A while ago I came upon a gem of a book in a second hand bookstore here in NZ. The book is about the 1970 All Black tour to South Africa entitled “Rugby and be Dammed” written by G.R. David. What made the book so unique and interesting, for me, is the fact that it provides a New Zealand perspective on the whole tour and subsequently contains information that I as a South African have not heard or read before. David was a sport journalist for the “Evening Post” a newspaper in NZ and was the official New Zealand journalist on the tour. A brief description of each game are provided in the book, including the preparation for the various matches as well as quite insigtfull after match perceptions by the touring party.
Since discovering and reading this book I have bought three more books on the 1970 rugby tour, written by New Zealand journalists and sport writers.
My plan is to post on a weekly basis some interesting pieces on the respective tour matches here on my blog, combining information from at least four sources. This will coincide with posts on the 1965 tour. In 1970 I was 8 years old and my hope is that some of the older generation rugby supporters in South Africa -who attended or listened to these matches- will pitch in and share their memories with us.
Gabriel David begins his book with the following statement:
“How can you evaluate a rugby tour that was as much a failure as it was certainly a success? The All Blacks have rewritten the record books in South Africa but for one and that was winning the series. How can you make a fair and honest appraisal and reach a conclusion about a side that won every provincial match yet still managed to lose the series 1-3“
He stresses the fact that no ambiguity should exist that NZ has sent their best 30 players on tour. The team was without doubt the best (of all possible New Zealand rugby sides) which toured South Africa up to that that stage. This was a side that has been unbeaten for 17 consecutive tests stretching over 5 years since the fourth test against the 1965 Springbok team.
He then asked the question:
“How could such a great touring side lose 1-3 in a series against a Springbok team that would never rate as the best New Zealand opposition has faced in the last 5 years?“
David then explains what he think were the reason(s) for the series loss. The first issue he addresses is injuries to key players and arising from that shocking team selection decisions by the New Zealand selectors. He specifically refers to the omission of Wayne Cottrell after the lost in the first test and express the opinion that the selectors went a little panicky after the third test when they omitted experienced players like AJ Wyllie, MJ Dick and Fergie McCormick.
Another major reason for the series loss in his opinion was the fact that the All Black had it too easily in the tour matches. He put it as follows:
“They had it too easy in most of the games and there was a relaxation in the basic skills. Tackling became a lost art because the tourists were seldom called on to set up defensive screens. They were suffering from delusions of grandeur. They were winning so handsomely that they disregarded the fundamentals of the game and indulged in fancy patterns that had too many loose threads. “
According to him, the perception of many South African, that there is depth in Springbokrugby is wrong and he goes on to state that he believes that a large gap exists between national and provincial rugby in South Africa.
Provincial rugby in SA is bad, negative and unimaginative so much so that the All Blacks had little trouble to completely destroy virtually all the provincial sides they played on tour. These provincial teams have too easily and quickly complained about so-called foil and dirty tactics and especially about the All Blacks standard practice to step on or ruck obstructing opposition players away at the break downs.
He concludes that Springbok side consists of a “team of oldies’ and that South Africa should be concerned (rather than euphoric) about the state of their rugby and their lack of depth in certain positions.
I think in SA few would have agreed with him in 1970 but in 1972 the correctness of his observation came true when a Springbok side full of new faces lost against John Pullin’s England team. And two years later it was an absolute nightmare when the Lions of 1974 toured unbeaten through South Africa not losing a single match on top of winning the first three test matches and drawing the last one.
The 1970 All Black touring side to South Africa
Interesting read. I look forward to your future blogs.
I remember this well. I was 9 years old and attended that first test with my dad and brother. We knew the names of all the players of both teams, I still do. Great post. Looking forward to more. Will forward this to my dad as well.
From your post it sounds as if Wayne Cotterill was dropped. That is not how I remember it. Joggie Jansen tackled him in that first test, he was carried off and I thought he never played rugby again following that mother of all tackles?
