Cheetahs forward pack muscled up and ground the Sharks into the ground, however this is a risky tactic against a huge Bulls forward pack. Last season the Cheetahs beat the Bulls with running rugby, negating the big Bulls forwards. The Bulls will be feeling the pressure to not disappoint their home fans two weeks in a row but another loss seems likely against the improving Cheetahs.

Lions vs Highlanders

After beating a woeful Force team last week, the Highlanders are in position for an ideal start to the season against the Lions. With playmaker Andre Pretorius the Lions team will struggle against most Super 14 teams, but with Pretorius out injured this week any hope the Lions had is now gone. The Highlanders, who are probably the worst of the New Zealand teams in Super Rugby, will be far too strong for the Lions this week.

Another trend that came out of this weekend’s games was the willingness of referees to deal with back chat and dish out yellow cards. Several players found themselves offside with referees for verbal chips they would have gotten away with last year, some costing their teams an extra 10 metres after conceding penalties. Referees also dished out at least one yellow card in 4 of the 7 games played.

Blues 34 Crusaders 25

Two traditional rivals opened this year’s Super 14 in Auckland with a game that was probably the match of the round. Both teams have lost several key players to the All Blacks preseason conditioning program but were still able to perform to a high standard. The Blues were the better prepared of the two teams, looking sharper and more cohesive in all aspects of the game. Blues Captain Troy Flavell played well, helping set up the first Blues try, but undid all his good work when he was sin binned late in the game. The Crusaders looked underdone with their forward pack dominated and their usual staunch defense leaky. Crusaders’ captain Corey Flynn scored the team’s opening try, followed by Mose Tuiali’i and Rico Gear while Isaia Toeava, Rudi Wulf and Doug Howlett dotted down for the Blues.

Force 7 Highlanders 8

In a scrappy and error ridden game the Force proved that buying big name players does not guarantee success. In financial terms, these teams are polar opposites with the Force buying in several new players, while a lack of funds has forced the Highlanders to field only local players. On the field the new Force players Matt Giteau, Drew Mitchell and league convert Ryan Cross failed to fire, but returning players Scott Staniforth and James Hilgendorf did – Staniforth breaking tackles and setting up Hilgendorf for the Force’s only try. Hilgendorf would later leave the field with a groin injury. Highlanders’ captain Josh Blackie scored his teams only try after a botched clearance by the Force. Prop Clarke Dermody was sin binned after punching Matt Henjak.

Lions 16 Waratahs 25

The new look and renamed Lions performed like the Cats of last season falling to a disappointing home defeat at the hands of the Waratahs. The Lions were in the game until later in the second half, trailing by only 16-6 at half time and 16-18 with 18 minutes to play. However the Waratahs were able to extend their lead during the last quarter and came away three tries to one winners. Jacque Fourie saw a yellow card after a lifting tackle on Lote Tuqiri as the procession of yellow cards continued.

Chiefs 15 Brumbies 21

The Brumbies hit the ground running for the 2007 Super 14 with an impressive win over the luckless Chiefs. In a game that featured a lot of aimless kicking and three yellow cards, it was the Brumbies who took their chances to come away with the points. Chiefs captain Jono Gibbs saw a yellow card after a high tackle, soon followed by Brumbies open sider George Smith for repeatedly infringing at the breakdown. Chiefs open sider Marty Holah joined Smith in spending 10 minutes on the side line for the same offence, as both teams continued to spoil opposition ball despite repeated warnings from the referee. Brumbies’ replacement first five Julian Huxley controlled the tempo of the game for his side and in the end it was his goal kicking that was the difference between the two teams. While the Chiefs scored three tries to two, they were unable to kick any goals.

Sharks 17 Bulls 3

JP Pieteren scored two tries as the Sharks beat the Bulls in Durban in an error filled scrappy game. The Sharks led 7-3 at half time and only 10-3 with five minutes to play before Pietersen’s second try sealed the match for the home team. Both teams defended staunchly but attacked poorly, the Bulls looking particularly lost on attack, their only points coming via a Morne Steyn penalty.

