Are fans hoping for or expecting All Blacks skipper Sam Cane to lead the side to a fourth World Cup? Photo: Aaron Gillions / Photosport
It's hard to truly experience the highs of sport without having experienced the lows.
Pain and suffering are part of the recipe if you want to cook up a passionate fan base, one which lives and breathes the performances of their team.
After toughing out the tough bits, success is so much sweeter.
New Zealand rugby fans are only now starting to feel those feelings, and it's going to make the ride all the better, even if domination is a thing of the past.
It's a simple case of hope versus expectation.
For most sporting teams and their fans, hope is the overriding feeling heading into any sporting contest.
You hope your team plays well, and you resist the nagging sense deep within your mind that you're in for a bumpy ride.
It's a case of the heart overriding the head.
"This year's our year!"
Of course, that's what Warriors fans say every year. They're a perfect example of a fan base which runs on hope.
Despite ingrained mediocrity and a history of failure, every season fans are optimistic, and often without reason.
Sometimes, every once in a while, that hope is given reason to grow. Desperation and despondence do not eventuate.
Instead, the faith is rewarded, and the highs are so much higher.
They don't take their success for granted.
Ever hopeful Warriors fans. Photo: Fiona Goodall
By contrast, some fans operate purely on expectation.
I'd point to supporters of teams like the Crusaders, or of Manchester City and Real Madrid in football.
They turn up expecting wins, and anything short of that can create a dreadful atmosphere. They don't so much support the team, as turn up expecting to be entertained.
Have you ever watched the Harlem Globetrotters?
It's the same thing. Sure, it's entertaining. There are great feats of athleticism. Some of the sporting moments are stellar.
But it's a soulless affair.
There is no sporting contest as such, the result is predetermined, and so you just watch and try to enjoy the show.
Enter the All Blacks.
The domination of New Zealand rugby has meant fans turn up expecting victory, and a handsome one at that, rather than hoping for a pure sporting contest.
All Blacks games are usually dull to attend. The crowd inevitably turns to the stale Mexican wave as a way of entertaining themselves. They're not really invested in the game, and so it's boring.
That is until now.
The great thing about this Rugby World Cup is the lack of expectation.
A humbling loss to South Africa before the tournament set the standard, and when hosts France eased to victory in the tournament opener, predictions plummeted.
Some (specifically, me) thought there was a chance even Italy could tip up the All Blacks. Anything seemed possible.
And yet, you just knew they had a chance. A quarterfinal against Ireland wasn't a foregone conclusion.
So, instead of expecting success, and instead of expecting brilliance and fight and a romping victory for the All Blacks, we hoped for it.
When they delivered, fans felt an elation they haven't felt in a very long time. A win against the odds. One of the great games. Delight. Hope. Maybe they can win the Cup?
It's much more fun to support a team when you don't know the outcome.
Now the All Blacks take on Argentina, and hand on heart, the doubt returns over whether the All Blacks might slip up just when you think they've turned the corner.
And so again, the hope returns. Not expectation, but hope that they put in another strong performance.
Enjoy this new, bumpy, hopeful rollercoaster of a ride. It will be a lot more fun.
-RNZ
