User:MacRusgail/Rugby union and apartheid

South Africa remained a member of the International Rugby Board throughout the apartheid era. Halt All Racist Tours was established in New Zealand in 1969 to oppose continued tours to and from South Africa. Though contacts were restricted after the Gleneagles Agreement in 1977, there were controversial tours in 1980 by the British Lions and by France, in 1981 by Ireland, and in 1984 by England. South Africa toured New Zealand in 1981. South Africa were excluded from the first two Rugby World Cups, in 1987 and 1991.

No other issue, political or otherwise has divided the rugby community so much, at least not since the great schism with rugby league over professionalism. While many rugby fans and commentators would try and body swerve politics, at least politics of a certain kind, the apartheid issue brought it right into the heart of the game, in a very direct, and often physical way.

South Africa remained a member of the International Rugby Board throughout the apartheid era. Halt All Racist Tours was established in New Zealand in 1969 to oppose continued tours to and from South Africa. Though contacts were restricted after the Gleneagles Agreement in 1977, there were controversial tours in 1980 by the British Lions and by France, in 1981 by Ireland, and in 1984 by England. South Africa toured New Zealand in 1981. South Africa were excluded from the first two Rugby World Cups, in 1987 and 1991.

The famous Scottish rugby commentator, Bill McLaren, devotes an entire chapter to the subject in his autobiography, Talking of Rugby, called "Barred from the International Feast". Like many other rugby fans, he expresses contempt for South Africa's "unacceptable racist policy", but adds "it has been a disgrace that a world Rugby Union power has been eliminated from world competition for all those years." McLaren had had personal experience of some of the demonstrations and believed that:

"...some of the actions adopted by those aiming to stop tours were despicable.

"Bette [Bill McLaren's wife] and I were referred to as 'racist scum' on our way down to Mansfield Park to see the South African Barbarians play in 1979 - a tour party comprising equal numbers of coloureds, blacks and whites. That, said the protesters, was just window dressing. When the Springboks last toured the UK, I was asked to provide commentary on their match against the Midland Counties (East) at Welford Road, Leicester. I remember having to walk the gauntlet up a narrow channel lined on each side by policemen holding back the mob. Those policemen were covered in spittle, had hats knocked off, were kicked in places where no man should be kicked, and yet took it all with stoic calm. I couldn't believe that people in the British Isles would behaved in that manner.... Constant noise outside the South Africans' hotels to try and prevent them sleeping was another unbelievable ploy that sickened decent people."

Ian Robertson, documented how the Springboks' position slowly deteriorated over the decades, but suggested that the fault lay outwith the rugby fraternity:

"The Springboks had fulfilled all of their touring commitments through the Fifties and Sixties but the oppressive, claustrophobic political pressures overwhelmed them during the Seventies. They have not been able to play in Britain, Ireland, France or AUstralia since 1974, and their only major tour abroad in the last ten years to New Zealand in 1981, was full of controversy, and mass demonstrations. There is no doubt that giant steps have been taken to make Rugby totally integrated in South Africa in recent years, and their supporters feel that no sooner have they fulfilled the conditions required of them by world opinion than the goalposts are moved.

"Their opponents, who are against having any sporting links with a country which practises apartheid, accept that sport in South Africa has become increasingly integrated but claim it is impossible to have normal sport in an abnormal society."

Governing bodies

Like most other institutions in South Africa, the South African rugby bodies were divided along racial lines:

• The South African Rugby Board (SARB) for whites,
• The South African Rugby Federation (SARF) for coloureds.
• The South African Rugby Association (SARA) for blacks.

There was also the South African Rugby Union (SARU), which was a non-racial body, with a considerable membership. However, only the SARB had any say in international tours, and they alone chose the national team.

At the end of the 1970s, the SARB took over the SARF and SARA, but Abdul Abbas, leader of SARU refused to co-operate with the new board until the game was integrated at club level and certain political laws scrapped.

In September 1981, South Africa was due to play the Mid-West in Chicago. To avoid protestors, they drove 77 miles to [{Racine]] and played in front of 247 spectators, winning 46-12. By the time they returned to Chicago, none of the spectators knew that thye game had happened.

1950s

In April 2010 it was revealed by Muru Walters that in 1956 Ernest Corbett, Minister of Māori Affairs, had told the Māori All Blacks to deliberately lose to the Springboks "for the future of rugby". The Māori team lost 37-0. This was followed by Walters calling for the government to apologise for the way it treated Māori rugby players.

1960s

Foreign complaints about South Africa's bigoted sports brought more isolation. In 1960, Verwoerd barred a Māori rugby player from touring South Africa with the All Blacks, and the tour was cancelled. New Zealand made a decision not to convey an authorised rugby team to South Africa again.

