NZ prospects distinctly beige
In a country dominated by rugby, New Zealand cricket fans have to battle against a wave of expected success that spills over from the All Blacks
ESPNcricinfo staff
25-Feb-2013
In a country dominated by rugby, New Zealand cricket fans have to battle against a wave of expected success that spills over from the All Blacks. Not often do the Black Caps live up to their more glamorous counterparts and Paul Ford, a long-suffering member of the Beige Brigade - New Zealand's Barmy Army - predicts in All Out Cricket that looking on the bright side could again be their conclusion from the upcoming Test series against England.
There is very little for Kiwi fans to salivate over in terms of our team's shambolic Test performances of late and their main emotions will be a combination of fear, foreboding and trepidation. The current New Zealand team is a product of a Kiwi cricketing environment that is at the nadir of its fortunes: a depressing mix of injuries and unavailability, allegations of nepotism and half-truths, inexperienced players thrown in the deep end, a chorus of embittered former players, administrators and commentators whinging from behind the boundary rope, and a series of catastrophic public relations cock-ups.