Hansen anoints 1967 All Blacks team the greatest
Those who have gone before motivate as much, if not more, than the records they seek to break.
In this case, the esteemed company of the late Sir Fred Allen and Sir Brian Lochore’s 1967 All Blacks provide Steve Hansen’s modernage glory hunters with inspiration this week.
So much of the fabric of the All Blacks – what makes them tick; their whole mantra – is based around leaving the jersey in a better place.
Each player, no matter how big their profile, has it drummed into them they are mere custodians; there to better the on-field legacy.
The ’67 team did more than most to enhance New Zealand’s vaunted rugby reputation, and rich history, by going unbeaten in 17 matches including four tests on their tour of Britain, France and Canada, a hastily-arranged assignment in the wake of the New Zealand Rugby Union’s refusal to agree to South Africa’s request to leave Maori and Pacific Islanders out of the side.
Guided by Allen, captained by Lochore, that team featured legendary figures; Kel Tremain, Waka Nathan, the Meads brothers, Colin and Stan, Ian Kirkpatrick, Ken Gray, Sid Going, Chris Laidlaw, Fergie McCormick and Earle Kirton among them. Together they played royal rugby, sweeping all before them. Only an outbreak of foot and mouth disease in England robbed them of the chance for a maiden gram slam, with the Irish test being abandoned.
Hansen was just eight at the time but the All Blacks coach is well aware of the standing the ’67 outfit continue to be held in. The chance to surpass their achievements, and do what no team has done by notching a world record 18 test wins over tier one opposition against the Wallabies at Eden Park tomorrow, is therefore something he appreciates the magnitude of.
‘‘I always thought that ’67 team was probably the greatest to play for the All Blacks, and there have been some great ones,’’ Hansen said.
‘‘I don’t think you can really compare eras because the game is different but we’ve had some great history and some great successes and that’s one of the things that drives us – our history – so it’s important to acknowledge that.
‘‘The one thing we understand in this group is you don’t own the jersey.’’
One of the main reasons Hansen anoints the ’67 side the greatest is the way they played the game, and the ability of their forwards to interplay with backs.
‘‘If you think back to some of those players I think they’d suit playing Super Rugby today. You think about some of the loose forwards; the big locks. That team had forwards who could carry the ball right up into the front-row. They’re probably the team that said to New Zealand rugby, ‘hey this is not a bad way to play’.
‘‘Whenever teams have forwards who carry the ball constructively and pass and catch they’re a very good team. When we’ve had periods where we haven’t been so successful our skill level in the forward pack probably hasn’t been as high as some of the others.
‘‘That team particularly had some very good ball players and they were great athletes. And they were well coached by probably our best ever coach.’’
Sound familiar? From Brodie Retallick to Kieran Read and Dane Coles, Hansen’s forward pack sure can play with the ball. It’s given them a point of difference, and allowed the team to gel irrespective of the numbers on their backs. The confidence they embrace and their offloading skills are second to none.
Hansen is humbled he and his team are compared to such towering predecessors. But if they knock off this record, on the back of successive World Cup triumphs, and make good on their desire to walk towards the challenge rather than shy away from it as they’ve done previously, few would deny they deserve to walk among those giants of the game.
To get to where you’re going you must first appreciate where you came from.
This team grasps that notion, and is determined to etch their own place in history.