B. J. Vorster took Verwoerd's place as PM in 1966 and declared that South Africa would no longer dictate to other countries what their teams should look like. Although this reopened the gate for sporting meets, it did not signal the end of South Africa's racist sporting policies. In 1968, Vorster went against his policy by refusing to permit Basil D'Oliveira, a Coloured South African-born cricketer, to join the English cricket team on its tour to South Africa. Vorster said that the side had been chosen only to prove a point, and not on merit. After protests, however, "Dolly" was eventually included in the team. Protests against certain tours brought about the cancellation of a number of other visits, like that of an England rugby team in 1969/70.

Ian Robertson describes the scene at Murrayfield in Edinburgh in 1969:

"There was a huge police presence at the ground, with the terraces behind both sets of goalposts reserved exclusively for officers of the law with standing spectators resticted to just the East Terrace."

1970s

Statue of Danie Craven in Stellenbosch.

In February, 1977, Danie Craven flew to London to plead for South African rugby's reintegration into the international scene, and to make a last ditch atttempt to save the Springboks' scheduled tour of the British Isles in 1978, and the British and Irish Lions tour of South Africa in 1980.

"For the first time I no longer have to circumvent questions, I can at long last look everybody in the face. It is really a disgrace that we in South Africa have tolerated putting the Blacks and Coloured in a place, perhaps the worst place imaginable in our rugby grounds. We are now closing a book and entering a new era. South Africa will never be the same again. You know we must make changes towards a multi-racial deal not to placate or pander to overseas opinion but because it is the right and just thing."

However, some, such as Chris Laidlaw, later a Labour MP in New Zealand, had had enough, and believed that rugby's failure to engage with the issue properly was harming the sport:

"Times have changed, however. Youth has begun to write its own rules and by the 1970s the conventions of the rugby community had begun to look a little creaky, its formalities became a bore. The cleavage was brought into sharp relief by the tragic failure of rugby to come to grips with the problem of racism in Southern Africa. The emerging reputation of the rugby player throughout the Anglo-Saxon world as an outdated, boorish oaf - a reputation derived as much from the insensitivities of the rugby community as from the intolerance of the younger generation - was given a new dimension by the quarrels over apartheid in sport. Rightly or wrongly, it has dealt the image of rugby a vicious blow, one from which it may never really recover. South Africa has now been exposed for what it really is, a malignant cancer in the corpus of rugby which has long called for the surgeon's knife. Yet the rugby community - most notably in New Zealand - still remains fatally hesistant when it comes to acting as doctor."

1980s

The Soviet Union supposedly turned down its invitation to the 1987 Rugby World Cup, because of its distaste for the apartheid regime of South Africa. However, South Africa was not invited in the end. While the Great Soviet Encyclopedia states that rugby is popular in Great Britain, New Zealand, France, Romania and Australia, it tellingly makes no mention of South Africa. Chris Thau says that France approached the USSR before 1987 on the issue, and that the Soviets said that they would be happy to participate if South Africa was not invited. In the end, South Africa was not invited, but the USSR did not attend either. It has been said that:

"No nation outside the Third World did more than the USSR to oppose apartheid in sport and have South Africa banned from world sports forums and arenas."

The Soviets leaned on other nations heavily:

"Over the years, Ferasse has resisted Eastern Bloc pressure to break with South Africa. At one point Moscow threatened to set up a rival Federation, but the Rumanians, with whom the French have long had good relationships, stood by France. Moscow tried again later by threatening to call off the France v. USSR match in Toulouse in November 1978. Once again Ferasse held firm and the Russians went to France, where they were beaten 29-7"

In September 1981, South Africa was due to play the Mid-West in Chicago. To avoid protestors, they drove 77 miles to [{Racine]] and played in front of 247 spectators, winning 46-12. By the time they returned to Chicago, none of the spectators knew that thye game had happened.

South Africa in New Zealand, 1981, the "Barbed Wire Tour"

The 1981 Springboks tour of New Zealand was compromised by demonstrations, and the tourists had to be kept under strict security throughout their visit.

Two games had to be cancelled. The game at Hamilton in the first week of the tour saw 200 protestors rip down a chain fence, sprinkle tacks all over the pitch and then staged a sit-in on the half way line. At the time, a crowd of 25,000 was watching them playing Waikato. Subsequent matches saw the arrival of barbed wire, and police with batons. The match against South Canterbury at Timaru was cancelled because the authorities thought that they would not be able to control the demonstrations there.

