The longest surviving rep by a narrow Street
Sports columnist and former sports editor based in Manawatū
In his era, rugby players were virtual midgets compared with today’s giants. Hewas a breakaway, which we know today is a flanker, and he weighed only 12 stone 10lbs (81kg). Part of his light weight he put down to being a child of the Great Depressionwhen meatwas often unaffordable.
Half of the Wellington team he played were All Blacks he knew from his time at Petone, where he was a Wellington junior rep, but even they weren’t big boys.
His brother Brian played for Petone for years alongside All Blacks prop Ken Gray.
Maurice rememberedWellington rep Jackie Dougan at Petone was barely 11 stone (70kg) and ‘‘theywould probably have killed him’’ today.
‘‘It’s a very brutal game now and they can all run so fast,’’ Street said.
The coaching in his timewas all ‘‘dribble and chase’’ and his best coach was former All Black Jack Finlay at Feilding, where Street was in the 1951 team that shared the Manawatū championship with Old Boys.
He remembered breakawayswere coached to be almost defensive players, running behind the backs who could kick out on the full from anywhere. Many now deride today’s rugby for being crash and bash, but the endless lineouts of yesteryear were kick and clap, equally sleep-inducing.
Street was an electrician who worked for Dewe Electrical Company in Feilding. He went on to work at the Waipa Sawmill in Rotorua and played for Rotorua club Kahukura. He was in the Rotorua Peace Cup subunion team alongside All Black second five-eighth Bill Gray, who briefly coached
Susan Devoy at squash in the early 1980s.
When Street arrived in Rotorua, he recalled how coaches had to drag guys out of the pub on Saturday afternoons to play, whereas rugby was a religion at Petone and Feilding.
He eventually went out on his own account as an electrician in Rotorua and did well enough to retire in his mid-50s to indulge in trout fishing and baching at Maketu. He credits ‘‘pills and genes’’ for getting him through to his 90s, and a cardiac pacemaker that was fitted 11 years ago.
In 1919, we profiled 1949 Manawatū rep Noni Sandilands as being a candidate for the oldest survivor. He turns 94 next week, amonth younger than Street, and both men played for Feilding under Finlay.
Sandilands is still on the farm out back of Colyton and stays active. After some recent panelbeating at Palmerston North Hospital, he said this week hewould soon be back mowing his lawns and cutting his hedges.
His son no longer lets him in the cattle-yards where Noni admits he is ‘‘just amenace’’ when it comes to rubbing shoulders with big bullocks.
Another Manawatū long survivor is Theo Kipa, born in July 1928 and three months younger than Street. Kipa lives in Feilding and is the longest surviving Māori All Black. He played for Manawatū in 1955 as a halfbackfirst-five-eighth out of the Kia Toa club.
Howden’s time is nigh Feilding and Manawatū flanker TK Howden, at only 21, must not be far from being a frontliner for the Hurricanes.
He played a full game against the Reds lastweekend when Reed Prinsep withdrew latewith injury and Howden was their main man in the lineouts.
His name was continuallymentioned by the commentators. His stats for the game were impressive in that he also had seven runs and made 20 tackles.
At one stage he tackled a Queensland player who then got up and went again and Howden dropped him a second time.
It must be frustrating for Manawatū loose forward Brayden Iose, who has been sidelinedwatching Kia Toa, and for fullback-first Ruben Love, who was watching Varsity on Saturday.
At least the human dynamo, No 8 Tyler Laubscher, displayed his wares for Varsity last Saturday after a year’s wait.
But for their injuries, Iose and Lovewould have been playing for the Hurricanes in Australia.
The story goes that Laubscher’s Hurricanes coach Jason Holland has never seen Laubscher play live. Fingers crossed thatwon’t be far away.
He has played only seven games for the Turbos and all have been at full noise.
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