From the Touchline | infonews.co.nz New Zealand News

A look at the lighter side of Rugby World Cup 2011. Numbers 0 - Minutes that New Zealand have trailed in RWC 2011 matches. The All Blacks are the only team out of the 20 here who have not yet fallen behind. 1 - Thursday's match between South Africa and Namibia will be the first all-African encounter at the Rugby World Cup. 30 - Three teams have used 30 players in their first two pool matches - Italy, Japan and Tonga. He said it: "(It's important we) ... don’t abandon ship ... staying within striking distance ... and staying on the horse for as long as we can ... (They) come out of the starting blocks and throw the kitchen sink at us ... (so we're) a bit punch drunk ... (You have to) hang in there and keep swinging ... (when you are) boxing outside your weight category ... (If you lose grip) they go out the back door and get you in the corner ... (and then) you’ve got to go into scramble and fight for your life to stem the flow." - USA coach Eddie O'Sullivan takes it one cliche at a time as he mixes sporting codes as well as metaphors in describing the challenge of playing USA. Cow patter As you can see from the picture above, a young cow on a farm in Reporoa, about halfway between Taupo and Rotorua, is wondering what all the RWC fuss is about. But the farm's owners are not getting tired of supporting the All Blacks, who take on France in Auckland on Saturday night. They clearly reckon Rugby World Cup 2011 is udderly fantastic and are milking it for all it's worth. Backyard bonus Having a Rugby World Cup 'in their own backyard' took on a whole new reality this week for Christchurch residents Ivan Ladbrook and Jeff Smith. The two men live next door to the Linwood Rugby Club in Christchurch's eastern suburbs and the club has been the training base for the All Blacks during their brief stay in New Zealand's most rugby-mad city, heavily affected by earthquakes since last September. With a perfect view from their lounge on to the training field, they were in prime position to check out the All Blacks' best moves, but Ivan said security was tight and all photos were banned. Both men were happy to deny any French ancestry. As hooker Keven Mealamu joked: "I think we've gone through every neighbour around the pitch here . They're all pretty keen Kiwis, so I think we're pretty safe." Spot on. One is not amused One of the 'highlights' of the re-enactment of New Zealand's first rugby match in Nelson on Tuesday was the appearance of a Victorian streaker, dressed down to his long johns. He interrupted proceedings before being rounded up by a Victorian-attired policeman. A nice touch was the honour given to 15-year-old Josh Monro, a great-great grandson of the 1870 match promoter Charles Monro, to kick off the game. For the record, the original match finished in a 2-0 victory to the Nelson Football Club over Nelson College. Picture imperfect Ireland wing Tommy Bowe was disappointed he didn't score a 90m try against Australia after intercepting a Quade Cooper pass and being run down by the speedy James O’Connor. But he was also aghast at a photo which appeared in Ireland's biggest-selling newspaper. "There was a picture of me in The Independent where my tongue's half out and nearly touching my neck," he said. "I think I was struggling at that stage. I probably would've changed my look if I knew that stupid face was going to be in the paper." Toniolatti is the daddy Nothing could wipe the smile off the face of Italy wing Giulio Toniolatti after he marked his RWC debut by crashing over for two tries in Italy’s 53-17 win over Russia on Tuesday. After his second try he shoved the ball up his jersey in celebration. He wasn’t trying to claim an early souvenir, he was celebrating that he is soon to become a father. “I wanted to dedicate that try to my girl Priscilla,” an emotional Toniolatti told reporters after the match. “She’s having my first child.” However, there is no truth in the rumour the couple will name the child Gilbert. Hooker loves bed There’s at least one USA player not losing any sleep as he prepares to line up against a bruised Australia in Wellington on Friday. “This game is going to be sweet,” USA hooker Phil Thiel said. “I’m pretty relaxed. I realised when I was a kid that if you don’t get a good night’s sleep before a big game, that thing you should be dreaming about just doesn’t happen. “Rugby is a game and it’s supposed to be fun. That’s how I look at it.” Soccer? Don't swear at me! A reporter made the mistake of asking Ireland flanker Sean O'Brien about his country's recent scoreless draw with Russia in a qualifying football match for the 2012 European Championships, ahead of the countries' RWC clash on Sunday. "I absolutely hate soccer," O'Brien replied in disgust. "I played when I was younger but I'm not a fan. They get paid way too much money for what they do." Sofia's choice Ecuador is hardly a rugby hotbed, but one native of the football-mad South American country who runs a sport garment store in downtown Auckland is sold on the oval-ball game. While talking about the vast numbers of tourists thronging her shop during RWC, Sofia Grijalva spoke with a cut-glass English accent, having lived there before arriving in New Zealand. "I love rugby," she says. "Ecuador is just football but in England it's pretty big and that's where I got to know the game. It's much more sociable there than the football, that's why I like it."