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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 2 December 1972
Click to show Satellite TV first brings an offshore All Black game into NZ homes!
This was the breakthrough day - NZ beat Wales 19-16 in Cardiff. There's been live TV coverage of every All Black test since.
A-Z of Rugby
Click to show GALLAHER, DAVE
GALLAHER, DAVE
Auckland and New Zealand
6 internationals for New Zealand 1903–06
The captain of the first All Blacks team in 1905–06 and a controversial player in the eyes of some British writers of the time. Gallaher (originally spelled Gallagher) was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and brought to New Zealand by his parents as a young boy.
He served in the Boer War for the Sixth Contingent from New Zealand.
Because of the absence of international fixtures and Gallaher’s period of military service, he did not play his first test match until he was 28. Originally a hooker, he later became a ‘rover’ or wing forward, the position New Zealand created by packing down only seven men in each scrum.
Gallaher’s play in the wing forward position earned him enormous criticism while on tour in Britain in 1905–06. There were those who labeled him unsporting, and even a cheat. His wing forward style of waiting off scrums, mauls and rucks, either to defend attacks on his own halfback or disrupt the opposition’s man, was not at all appreciated by opposition teams, who had no apparent counter. Several referees penalised him heavily.
As a leader Gallaher was brilliant. He was the first rugby captain to ‘psyche’ his team up. On match days he would ask each man to spend an hour on his own to ‘rest and contemplate the game ahead’. He insisted his team be totally disciplined and pay attention to detail, both on and off the field, much in the manner of professional teams of today.
The 1905 New Zealand team was the first team to use liniment as a playing aid, and to chew gum (not at all advisable these days). It had code names for team moves, and used extra men in back moves, skip passes, decoys and other ruses not before seen in Britain. All of these innovations were devised and encouraged by Gallaher. His team, growing to believe totally in his leadership style, soon built up a formidable record. Only the controversial loss to Wales prevented the All Blacks from having an unbeaten tour record from 35 games.
Gallaher retired at the conclusion of the tour and became a provincial and, later, All Black selector. Tragically he lost his life in Belgium in 1917, during World War I.
Since 1922 the senior club championship in Auckland has been played for the Gallaher Shield, in commemoration of one of its greatest rugby sons. In 2011 a statue of him was unveiled at Auckland's rugby headquarters at Eden Park.
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?
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