SOMEHOW the sense of anticipation ahead of today’s Wales v New Zealand rugby international seems muted – but not in our house.

While Wales’ performances against the Australians a fortnight ago, and last Saturday when Samoa came to Cardiff were underwhelming, there really should be no need to work hard to get excited over a visit by the All Blacks.

Being only an occasional attender at such occasions as Autumn internationals and Six Nations matches, I have not had the pleasure of watching New Zealand in the flesh.

It is not an omission I have found particularly hard to bear, given that football is my preferred sport, although given the shameful shenanigans currently defacing the game at both club and international level, I find my enjoyment of it somewhat compromised at present.

But in a household containing two teenagers raised in Wales, both keen followers of sport in general and for one at least, rugby in particular, today’s showdown has been looked forward to more keenly than ever.

This will be the first time any of us have seen the All Blacks live. Television coverage of most major sporting occasions is so comprehensive these days that some would argue that one gets a better feel for what is unfolding on the field of play simply by sitting in front of the screen.

I cannot agree. There is nothing like being at a packed Millennium Stadium – where the noise generated by the crowd at times seems to assume physical form.

Last year, we attended the Wales v South Africa Autumn international, a match of such bruising intensity it almost hurt just to watch the collisions between players, an occasion where every coming together gave cause for spectators to collectively flinch.

I expect more of the same from 5.30pm today, with the traditional haka an added bonus.

As many people will know, it can take a lot to jolt a teenager out of themselves, but when we informed our 18-year-old back in August that tickets had been procured, the look of disbelief, followed by the smile of joy as the prospect began to sink in, was wonderful to behold.

Since then, I know he will have been watching the All Blacks’ Rugby Championship matches against South Africa, Australia and Argentina with special interest, to make sure he is up to speed with how the established stars are performing, and who are the newcomers to get excited about.

An avid consumer of Super 14 matches too, he has facts and figures at his fingertips, ready to answer any question his younger brother – like me, with a preference for football – and I might have about an All Blacks’ back-story.

Today of course, there will be no Dan Carter, the outside half having been left out of today’s squad after returning to the international fray against Scotland last weekend following an extended absence.

That would normally be a cause for frustration and no little regret as it is not every day such a sporting giant graces Welsh rugby’s premier stage.

But there is so much else to look forward to. Flanker Richie McCaw – perhaps the greatest rugby player ever to step onto the turf – will captain his country for the 100th time.

It is worth dwelling on that statistic. Precious few team sportsmen achieve the goal of playing for their country 100 times, let alone leading their fellows into the fray. And to do it whilst maintaining such a consistently high level of performance on such demanding occasions is remarkable.

There was much fanfare that greeted Brian O’Driscoll’s bowing out of the international spotlight earlier this year, and claims for him being ‘the greatest’ rang long and loud then.

McCaw is another giant of the game, and at 33 the clock is ticking on his time at the top of the game.

After next year’s World Cup in England, he may well be gone from the scene, so his appearance in Cardiff today is an occasion to savour. And then there is the magic of Sonny Bill Williams, Julian Savea, Ben Smith, Conrad Smith, Kieran Read – need I go on? – to contemplate.

I haven’t mentioned Wales much yet, but they are not forgotten in the build-up to this match either.

True, they haven’t fired yet, but any team with the likes of Halfpenny, Cuthbert, Jon Davies, Roberts, North, Lydiate, Warburton and Faletau in its ranks has to come good sometime, right? Right. And while there is the faintest chance that time might be today, there is every reason, every right, to get excited. I am. My kids are. Bring it on.