Perhaps a little similar to what happened to the Lions last year. With the Boks out of the provincial teams, the Lions had it pretty easy in the midweek games, but then had to up the ante against the National side on the Saturdays …
It definitely was the Joggie Jansen tackle,,,,,and what a tackle it was. Stunning.
Cottrell was down for a while after the Jansen tackle but he got up and continued to play.
He was however never the same again -during the series- after that tackle. He did play again on tour in quite a few matches but they started moving him around in the back line (playing him in different positions) which did not help his confidence and form.
He did not play in any of the other three test matches.
See also my response to Dean. He did play agin in tour matches but not in any of the other test matches. He got up from the tackle but was just a shadow for the rest of the first test.
I am quite impressed with your rugby experiences (in terms of attending test matches and general knowledge).
Interesting comment regarding the Lions series last year.
In 1970 the Springboks did play in the midweek games for their provinces which I found quite remarkable.
Tiny Neethling, Gert Muller en Ian McCallum for instance played the saturday after the 2nd test for Western Province against the AB.
I think one of the reasons why they found the provincial rugby so useless was because they played agianst quite a few made up teams like a Pual Roos XV, South African country side and tradisionally weak teams in rural south africa like South western districts, North wes cape, Nort-east cape, Border and even Rhodesia and South west africa.
It is a passion and always has been. So I have been spreading an urban legend (lie) all my life that Jansen tackled Cottrel out of rugby forever. Well, if he was never the same again, it is possibly a half truth.
Interesting name Darwinia. Is it an indication that you have a positive regard towards Charles Darwin and his theories or is their another reason for the name? Not that I have anything against darwin, in fact I think he was great.
WOW,what a find ,and I mean your blog ,firstly.I am of your age ,so yes ,this would be a discovery for me as well.Please include me ,Im rugby mad !
so very true ,I enjoy your comments just as much
Yes, a rugby fan and a Darwin fan. Strangely, the two are not mutually exclusive!
Great post McLook. Most of us bloggers are rugby followers and it’s great to read about another countries perceptions. What I find interesting is that a number of the players in that 1970 touring team were beaten again in the 1976 NZ tour. SA won that series 3-1. So the idea of SA not having depth seems an unfounded perception. However, that tour created major issues, as 26 African countries withdrew from the 1976 Montreal Olympics, in protest of NZ being allowed at the Olympics and having sporting ties with SA. The touring NZ team was apparently not sanctioned by the NZ rugby association. Would be interested in your comments on that. But I must say it was great to watch the tests during the 1976 tour, Brian Williams was quite awesome, along with players like Sid Going, Grant Batty and Ian Kirkpatrick. Can’t remember if Colin Meads and Brian Lochore were in that 1976 touring party (I’m sure someone will enlighten me). Keep the posts coming, good to read.
Yes that tackle won the series for the boks in my opinion. I remember listening to it on the radio. It seems the ABs never recovered from the shock.
Darwinia, you gave away your age there, maar moenie worry nie, ek is nog hels ouer as jy en kan jou nog my kind noem as ek wil!
Highlander, from what I’ve read regarding the 76 tour it seems that the tour was supported by the NZ goverment and Muldoon the prime minister in particular and sanctioned by the NZRU.
You might be thinking about the Caviliers or the 1984 NZ side who toured to SA.
The biokot against the 76 Olympic games was certainly a demonstration of power by the opposers of apartheid and took both NZ and SA goverments and societies by surprise.
At was at that stage I think when people in both countries became aware that this is serious.
The demonstrations started of in 65 and become increasingly worse and better organised. In 77 we had the soweto riads in SA and that was another confirmation for us in SA that this is not going to go away.
The 76 series was great (and I plan to discuss that as well some time in the future) but it was never as intense and as spectacular as the 1970 tour.
The 70 tour was immense for SA almost as big as the 1956 series for NZ. It was the 70 series won that kept SA believing; in our ability to won the world cup.
Lochore and Meads did not play in 76 but Going, Kirkpatrick, Sutherland and Brayn Williams did.