The final test of the tour was buzzed by a Cessna aircraft - some in fact nicknamed it the "Crazy Biggles Test". The plane continually strafed the pitch, and dropped flour bombs, flares and leaflets. All-Black prop Gary Knight was temporarily stunned by a flour bomb.

It was a tight game, with Allan Hewson, the New Zealand full-back kicking a long range penalty to win the game 25-22. As Rod Chester and Nev McMillan described the scene:

"There will probably never be another Test match like this. The tension generated by the closeness and importance of the game, combined with the efforts of the protestors inside, outside and above the ground, made for an exhilarating and yet terrifying afternoon."

See also

• British and Irish Lions
• Halt All Racist Tours
• New Zealand Cavaliers
• South American Jaguars
• 1968 Olympics Black Power salute
• Peter McGregor

References

• Bath, Richard (ed.) The Complete Book of Rugby (Seven Oaks Ltd, 1997 ISBN 1 86200 013 3)
• ed. Brown, Archie; Kaser, Michael & Smith, Gerald S. (ed.s) The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Russia and the former Soviet Union, (2nd Ed., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, England 1994; ISBN 0 521 355931)
• Cotton, Fran (Ed.) The Book of Rugby Disasters & Bizarre Records. (Compiled by Chris Rhys, Century Publishing, London, 1984). ISBN 0-7126-0911-3
• Griffiths, John Rugby's Strangest Matches: Extraordinary but true stories from over a century of rugby (Past Times/Robson Books, England; ISBN 1-86105-334-1)
• Hopkins, John (ed) Rugby (1979 ISBN 0 304 30299 6)
  • Laidlaw, Chris From Twickers with Love: Rugby's Universal Message in Hopkins, John (ed) Rugby (1979 ISBN 0 304 30299 6)
• Richards, Huw A Game for Hooligans: The History of Rugby Union (Mainstream Publishing, Edinburgh, 2007, ISBN 9781845962555)
• Riordan, James Sport in Soviet Society — development of sport and physical education in Russia and the USSR (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, England, 1977)
• Sorokin, A.A. (А. А. Сорокин) "Rugby" (Регби) in English translation of Great Soviet Encyclopedia (Progress Publishers, Moscow, 1978)
• Starmer-Smith, Nigel (ed) Rugby - A Way of Life, An Illustrated History of Rugby (Lennard Books, 1986 ISBN 0 7126 2662 X)
• Thau, Chris Soviet Rugby in Starmer-Smith, Nigel & Robertson, Ian (eds) The Whitbread Rugby World '89 (Lennard Books, 1988 ISBN 1-85291-038)
• Thau, Chris Soviet Students in Starmer-Smith, Nigel & Robertson, Ian (eds) The Whitbread Rugby World '90 (Lennard Books, 1989 ISBN )
• The Ultimate Encyclopaedia of Rugby, (Carlton Books, 1997 ISBN 1 85868 076 X)

• Dancing On Our Bones: New Zealand, South Africa, Rugby and Racism by Trevor Richards (Bridget Williams Books, 1999). The author was one of a small group of people who founded Halt All Racist Tours (HART) in Aukland in 1969 and worked for the organization for many years, serving as chair (1969–1980) and international secretary (1980–1985).

[[Category:History of rugby union]] [[category:Rugby union in South Africa]] [[Category:Civil rights protests]] [[Category:Politics and race]] [[Category:Racism]] [[Category:Rugby union controversies]] [[Category:International opposition to apartheid in South Africa]]

Rugby a Way of Life, p112 Ian Robertson Murrayfield in 1969

"There was a huge police presence at the ground, with the terraces behind both sets of goalposts reserved exclusively for officers of the law with standing spectators resticted to just the East Terrace."

p112-113

"The Springboks had fulfilled all of their touring commitments through the Fifties and Sixties but the oppressive, claustrophobic political pressures overwhelmed them during the Seventies. They have not been able to play in Britain, Ireland, France or AUstralia since 1974, and their only major tour abroad in the last ten years to New Zealand in 1981, was full of controversy, and mass demonstrations. There is no doubt that giant steps have been taken to make Rugby totally integrated in South Africa in recent years, and their supporters feel that no sooner have they fulfilled the conditions required of them by world opinion than the goalposts are moved.

"Their opponents, who are against having any sporting links with a country which practises apartheid, accept that sport in South Africa has become increasingly integrated but claims it is impossible to have normal sport in an abnormal society."

The Complete Book of Rugby p59 Danie Craven supposedly said a black player would play for the Springboks over his dead body. p219 1981 nicknamed "the Barbed Wire Tour"

• SA veteran concerned for rugby's future