Over the last 6 weeks, the largest international event that New Zealand has ever hosted, possibly its largest even ever, was played out on the sports fields of some of New Zealand's finest cities. The 2011 Rugby World Cup (RWC) saw 20 countries divided into 4 pools all hoping to hoist the Webb Ellis Cup. The New Zealanders were particularly hopeful as the All Blacks, New Zealand's national team, was ranked the best in the world and had the possibility of capturing the championship since the first one in 1987. Rugby is New Zealand's national sport and the Kiwis take great pride in their abilities.
I'm proud to say that Canada made a very good showing in the RWC this year. Many Canadians wouldn't know, but Canada is the 2nd strongest rugby team in the Americas behind Argentina. Canada was placed into Pool A which included Japan, Tonga, France and New Zealand --- a very tough draw. The Canadians played very well, beating Tonga, tying Japan although losing to France and New Zealand, although those teams are some of the strongest in the world. Although Canada did not advance to the playoffs, the Canucks hold the distinction of being the only team to score first against the All Blacks at the RWC.
The playoffs were very exciting, especially in Australia. I watched as the Wallabies narrowly defeated the reigning champs, the South Africa Springboks and then face New Zealand in the semi-finals. Australia lost and had to contend itself with beating Wales to take the bronze medal. New Zealand defeated its opponents with relative ease and advanced to the final as heavy favourite against the France Les Bleus.
The championship game was a titanic struggle between two great nations of the sport. The All Blacks performed one of their hakas, the Kapo o Pango (the other one is the more famous Ka Mate) and the French walked up to stare them down. The game was very close and neither team seemed to be kicking well. New Zealand scored the first try but failed to convert although they managed a penalty goal giving them an 8-0 lead. Les Bleus retaliated within minutes and scored a try on a brilliant series of plays that left the All Blacks stunned. After the conversion the score became 8-7. Despite both teams trying valiantly neither could get any more points on the board and in this exciting game that went to the wire, the All Blacks were able to cling to the win. You can rest assured that all of New Zealand was celebrating that night and probably still is.
I decided that I should get into the spirit of the tournament and I decided to buy myself some official team jerseys. To that end, I got jerseys for Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. The last 3 I got from the official RWC website but the Canadian one was a bit trickier. The Canadian jersey was unavailable at the online store because, apparently, they had sold out of them. To me, this was incredible given that the exposure to rugby Canadians get is fairly minimal. However, it is a very nice jersey with red, white and black elements and embossed maple leaves. Perhaps it is that jersey's aesthetic quality that made it so popular. In the end, I got the Canadian jersey shipped in from the UK and I got the last one in my size, so I felt very fortunate.
Despite the fun of the RWC, there is a serious side still to my life Down Under. After the utter joy of having the privilege of writing the Canadian Criminal Law and Procedure exam in October, I am now studying for the Foundations of Canadian Law and the Canadian Constitutional Law exams in my continuing quest to be qualified to practice law in Canada, should the need arise, and giving myself a stress-related illness. Those exams are in January and I'll be writing them again in Sydney. I've given myself 10 weeks to study plus 2 weeks to review, which I think will be enough given the similarities between Canadian and Australian constitutional law and what I already know. I'll write the Canadian Administrative Law exam in May and hopefully, that will be the end of it. Assuming I pass everything, it means that I will be qualified to practice law, subject to other regulations and applications, in Australia, Canada and New Zealand (thanks to the handy Trans-Tasman Mutual Recognition Agreement).
Earlier on there was also the annual ACTAFL Umpires' Association dinner. This year, it was a bit more low key than usual but fun nonetheless. There was some lawn bowling and a very good dinner afterwards. It was good to recognize those who had made high achievements throughout the year and have some gentle, good-natured fun at everyone.
I am fairly rapidly coming to the conclusion of my graduate diploma which will mean that I shall soon be admitted as a lawyer in the ACT. All I have to do is complete this placement at Legal Aid I'm doing at the moment. Every Monday I go in, along with a few others, and over the course of 8 weeks we take part in different aspects of Legal Aid's work, like client interviews, domestic violence matters, civil tribunal matters and just about everything else too. It's part of the practical component of the diploma and I am learning a great deal though it. I had an excellent experience at the Commonwealth Department of Public Prosecutions where I spent 2 weeks in September. I feel I've been exposed to so much of the law and I think these experiences will stand me in good stead.
