Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.
- Henry IV, Part II

It’s tough at the top. And when the exalted come tumbling down, the landing hurts so much more.

Like many New Zealanders, I’ve been mourning the All Blacks’ defeat in Cardiff on Sunday. Out of the World Cup… and in the quarter finals, no less. Oh, how the mighty have fallen. The darlings of the Tri-Nations, the demi-gods of international rugby, are today slinking back to New Zealand to face the natives whilst back in Europe the Rugby World Cup gears up for the semis. How ironic that it should be South Africa who flies the southern hemisphere flag. The Springboks, of all teams!

The reactions throughout the country have been interesting. Blame the ref, blame the rotation, blame the coach, blame the pool matches, blame the weather, the field, the crowd, the ebb and flow of the oceans tides, the drift of the continents, the very position of the sun along its ecliptic… and so on. Listening to the radio this morning, it seems many fans were headed out to Christchurch Airport to welcome the fallen heroes, and not with rotten tomatoes either. And that’s good to hear, because however disappointed we, the fans feel, multiply that by about 10,000 and we might have some vague conception of where the team is at. God knows they could do with some support. On the other hand, there’ve been those who feel that the AB’s have rather a lot to answer for, and that creating scapegoats is just whining. Tiger Woods’ caddy, Steve Williams, said on Morning Report that teams have to play the best when it counts the most and that clearly, the AB’s were not up to the task. He also vacillated about giving them a warm welcome home. Even our Prime Minister has offered her opinion (having actually been at the match, and suffered the ignominy of having to shake the elated French Prime Minister’s hand in congratulations), saying that the AB’s should have had enough points in the kitty to counter that travesty of a forward-pass blunder. NZPWI staff have been bitterly divided on the subject.  Troy and I are no longer speaking to Dion and Leighton, and none of us are speaking to Simon, who had the temerity to take the piss.

So what, you might well ask, does any of this have to do with pro-wrestling? Well, it allowed me an opportunity to rant publicly for one thing, but mainly it puts me in mind of another divisive state. Fans reactions to John Cena’s injury, and subsequent benching, have been polarised in some cases and varied in most. I think it’s worth noting that among his detractors, many have suddenly flip-sided and are now decrying his absence; without him, who is there to boo? It’s simply too boring to jeer the guys we’re told to hate. So now what? Do we rewind a couple of years and go back to hating Triple H? Oh wait… a couple of years ago we were supposed to hate Triple H.

The champ is gone. The champ is no longer the champ. The champ is, in fact, champing the bit to get back in the saddle, but despite his heroic statement right after the injury occurred, the champ will in fact be out for the better part of a year. This is a good thing.

I’ve always been a fan of John Cena. I like him a lot. He does an amazing job of fronting the flagship brand – indeed, as some might argue, the whole company – and for well over two years he’s done it with undiminished energy, dedication and commitment, none of which waned in the face of an increasing fan backlash. He gritted his teeth and continued to bring his A-game even when he disagreed with certain decisions *cough*Edge-losing-in-Toronto*cough*. It wasn’t WWE Creative that fans were booing so loudly they nearly collapsed the Air Canada Centre at Unforgiven last year, it was Cena, who had made his way to the ring wearing his “I’m-not-happy-with-this-outcome” face that over time has become recognisable as his only means of protest.

As holder of the coveted WWE Championship, Cena has taken on and fulfilled incredible responsibilities. As I mentioned in my last Editorial, I have no doubt that an entourage of WWE employees are charged with ensuring he manages his commitments, his health and his life, but it’s still a crushing load. House shows, TV shows, PPVs, public appearances, endless travel, a music CD… oh, and a movie. In the ring Cena’s always been a consistent, it not overtly flamboyant, athlete. A fairly basic move-set, yes, but one which he always employs well. And I remember his days as Prototype, when he demonstrated an ability now no longer seen. But it’s always been his seemingly boundless energy and charisma that have made him so much fun to watch in action, and these are traits just as important as physical ability. Cena is no Eddie Guerrero – who had an abundance of all three – but what he lacks in aptitude he makes up for with magnetism.

So why, I hear you asking, is it therefore a good thing that he’s out of action? He hadn’t been showing any wear and tear despite his crushing schedule, it seemed like there was still well over half a tank. Simply put, I’m glad to see someone of Cena’s stature get a break before the needle inches down to empty. It’s tough, the torn pectoral, and I feel very sorry for him, but in order to keep these guys healthy I’d very much like to see them rested before they’re run into the ground. A torn pec is most definitely NOT how I’d like to see that rest facilitated, but better that than burning right out.

Unfortunately, this will never be the case. Despite heavy criticism of the schedule WWE forces its talent to undertake, the reality is that they’ll continue to squeeze every last drop of endurance out of their roster, then toss them aside when there’s no more to give. Which to my mind makes absolutely no sense; surely if performers are given the opportunity to rest whilst still enjoying perfect health, they’ll continue to perform for a longer overall time?

But, back to the benching of John Cena. Because I feel as if I harp on the scheduling all the live long day.

As the recent No Mercy pay-per-view proved, Creative can still get it right when it wants to. The swerves throughout the show made for some real nail-biting action, culminating in a main event that gave a new meaning to the word “thrilling.” It just goes to show that perhaps a certain amount of complacency was seeping through the ranks of the writers while Cena did his Energizer Bunny impersonation for almost three years straight. Now that their go-to guy is on the sideline, they can take a look at what’s available in terms of elevating talent, and creating new storylines. If No Mercy is anything to go by, it could be the beginning of a rather exciting time. Randy Orton has the WWE Championship – a slightly prosaic choice but a decision that doubtless would have happened anyway – and it will be interesting to see who chases it, and for how long.

