World of Boxing and Rugby Union
Blindside Flanker
3. Ian Kirkpatrick
A product of an era in which countries played fewer Tests, Ian Kirkpatrick's career stats make for impressive reading and underline his status as one of New Zealand's finest ever forwards.
After making his name as a dynamic flanker in Auckland, Kirkpatrick joined Poverty Bay as a 20-year-old in 1966. He lined out for a combined Poverty Bay-East Coast side against the British & Irish Lions later that year before moving on to Canterbury in 1967.
Kirkpatrick's career was on the rise but his inclusion in the All Blacks squad for that year's tour of Great Britain and France still came as a quite a surprise. However, coach Fred Allen's faith in the youngster was quickly justified, with Kirkpatrick scoring a try in his first start, against Les Bleus. Kirkpatrick was only 21 but already was playing with skill and maturity. He then missed the following week's game against Scotland, meaning he was made to wait until the following year for his second appearance for the Kiwis, against Australia. However, after being sprung from the bench for the game against the Wallabies, he helped himself to a hat-trick which really made New Zealand fans sit up and take notice.
From that game on, Kirkpatrick was one of the first names on the New Zealand team sheet. Indeed, between June 1968 and August 1977, he did not miss a single game for the All Blacks. During that time, he featured in two series against the Lions. The 1971 series went the way of the tourists, but the Kiwis gained revenge six years later.
He scored 16 test tries, which was the New Zealand record until eclipsed by Stu Wilson in 1983. In 1972, with Colin Meads affected by injuries and others such as Brian Lochore retired, he became the All Black captain. He held the post for two seasons, including the stormy tour of Britain and France in 1972-73, and there was a perception despite his considerable dignity that the captaincy did not sit easily with him. He was thus displaced in the role in 1974 by Andy Leslie, but continued to be one of the All Blacks' foremost players..
He was in colossal form on the 1974 tour of Australia and again later that year in Ireland, Wales and against the Barbarains. In the win against Wales he scored the winning try but in a curious decision that match was not given official test status.
There were numerous other distinctions for Kirkpatrick. He scored 115 tries in his 289 first class games, becoming one of the few forwards to reach the century. He was also the only man to have captained both islands: the South in 1969 in his last season with the Canterbury and then the North (in 1972-73) when he had returned home to Poverty Bay.
Surprisingly, the All Blacks' final game against the Lions in 1977, in Auckland, was to be his last Test appearance. He had earned 39 caps for his country, nine of which came as captain, and scored 16 tries, a record which stood until 1983.
However, his international career had been ended rather ignominiously as he was only told of his omission from the New Zealand squad for the end-of-year tour of France by his brother Colin on the Poverty Bay team bus. Given that he had learned of his loss of the All Black captaincy three years previously in a similar manner, it seemed a shoddy way for such a great servant of New Zealand rugby to be treated.
One of the true greats of world rugby who was instrumental in developing the role of the number 6 jersey.