My placement finishes in November meaning I'll have completed all components of my diploma. I should be admitted to practice in early December and graduating about a week later. It's all been leading up to this. I'm a little excited and scared by what's to come. It's the uncertainty of the future that I do not like but maybe, with a bit of luck, there'll be some certainty soon.
I'm proud to say that Canada made a very good showing in the RWC this year. Many Canadians wouldn't know, but Canada is the 2nd strongest rugby team in the Americas behind Argentina. Canada was placed into Pool A which included Japan, Tonga, France and New Zealand --- a very tough draw. The Canadians played very well, beating Tonga, tying Japan although losing to France and New Zealand, although those teams are some of the strongest in the world. Although Canada did not advance to the playoffs, the Canucks hold the distinction of being the only team to score first against the All Blacks at the RWC.
The playoffs were very exciting, especially in Australia. I watched as the Wallabies narrowly defeated the reigning champs, the South Africa Springboks and then face New Zealand in the semi-finals. Australia lost and had to contend itself with beating Wales to take the bronze medal. New Zealand defeated its opponents with relative ease and advanced to the final as heavy favourite against the France Les Bleus.
The championship game was a titanic struggle between two great nations of the sport. The All Blacks performed one of their hakas, the Kapo o Pango (the other one is the more famous Ka Mate) and the French walked up to stare them down. The game was very close and neither team seemed to be kicking well. New Zealand scored the first try but failed to convert although they managed a penalty goal giving them an 8-0 lead. Les Bleus retaliated within minutes and scored a try on a brilliant series of plays that left the All Blacks stunned. After the conversion the score became 8-7. Despite both teams trying valiantly neither could get any more points on the board and in this exciting game that went to the wire, the All Blacks were able to cling to the win. You can rest assured that all of New Zealand was celebrating that night and probably still is.
I decided that I should get into the spirit of the tournament and I decided to buy myself some official team jerseys. To that end, I got jerseys for Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. The last 3 I got from the official RWC website but the Canadian one was a bit trickier. The Canadian jersey was unavailable at the online store because, apparently, they had sold out of them. To me, this was incredible given that the exposure to rugby Canadians get is fairly minimal. However, it is a very nice jersey with red, white and black elements and embossed maple leaves. Perhaps it is that jersey's aesthetic quality that made it so popular. In the end, I got the Canadian jersey shipped in from the UK and I got the last one in my size, so I felt very fortunate.
Despite the fun of the RWC, there is a serious side still to my life Down Under. After the utter joy of having the privilege of writing the Canadian Criminal Law and Procedure exam in October, I am now studying for the Foundations of Canadian Law and the Canadian Constitutional Law exams in my continuing quest to be qualified to practice law in Canada, should the need arise, and giving myself a stress-related illness. Those exams are in January and I'll be writing them again in Sydney. I've given myself 10 weeks to study plus 2 weeks to review, which I think will be enough given the similarities between Canadian and Australian constitutional law and what I already know. I'll write the Canadian Administrative Law exam in May and hopefully, that will be the end of it. Assuming I pass everything, it means that I will be qualified to practice law, subject to other regulations and applications, in Australia, Canada and New Zealand (thanks to the handy Trans-Tasman Mutual Recognition Agreement).
Earlier on there was also the annual ACTAFL Umpires' Association dinner. This year, it was a bit more low key than usual but fun nonetheless. There was some lawn bowling and a very good dinner afterwards. It was good to recognize those who had made high achievements throughout the year and have some gentle, good-natured fun at everyone.
I am fairly rapidly coming to the conclusion of my graduate diploma which will mean that I shall soon be admitted as a lawyer in the ACT. All I have to do is complete this placement at Legal Aid I'm doing at the moment. Every Monday I go in, along with a few others, and over the course of 8 weeks we take part in different aspects of Legal Aid's work, like client interviews, domestic violence matters, civil tribunal matters and just about everything else too. It's part of the practical component of the diploma and I am learning a great deal though it. I had an excellent experience at the Commonwealth Department of Public Prosecutions where I spent 2 weeks in September. I feel I've been exposed to so much of the law and I think these experiences will stand me in good stead.
My placement finishes in November meaning I'll have completed all components of my diploma. I should be admitted to practice in early December and graduating about a week later. It's all been leading up to this. I'm a little excited and scared by what's to come. It's the uncertainty of the future that I do not like but maybe, with a bit of luck, there'll be some certainty soon.
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