1977 Rugby Union Match: New Zealand All Blacks vs British and Irish Lions (2nd Test)

The Lions came back from that controversial 1974 tour of South Africa which was infamous for that 99 Call. They came to New Zealand to try to beat the All Blacks again, but the Kiwis were looking for revenge after that defeat in that '71 tour. Here's the second test and it was intense. Played at Christchurch. Reminder, back then the All Blacks only did the Haka on tours not at home.

[@stewartcrowder243]

This is the way I came to know and play Rugby.Love it!!

[@SuperEdge67]

Love the way each scrum doesn’t take 1/2 an hour!!

[@jonathanphillips5514]

Lineouts disaster though

[@desharris1430]

yes but what a shambles it was back then - so disorganised ... the games much easier to follow today despite the water breaks etc

[@kebabremover6024]

I'm from england and went to the 2005 lions test at ami/lancaster park. I feel lucky to have gone to such a historic stadium before it was unfortunately demolished

[@saipelematagi221]

Ll LL do

[@51RedOne]

The great good old days, great stuff. Thanks for posting

[@desmondallen6404]

60k at Lancaster Park and not a 'hi-viz' or 'orange cone' in sight. Bloody Awesome!

[@sammycasey2572]

Love the scrums, no waiting around, just fall into each other. We waste 10 to 15 minutes per game on them now

[@montyf2165]

Agree , plus add on the time spent having a drink and a chat and the delay in passing the ball out of a ruck. Barely 50 mins action now. Boring and getting worse. I think they should bring out a new code called " Open Rugby" using the old rules and amateur players.

[@tyrusgerlach]

And the referee’s know knuthink

[@beentheredonethat1525]

CE upon a time it was RUGBY ! ..now it's 2023/24 scrumby or Ruckby..where ever did running rugby RUGBY go ?

[@MarioMartinez-fd2eb]

HERMOSO MATERIAL GRACIAS !!!!!!

[@tvbant]

Jeez uncompromising stuff. Great upload

[@clivetaylor4300]

My uncle is Mark Taylor in the No.11 jersey who made his international debut in this game. Long time ago!

[@huepix]

And then went on to captain the ozzy cricket team. What an athlete! Iol Was he from Tauranga or Rotorua?

[@cezzajamboree]

He played well and looked like a tough player.

[@powerbite92]

Guy looks like a monster (meant as a compliment)

[@camwells9726]

I remember this tour , was at high school at the time

[@HEEDRECORDS]

yeah great stuff! close game! Thanks for posting!

[@funkymaoriboi]

I went to this game with my dad when I was 7

[@ldfreitas9437]

No Haka then for home All Black matches. It was only for when they were touring overseas. It was also only done once on the '72-'73 tour to America, UK, Ireland, France, the Baa Baa's match.

[@crustyoldfart]

As a very young schoolboy I played my first game in 1946. A try worth 3 points, converted goal 2 points and a drop goal 4 points. Many changes of rule over the years which have developed the game into what we have today which is an attractive passing game. This one is a hark back to the intermediate days of too much kicking and too much whistle and inconsequential line outs which by today's standards seem rather quaint.

[@crustyoldfart]

@albatrossus albatrossus I guess we are all going to have our own opinions on how best the game should be governed and played. The kind of rugby which I did not like was the whistle going all the time for what were judged to be knock-ons. I'm glad that was changed. Personally I'm very impressed by the enormous height of assisted jumpers in the line-out. I would like to make a point about what I feel is vitally important . There is an old cliche that soccer is a game for gentlemen played by ruffians, whereas rugby is a game for ruffians played by gentlemen. It took me many years to realize what is really being said here. Rugby is a game which should only be played by gentlemen. Too often in my experience there would be one or two bad apples who loved to get the boot in or a sly punch in the head when the ref wasn't looking. This makes for a lot of nastiness which can spread like a forest fire in a dry year. Soccer on the other hand is a game for people who can act well - writhing on the ground in feigned agony after another player bumps into them. It's game which I find is as exciting to watch as watching paint dry. I've never been able to understand its wide popularity, except that it can be played on a piece of waste ground - something that is not the case with either form of rugby.