Then there’s Cena’s return. If one takes a look at how the E can successfully build the hype for the likes of Triple H and the Undertaker, imagine what possibilities are open to them with Cena? Heel or face? Straight into the title chase, or charging through the mid-card? A new gimmick? And up against who on his return? If I were part of WWE Creative, I’d be salivating over future plans, rather than bemoaning the loss of a performer who simply allowed me to phone it in whenever a RAW main event needed booking.

The All Blacks will get to renew their campaign in four years time, and when the Rugby World Cup rolls around again, they’ll get to fight for it on their own turf. (And if they think they know shame now, imagine what would happen if they got pipped in the quarters again at Jade Stadium.) They are down now, but they have the chance to experience the best kind of glory in four years – the kind you get at home. John Cena is out for the better part of a year, but he went out on top and he can return better than ever, elevating the main event scene to a whole new level. And in the meantime, he gets a break. Here’s hoping he can wind down.

If you’ve got any thoughts on Cena’s sidelining, or comments on what I’ve said, I’d love to hear from you. Same goes for the All Blacks – who I’ve heard returned to a hero’s welcome here in Christchurch. Makes me wish I’d gone out to the airport to see them myself. Letters to the Editor:

Speaking of Letters to the Editor, Neville from Brisbane had this to say in response to my flu-induced bitching about the state of WWE:

Where is the wrestling in WWE? We have more wrestling in the NRL than on most of WWE. Batista, Cena, Henry, Orton, Edge, Umaga & Co display little apart from the ability to make a “stiff arm” tackle. WWE is full of “non-wrestlers” doing crash and tackle. Angle was a great wrestler since I took an interest.
 
Secondly, the Kiwis and NZPWI have an entire South Pacific area from which to develop its own version of WWE. The size of the Fijians and Tongans is ready made for the professional sports that need brute strength. See our NRL, and the number of people from these areas playing for Parramatta, Melbourne, Brisbane etc.
 
And after I have watched 7 years of WWE, the attraction of the outlandish has worn thin. I agree that too many appearances of Vince McMahon are what not is needed. What is needed is a great wrestler to play the part of the “face”, not the average set of triers that we are given to carry our hopes to beat the “evil” set. Batista’s only move is the “spear”, then a slam. This is not exciting at all. Ditto the other crop of Cena and Lashley.
 
Oh if only we could see World Championship Wrestling (Australian version) again.

As you’ll have realised by now, Neville, I’m not quite on the same wavelength with you as regards John Cena, but I certainly get where you’re coming from in terms of Lashley, Umaga and most DEFINITELY Mark Henry, who to my mind is a bigger waste of space than Paris Hilton. I also quite heartily agree about the wealth of talent currently on tap here in New Zealand, and in Australia too. One of my NZPWI colleagues is an ex-pat Kiwi living in Australia, and an IPWA wrestler to boot, and I reckon you could bet your “sweet ass” that he’d be whole-heartedly agreeing as well. It’s a shame that it takes so much for them to get noticed on the international stage, because to my mind we’ve got some of the best athletes around.

If anyone has any comments regarding Neville’s letter, or about the industry Down Under, sing out!

While on the subject of New Zealand talent, it was my privilege to chat to “Lyte Playa” Roger Ventura a couple of weeks ago. I would never have guessed it was his first interview, he was so easy-going. I’ve always had a soft spot for Ventura; his match against Lil’ T at Capital Punishment in Wellington last year was my very first taste of live wrestling. Ventura goes into the first quarter final of the 2007 NZPWI Invitational against good friend Dal Knox. To read/listen to what Ventura had to say about that and much more, click here.

This is where I’d usually discuss the most recent updates for the NZPWI Invitational, but I’m giving it a miss this week, as I’ve been informed by NZPWI Editor-in-Chief, and Invitational promoter Dion McCracken that he’ll be hijacking the Editorial next week to bring you all the latest news and updates regarding New Zealand’s biggest pro-wrestling event. Plus it’s about time he did some actual work around this place. (Yes I’m fishing. Let’s see if I get a bite.)

Dayna Wall continued to dominate the NZPWI Roundtable for No Mercy and remains at the top of the heap. Anyone would think she was the PPV Reporter or something, and here I was thinking it was all about the towels. And speaking of newcomers to the Roundtable, NZWPW, KPW and TV Reporter David Dunn branched out from his comfort zone and brought us a fantastic article on women's wrestling in New Zealand - NZWPW Women's Division: Fighting For Their Gender – well worth a read. David tells me he has more articles like this planned for the NZ scene, which I’m very much looking forward to.

The pressure of a daily blog doesn’t seem to have affected Simon Sweetman’s output; over the past couple of weeks he’s produced reviews on wrestling books Sex, Lies & Headlocks and The Last Wrestlers, as well as the DVD release of the 2007 Great American Bash. Additionally, Simon has published what he rather humorously calls a “holding pattern” column, The Best Wrestling Column That I Can Write Right Now.

Also new in the Columns section is Matt Sparnon’s latest tale from the biz, The End of the Innocence: My First Night of “Sweet Ass.” I had wondered when we might get that particular story, and having read it I can tell you it was worth the wait, and worth checking out.

Speaking of checking out, it’s time for me to do just that. I am, as always, appreciative of everyone who took the time to read, and of all those who respond with a Letter to the Editor.  I’m looking forward to kicking back and reading them while Dion takes over the next Editorial, something he’s been planning for some time now.

All yours, McCracken.