Have you ever been there minding your own business, going about your daily routine when you are hit out of the blue by a question. A tough one, one that shakes you to your very core.
It could be: Why am I here? Will the world recover from COVID-19? Does pineapple belong on pizza?
Or it could be what is it like to support a rugby team other than the Crusaders?
Having been born and bred in Christchurch, supporting the Crusaders was always a given. As natural as breathing the air or gravity making things fall. I remember distinctly as a child having “Go Crusaders” whispered in my ear as I went to sleep. The possibility of supporting another team or even the idea that another team might be better never even occurred to me.
Even today, not till it’s the 80th minute and the Crusaders are down by 20 do I think we might lose and even then it's still only a 50-50 chance. Now it’s not like Crusader’s fans are the only people who think this way about their team and surely some delusion possesses those who support the Warriors but the thing is .... most of the time we are right.
Just last week when playing the Blues was a perfect example. The Blues had their best team in at least a decade and came into Christchurch full of momentum and self belief. They played a great game, defended with aggression and led for the majority of the match. When Rieko Ioane scored their second try the Blues went up 15-9 momentum should have been with them.
Instead the conversion got charged down, Richie Mo’unga caught fire and the Crusaders scored 17 unanswered points to clinch the game 26-15. The only other unbeaten team was vanquished and it was another win for the red and black victory machine.
As a Crusaders supporter this was only expected and inevitable but sometimes I wonder. What is it like to support a team that actually loses from time to time? To not know if your team will be able to make a comeback or genuinely question whether you’ll actually make the playoffs this year?
Most of all I wonder, what is it like to come up against a team like the Crusaders who have won the past 3 titles, haven’t lost a home game since 2016 and who seem to beat you down every year no matter how good you are?
I thought long and hard about it before reaching the following conclusion.
Sucks to be you.
As someone who was born in Palmerston North... I'm offended.