[@crustyoldfart]

@albatrossus albatrossus I thought I should add a bit more to my remarks about the of game 70 years ago and how it's changed for the better IMHO. As a schoolboy my memories are of playing in a sea of mud. The balls we used should have been rejected years earlier, but, no doubt due to the shortages caused by WW2, had not been, When wet the leather would stretch so much that, in order to keep them inflated hard, they would expand to huge size, almost like a small medicine ball. When covered with mud it was also impressively heavy. The knock-on rule was enforced to an absurd extent so that at just about every pass the whistle would go and we'd have yet another scrum - wallowing in the mud. When retrieving the ball after a tackle there was a requirement to heel the ball, there being a restriction on lifting it up directly or passing a dead ball from a prone position. This slowed the game down to a slogging match of scrum after scrum. A couple of decades later we see as in this 1977 game that it was a game of much long kicking and not much passing and running. This allowed the game to be played by many who today would not be fit enough to keep the ball in play being passed right or left, while running fast, with many side steps and direction changes. In the earlier game the ball passed from centre to wing in a predictable way as formal as a mediaeval dance, with the runners running in a direct line for the corner flag, with, if they were good players a switch as the winger came inside and passed to the three-quarter who had cunningly moved out to the wing. To respond to your point about modern players looking like Charles Atlas [ I wonder how many people under the age of forty will recognize the name ? ] : Yes, it's probably the case that the modern fast running and passing game will require a fitter player than before. That said it's probably also true that young men are larger and in better shape than were their fathers and grandfathers, some of the latter having grown up in times of food rationing. The present ready availability of enhancing substances may regrettably also be a factor in the modern game ( ? ). I agree with your expressed contempt for the Rugby League game. On paper it should have led to improvements over the form of Union then in vogue. The lesser number of players might have been brought in to encourage better passing. The kick for touch rule was probably designed to eliminate the long kicks I complain about, but I have no idea why they decided to eliminate the line-out, except that in those days line-outs were too often inconclusive and led to a scrum anyway because there was always some joker ready to run offside. The worst aspect of the League game is the way the tackle is performed - it takes the form of going high to prevent the tackled player from passing. The general effect is that the game looks more like a brawl - which could also be a result of the fact that it's essentially a game for professionals [ in England any way ].

[@katiemainwaring3768]

L

[@katiemainwaring3768]

1:37:39

[@simonhellier7281]

I listened to this match at 0300 in the morning in the UK. Hosted by Terry Wogan. Quite dramatic on the radio

[@nickcrosby9875]

Ian Kirkpatrick stamp at around 7'50--- the days of the AB 'shoeing' of men on the floor...Great to see these games now. I only ever read about them or on radio as a kid. Thanks for the post!

[@rogerpattube]

Brynmor W was lying on the ball.

[@montyf2165]

Getting caught on the wrong side in those days meant that you got the "doormat treatment".

[@billyb2079]

Love the ABs winger using the grenade technique to throw into the line out!

[@HBondyBond]

He's shooting at ghana!

[@normanelder3481]

Good to watch all this old game

[@garyjenkinson7189]

Great uploads !.

[@johncourtneidge]

Yes. The ticker feed was annoying though is could screen widen to lose it. My thanks for the upload.

[@RD-wg2nt]

Great stuff 🙌

[@celticwarrior1365]

Graham Price sorted out Brad Johnstone in the scrums and personal exchanges!

[@richardmatatahi4563]

The Great Phil Bennett, Super Sid Going, Bee gee Williams all Greats every player both sides. The Lions were very popular in New Zealand even the mid week games were sold out

[@ajmuss856]

Love how the crowd looks

[@kawhia11]

I was at that game as a 17yo on the embankment ! You could look across to the dark old No4 stand and see the cigarettes glowing! My first test . Sure knew how to pack out the ground in those days ! Distantly related to Sid Going sorry that it was his last test. Doug Bruce used to come into or local on a Friday for a few cold ones with the other teachers from Woodend school. My how time and the game has changed !

[@celticwarrior1365]

"My old man's a dustman." Love it!!!!

[@jacquelinefox2632]

I'm watching rugby. J. X

[@maelughran6981]

Notice that the great Willie Duggan doesn't stand to attention when they play 'God save the Queen'. They hadn't thought it through had they?

[@davidloughlin2238]

Great game, all action, no messing about with time to take kicks or scrums. Thinking about the great players from the lineups that are no longer with us, especially the flier JJ Williams and the brilliant Phil Bennett. RIP

[@eolof7]

Thanks Mr Going ( brother) for train Cisneros team in Madrid in the 90's.

[@martynadams2011]

“One minute into the game and the All Blacks have stamped on the scrum half - nothing changes eh?

[@nzlemming]

A very different game from today! I had forgotten that wings used to throw in.

[@ldfreitas9437]

Yeah, real rucks, runners trying to evade tackles instead of running into them. No prizes for guessing why there are so many head concussions in the modern game!

[@ldfreitas9437]

Peter Wheeler, the British/Irish hooker, threw in. I played hooker during my university years for the most part, and threw in, and that was between 1973 and 1976, and in California.

