Masterton accountant Jason Osborne might not have been on the money in predicting Saturday’s All Blacks performance against France, but his despair turned to delight when he learned he’d won six tickets to this weekend’s second test.

A partner in the Lansdowne-based practice Osborne Read, Jason is a stalwart of Jimungo Virtual Rugby on social networking site Jimungo, having played the game since it first launched in 2001.

Jason’s name was picked from more than 37,000 rugby fans who started playing Jimungo Virtual Rugby International which began just a week ago.

“I was astonished when I got the call from Jimungo,” he said. “I’ve been juggling ever since, weighing up who I’ll take with me. My partner Fiona and my step-children, Holly (9) and Paige (7) are coming, but I’ve yet to decide on who gets the other two tickets! “

Jason won’t be short of offers of company – a die-hard rugby fan, he’s played club rugby for Greytown and Gladstone over the years and has many sporting connections. These days he’s taken to soccer, playing for a Carterton team called the Skulls, made up – he says, of ‘broken down old rugby players.’

Jason’s prediction was for the All Blacks to win by 12 points or less last Saturday. Not surprisingly, only 2.1% of Jimungo players picked France to win.  Despite the result, Jason’s sticking to the same pick for the Saturday’s second test at the Cake Tin.

The last time he went to an international rugby game was about 10 years ago to see the All Blacks play South Africa at Athletic Park

“We’ve been promising the girls that we’d go to the Cake Tin to see some rugby one day, so they’re chuffed that we’re finally doing it,” he said.

A further six tickets are up for grabs this week for the All Blacks versus Italy match on June 27 in Christchurch.  The Jimungo Virtual Rugby game expanded last week into international games, including the Iveco Series against France and Italy, and the Investec Tri-Nations rugby tournament.

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Posted Fri, Jun 19 2009 1:53 p.m. by Jim