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Sir Colin Meads Turns 80 years old in 2016; born 3rd June 1936 - and still going strong.
My favourite picture of Meads in action. After he was kicked in the head v France in Paris in 1967, he returned to the field with bandaged head to get the 'baaaastard' who did it!
2 June 2016
It still reads very proudly; Meads played for his country over a span of 15 seasons; No one played longer. His full record of first-class rugby is listed here.
MEADS, Colin Earl born 3.6.1936 in Cambridge.
(Only Club; Waitete, Te Kuiti, New Zealand) Provincial games for King Country 1955(2)-56(6)-57(6)-58(9)-59(6)-60-61(7)-62(9)-63(10)-64(9)-65(10)-66(11)-67(11)-68(9)-69(10)-70-71(8)-72(14), Total for King Country 139 games, 31 tries, 1dropped goal, 99points;
For Combined Wanganui-King Country 1956(3)-65-66(2)-71, 3t; King Country-Counties 1959(2); Centurions Club 1956-57-58-61-70, 3t; WJ Whineray’s XV 1959-66, 1t; Barbarians Club (NZ) 1973(2); Harlequins Club (NZ) 1974; South African 75th Jubilee XV (in SA) 1964(3), 2t; NZRFU President’s XV 1973 (v NZ); NZRFU Invitation XV 1973 (v NZ); President’s Overseas XV (in England) 1971(3); Tongan Invitation XV (in Tonga) 1973(2), 2t; North Is Colts 1955; NZ Colts (U21) 1955(8), 3t; NZ Juniors Trial 1957; NZ Juniors (U23) 1958(10), 3t; Black XV 1957; North Is XV 1956; North Island 1956-57-58-59-62-63-65-66-67-68-69-71, 12g, 1t; NZ Trials 1956-57(2)-58-59-60(2)-62-63(4)-65-66-67(2)-68-69-70(2)-71(2), 22g, 4t; Rest of NZ 1956; A New Zealand XV 1958-65-66;
Full NEW ZEALAND games 1957(10)-58(3)-59(3)-60(23)-61(3)-62(8)-63(26)-64(3)-65(4)-66(4)-67(12)-68(13)-69(2)-70(15)-71(4), 133g (55 tests, 7t), 28t, 1c, 86pts. Career Match total of first class games: 361g, 81t, 1c, 1dg, 253pts.
A loose forward/lock. educated Te Kuiti Primary School and Te Kuiti High School,1st Played HS 1st XV 1950. A Farmer all his working life. King Country coach 1976-81. NZ selector 1986; NZRFU councillor 1992-96, Made NZRFU life member 2007. Awarded NZRU award of the Steinlager Salver 1999 for outstanding service to rugby. Inducted into International Rugby Hall of Fame 1997. In 1999 was voted the NZ rugby Player of the Century. In 2002 the NZRU introduced the Meads Cup for competition among the Heartland unions. Distinguished Companion of the NZ Order of Merit (DCNZM) 2000; Member of the British Empire (MBE) 1971. Knighted by Queen Elizabeth II 2009.
A biography Colin Meads – All Black, by Alex Veysey, was published 1974 and became a best seller. Another biography Meads by Brian Turner was published 2002. A third book the A-Z of Meads by Keith Quinn was published in 2010. A Brother of Stan, the 1961-66 All Black. A cousin of Brian and Sam who both played first class rugby. And father of Glynn who was an All Black trialist who played 113 games for King Country.
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Every day there is Rugby History 6 September 1986
Click to show His 18 seconds as a test player happened on this day!
Marty Berry came on v Australia at Eden Park in a losing Bledisloe Cup game for just 18 seconds. But his other midweek games for the ABs spread over 7 seasons.
A-Z of Rugby
Click to show JEFFREY, JOHN
JEFFREY, JOHN
Newport and Wales
1 international for Wales 1967
A player who is an example from rugby that because of one mistake made in one game a stigma can be attached to a name throughout a playing career.
John Jeffrey was a 22-year-old student who, in 1967, was selected for the first time to play for Wales in an important game against New Zealand.Sadly for Jeffrey he made a mistake. Early in the second half of a tension-filled game the All Blacks took a shot at goal into a howling Cardiff wind. As the kick came down short of the posts, young Jeffrey kept his appointment with destiny. He caught the ball then flung an erratic pass over his head as the All Black tacklers stormed down on him. The ball flew to open ground and a New Zealander, Bill Davis, following up quickly, dived on it to score.
Wales lost the game 6–13 and the Welsh selectors knew who to make their scapegoat. They dropped Jeffrey from their team and he was never asked to play for Wales in an international again.
Years later there were claims that Jeffrey’s play as a No. 8 was never realistically assessed; many lesser players were given better chances to prove themselves in the international arena. But it is not widely remembered that Jeffrey toured Argentina with the Welsh team in 1968. He also played for the Barbarians on tour in South Africa in 1969 and for them against South Africa at Cardiff in January 1970.
Jeffrey’s inclusion here in this listing is, perhaps, a reminder that the vagaries of selectorial whim and hasty judgments both on and off the field can make or break a rugby player, no matter how good he might be.
10 Questions to well known sporting people
Today's KQ Rugby Quiz
In the decade from the 1960s through to the fourth test of 1970 the All Blacks played exactly 100 test matches. What % did they win?
What do you think?
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