Cheetahs 27 Stormers 9

In a game that remained scoreless for 39 minutes the Stormers became the second team to finish the round without crossing the goal line. The Cheetahs forwards contributed all the tries, while centre Meyer Bosman kicked four penalties. Hooker Adriaan Strauss gave the Cheetahs a 5-0 half time lead in the 39th minute, while Springboks prop CJ van der Linde and flanker Kabamba Floors added tries in the second half. All of the Stormers points came from the boot of first five Naas Oliver who kicked three second half penalties.

First up is the IRB Seven World Series stop in Wellington. I don’t usually watch the Sevens circuit but I always watch the Wellington leg.

There has been some controversy regarding the participation of Fiji in this tournament following their recent coup. Most of the controversy came from Trevor Mallard saying he would like to see Fiji not progress far in the tournament. The fact of the matter is nobody outside of politics cares, we just want to see good Sevens rugby. The favourites for the tournament have to be the hosts New Zealand who are tied for the lead in the series with South Africa. England and Fiji would also have to be contenders.

So far there has been twol upsets when Tonga beat Argentina 14-12, and Canada shocked Australia26-12.

Later tonight the Super 14 gets underway with the Crusaders taking on the Blues in Auckland. This year’s Super 14 is getting under way before any Super rugby tournament in the past and in my opinion it’s too early. However it will be an interesting competition in several respects, firstly because the NZRU has taken 22 All Blacks from the New Zealand teams for “conditioning”. These players will be back in week 8, making the competition much harder for the New Zealand teams. The second interesting aspect of the Super 14 will be how the front row players adjust to the new scrum engagement sequence. For years referees have called, “Crouch and hold, engage!” From this year referees will call, “Crouch, touch” at which point the props will touch the opposing prop on the shoulder, then “pause, engage!”

The Crusaders have an excellent back line on paper, despite missing several All Black including play maker Dan Carter. The forward pack looks weaker that normal without the front line All Blacks and veteran prop Greg Sommerville who is out injured for the entire Super 14. The Blues team have also be weakened with the loss of several All Blacks but are able to field a strong team and even have the luxury of leaving All Black Luke McAlister on the bench in favour of Sam Tuitupou. The Blues biggest weakness is Troy Flavell who is untested as captain at this level. Flavell has earned a reputation as a dirty player having served serveral long suspensions for foul play, but played very well in last year’s Air New Zealand Cup and may have changed his ways.

My prediction for this match: Crusaders by less than 12.

Finally the Commonwealth Bank Series continues in Australia with England taking on Australia in Sydney tonight and New Zealand against Australia from Melbourne on Sunday night. Unfortunately these games will have little bearing on the tournament unless England can beat Australia tonight. An Australian victory will mean that New Zealand will meet Australia in the best of three finals series.

Currently England are 81/1 after 16 overs and look to be making good progress to setting a defendable total. Provided that the English batsmen do not throw away wickets, as they have most of this summer, and they amass a total around 250 this is their best chance of beating Australia who are resting captain Ricky Ponting.

Well, I’m off to enjoy wall to wall sports, I’ll be posting some post match analysis through out the weekend.

Today’s game will certainly answer some of the questions regarding England’s squad going into the World Cup later this year. Is Michael Vaughan recovered from his year long knee injury? And can the team regain any confidence following their dismal performance in the Ashes? On paper England have an excellent team with a formidable batting lineup including Kevin Pietersen who has the ability to turn a match around in a few overs. The bowling however is not so strong. Outsite of Monty Panesar and Andrew Flintoff the English attack won’t be striking fear into the hearts of their opponents.

Australia will be looking to blood some new players following the retirement of Shane Warne and the impending retirement of Glen McGrath. Their batting lineup remains formidable. Adam Gilchrist have a proven record as one of the most destructive opening batsmen in world cricket and is backed up by a very long lineup. Michael Clarke will be looking to move up the order to 4, allowing Michael Hussey to bat at 6. Hussey reminds me a lot of another Michael, Michael Bevan whose innings against New Zealand at the MCG in the VB series of 2002 is something I will never forget. Hussey has the ability to keep the score ticking over towards the death and the hitting skills to steer his side home when required.

I’m certainly looking forward to today’s game. I haven’t seen any good ODI’s this year. I’ve seen the rain shortened game from Christchurch, the disaster at Auckland and the pitter patter of rain from Hamilton. Bring on the big boys, bring on the games!

So stay tuned, the fun’s about it begin.