Cow bells, footie and green beer

New Zealand Letter: Back in the early '80s, a New Zealand horse breeder of Irish heritage, Patrick Hogan, arranged to import a horse from Ireland by the name of Sir Tristan. En route, Sir Tristan briefly resided in a stable in France which caught fire; he availed of the diversion to become acquainted with the resident mares.

In response, the mares almost kicked him to death; there were fears Sir Tristan might have to be put down. Several of the syndicate planning to buy the horse withdrew, but Hogan went ahead with a few other owners in importing the horse.

A bit of a mongrel apparently, Sir Tristan. Any stable hand who went near him "out of season" risked being maimed. But when time came to, eh, go to work, Sir Tristan was apparently more than accommodating.

Sir Tristan became the most successful sire in Australasia and made his owners fabulously rich. Hogan turned down one offer of 20 million New Zealand dollars, insisting Sir Tristan would see out his life on his Cambridge Stud, where ultimately the horse was buried a few years ago.

Viewed in that light, it seems appropriate a big race meeting in the afternoon should precede a visit by Ireland to the Waikato Stadium in Hamilton today.

Hogan, also a keen Waikato rugby fan and provider of post-match meals for players and friends, will almost certainly attend both occasions.

Hamilton is about 100 kilometres from Auckland, with a population of about 120,000, and is famous for dairy farming. After the Queensland Reds lost here to the Waikato Chiefs early in the campaign, their Wallaby fullback Chris Latham attributed the defeat to having to spend four days in "the most boring city in the world". The outraged mayor Mayor cited the city's lake, river, restaurants and bars, to which might be added the beaches an hour away.

Latham's comments revived memories of another disparaging remark by the former All Black-turned-pundit Grahame Thorne, who observed that for entertainment the youth of the city went downtown to watch traffic lights change.

Waikato, in fairness, is noted for its local brew, Waikato Green, whose makers have a nice line in self-deprecation. One of their billboards proclaimed: "A beer, a pie and the footie: dinner and a show in Hamilton."

Another, without even any reference to beer, rejoiced sardonically: "A box of matches: the air freshener of choice in most Waikato homes."

Unsurprisingly, Waikato's rugby teams have, according to a local radio pundit, Phil Gifford, "been traditionally synonymous with hard, flesh-eating forwards who take no prisoners. If the halfback didn't kick the ball, the first-five did."

Like Munster, Waikato are famed for beating touring sides ever since they ensured the Springboks tour of 1956 began on a losing note. The former Connacht and Ireland - and now Waikato - coach, Warren Gatland, was hooker in the Waikato pack that featured seven All Blacks and "absolutely smashed" the 1993 Lions.

"I don't think the Lions touched the ball in the first 20 minutes, and we were about 20-0 up by then," he recalls. "We were 38-3 up in the last minute when Will Carling scored a try for the Lions. He was their midweek captain and he actually played very well that night.

"They were coached by Ian McGeechan, Gavin Hastings was the captain, and they had a mostly Scottish tight five, with Mick Galwey in the loose forwards. Sure they were all Test players but we expected to beat them. We were the best provincial team in New Zealand at the time."

Graeme Purvis and Craig Stevenson were the props, the soon-to-be Garryowen lock Brent Anderson packed down with Steve Gordon, and former All Blacks coach John Mitchell was flanked by Richard Jerram and Duane Monkley, who scored two tries that night.

"If you ask New Zealanders who were the best players never to have played for the All Blacks," says Gatland, "Duane Monkley would be one of the first they'd say."

Gatland reckons "the similarities with Munster are uncanny", citing the fervour of both sets of supporters and the fact Waikato were the one province who could guarantee a 30,000 crowd for the NZRU.

They take great pride in the Waikato Stadium, the only dedicated rugby ground of all the major stadia in New Zealand. The atmosphere fairly crackled when the Maoris beat the Lions here last year in Carlos Spencer's valediction to New Zealand.

Gatland recalls watching a Waikato NPC game on Sky Sports one morning in Ireland with his son Bryn and feeling a little embarrassed by the constant din of cow bells afforded opposition goalkickers.

"It's hard to explain to anyone from Ireland," says Gatland. "It's not really done in a malicious way, more a humorous way. There's no booing."

But, he says, it remains a unique atmosphere.

"Aren't they supposed to stay silent for kicks at goal?" Bryn Gatland asked his father.

"Bryn, Hamilton is a little bit different, son. You'll learn that when you get home."