[@lukeaskew2568]

band is brilliant

[@andrewcavenagh2029]

Such a different game in those days.

[@CRAIG5835]

Brian Williams might have scored some great tries for the AB's but he sure cost them this game by himself. Its like he was paid to miss, his kicking was that bad, and to make things worse, the last play of the game, he lost his compass again, insted of kicking it over his head infield, he kicks it on the short side, and straight into touch. END of game. Skills Brian. That was your shocker of a Test BG.

[@user-te3jc3sl7r]

This was the last test for Super Sid Going. He seemed to take a lot of the blame for the lost but had Lyn Jaffray held onto that pass in the last min of the game the ABs may have won or at least drawn Even saying that, the Lions pack out played the ABs and Phil Bennett dominated the game..

[@jamesgollan8602]

his performance in this test and the previous one was very average, Steve Fenwick was a force to be reckoned with. Brian Williams also had a very average game in this Test

[@user-te3jc3sl7r]

Bryan Williams was only a part time goal kicker but he was first choice in this match which was unfair on him. Sid Going was passed his best by this time.@@jamesgollan8602

[@larnce1395]

Terry Cobner was the dominant figure on that tour. If the backs had matched the dominance the forwards had they would have blown the ABs away

[@mizofan]

+Joel Hewitt The Lions, who for once had a stronger pack, sadly missed the likes of Edwards, JPR and Gerald Davies. Otherwise the Lions would surely have won the series. As a 16 year old I stayed up in the night listening to this on the radio.

[@dmatthews1031]

blah blah.one series win in nz Eva.now who blows who away.get a life mate

[@youtubearchive3668]

D Matthews lol fool

[@huepix]

Shame that in those days the 1st 5 always kicked. I don't think either centre was ever passed the ball i the whole game

[@Trajan2401]

@@dmatthews1031 ,😂🤣😂🤣

[@mikemorgan7893]

heard the game in the uk on the radio it wouldnt be until 1989 that lions tests were shown live here on tv

[@JohnnyBoyJonesSports]

great up

[@bloodyliar]

Thi is what made the All Blacks so great - neck tackles and stamping

[@geoffaldwinckle1096]

Colin Farrell concreted my driveway in 2005.

[@johnnyrussell6149]

on a break from the movies?

[@geoffaldwinckle1096]

@@johnnyrussell6149 he biult the deck on my mum's house as well.

[@wernerschneider4460]

July 9th 1977. Dates should always be included when uploading classic games, please.

[@somepoliticalgamer6459]

Anyone else here an American who wanted to see what rugby is all about and randomly typed in “classic rugby matches”?

[@gary6759]

Where did that flair in the games in the 70s go. Lots of running and not constant ruck and mauls

[@arkdeniz]

So good to see a game from the days when players formed proper rucks - binding together like impromptu scrums - rather than hurling themselves horizontally at any opposition player within 5 metres of the ball. So good.

[@paulyflyer8154]

I enjoyed the band playing my old man's a dustman.

[@MrAhuapai]

there was a local version called My Old mans an all black

[@paulkelcher824]

Anyone else notice the Lions player getting a beer sprayed at him @ 1:34:37 ? A cop escorts the offender off a few seconds later :)

[@powerbite92]

Great spot :)

[@MrAhuapai]

Not a vintage period of AB rugby. NZ Rugby went through some pretty tough times over the next decade but it would emerge ten years later with a style of football that we now see in the modern game

[@xpat73]

Put Gareth Edwards and JPR in that team and they might have done something.

[@xpat73]

I know - I'm just saying they would have made a difference

[@xpat73]

I think JPR actually had medical exams.

[@martybourke2428]

Put Colin Meads, Fergie, in and and why not Mr Nepia , the point is you play who is front of you.

[@MrJeepsters]

sid going jouait encore ?

[@dennism5731]

With all the talk of todays fitness and physicality, it would be interesting to see how todays forwards would measure up to these guys - I bet it would be a lot closer than you think - these guys go nonstop, no water breaks, injury stoppages, just all out effort.

[@celticwarrior1365]

How the hell did Wales' understudy to Gareth Edwards, Brynmor Williams, get the nod to be first choice scrum half for the Lions? Surely an insult to England, Ireland and Scotland! Roy Laidlaw would have been my choice around this time.

[@mikemorgan7893]

He didn’t start playing international Rugby until 1980

[@martybourke2428]

B William's great passer fast had distance gave backs extra time

[@glennmorris371]

The lions should have taken Clive Shell. A truly great little scrum half. Came a year too early for Terry Holmes.

