Yet another spin on the All Blacks' exit from RWC'07 - this time Will Greenwood, writing in the Daily Telegraph, heaps praise on Nick Evans ahead of Harlequins latest venture into Europe.
"There are various theories about when exactly the All Blacks lost the last World Cup. Everyone watching them against France will have a view on when the New Zealanders finally cracked on that remarkable October night in Cardiff 2007. I bet I disagree with every single one of you. Some will point to Luke McAlister's long-range dropped-goal attempt and the way it landed miles short and wide in the dying seconds. For others it will be the forward pass that led to Yannick Jauzion's try, or McAlister's time in the sin bin. The majority, I am sure, will point to the moment Dan Carter trudged off injured.
"They were important events, but not the turning point. For me, the moment that the All Blacks lost and the 22 South African players I was watching with in their team hotel in Marseilles realised that they had all but won the World Cup without even touching a rugby ball, was when a rather lanky looking bloke with scraggy hair pulled up lame and headed for the stands. A virtual unknown on these shores, he was injured not long after replacing the seemingly irreplaceable Carter. The man in question? Nick Evans. His long-term job has been understudy to Dan the Man, but his talent, and I am happy to state this for the record, is not too far behind the great man's."
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