[@cardigan3000]

there used to be a Lions tradition of naming one uncapped player - either way brynmor was probably better than all the other contenders

[@admiralbenbow5083]

Chico Hopkins was reserve for Edwards

[@johncourtneidge]

Wow!

[@petedudson6671]

So the embankment that used to hold 35000 had a bigger capacity than Eden Park that held 58000 back then lol @kiethQuinn

[@peteryoungpeteryoung965]

I laugh that the trainers are St. JOHN'S ambulance first aiders

[@williamwallace2278]

Look at that! Actually having to jump to secure the ball in the lineout!

[@huepix]

And wingers throwing in!

[@peterboyd7304]

@@huepix they need to do that again

[@HeAhaBro]

Thanks for the upload but the field looks like a cow paddock!

[@hugolopez9251]

You performs just in Twickenham I supose?

[@brettwilkinson9529]

It was a bloody cow paddock. All NZ rugby fields were crap back in those days. Absolute disgrace. The only decent rugby ground in the country was at Te Aroha College , the school I attended. Absolute dream to play on.

[@simonhellier7281]

Very good Lions front row here

[@johantowmhas5774]

should have mad Bill Bush the goal kicker

[@claudiapojar6491]

MY FATHER AND GODFATHER PLAY FOR ROMANIA IN THAT TIME,SUCH A GOOD GAMES AND A REALY GOOD RUGBY IN THE 70'S & 80'S.RESPECT FOR ALL TO CONSIDERETED THAT RUGBY ITS THE BEST SPORT TEAM (SORRY FOR MY ENGLISH) RESPECT FROM ROMANIA TO ALL .

[@robmiller1964]

Great Rugby, As a New Zealander who followed this series, I have realized how biased I was! The UK had joined the EEC in 1973 and it had massive detrimental effects on our economy! My Dad ways a Loyalist, 3rd Generation New Zealander of Scottish, Norwegian and English Stock, my dad fought in WW2 for the King and Empire! Not for democracy, he was wounded, taken POW and escaped and in 1977 all I could think about is how the Queen, UK, stabbed us in the back when it joined the EEC and suddenly slapped massive trade barriers to our exports! I haven't forgiven the English to this day. So Rugby was more than a game it was a way of playing the traitors of the British Commonwealth. My dad's Battalion, the most highly decorated battalion in the British Empire in WW2 (New Zealand 20th Battalion had 3 VC's) My dad got an Oak Leaf and Bar; out of the Battalion the 20th had 397 KIA! It is good to watch this game without the hatred and loathing I had in 1977! I now love the Lions and the brits etc! Ha ha time does heal some wounds!

[@bobsimpson4298]

Although both teams had many talented players, this match was dreadful to watch, largely due to the poor condition of the pitch making a handling game very tricky. We are so lucky these days that international match pitches are so much better! Hey ho!

[@craigmckenzie384]

I remember going to this game and standing on the bank.

[@johnmanning5568]

This was a game between the All Blacks and the British and Irish combined team. Unfortunately the scoreboard at the top of the screen erroneously says New Zealand v British Isles. Ireland isn’t part of the British Isles. Rather insulting I thought.

[@MarkRiles1]

British Isles is a geographic designation not a political one and has always encompassed all the islands of Britain and Ireland. If the team was labelled Britain or Great Britain that would have been wrong.

[@damirblazevic4823]

Did you have geography in school?

[@jamesgollan8602]

There was an Irish player,,check out the team sheet

[@johncater7861]

Stoppage after stoppage after stoppage.

[@ThistleThings]

I swear there isn’t more than one phase before a kick in the first half an hour

[@dennism5731]

Two takes from this for me - the modern game should look at allowing proper rucking, and stop lifting jumpers. Both would greatly enhance todays game.

[@brettwilkinson9529]

The groundsmen was non exsistant during those days in New Zealand. The rugby fields were an absolute disgrace. If only I could turn back the clock.

[@matthewashman1406]

it was also a very wet winter

[@chrismclaren1247]

Back in the day When feeding was not allowed at any level

[@markhobson5769]

Which New Zealand TV station is televising this 1977 Rugby Union match & who are the people calling it?

[@barneyboy2008]

TV One back then. Keith Quinn calling.

[@canamrugby]

A place kick for touch at 1:06:40, don't see that much anymore...

[@alexispavlou4254]

canamrugby what was that all about? Loved it and can’t understand the thinking; not least because it further tears up a ragged pitch

[@matthewashman1406]

bring back rucking

[@09TheWex]

The ref had his eyes in his arse

[@rawschri]

Absolutely, so biased it was untrue ... but then again, all Southern Hemisphere Ref's were then !! In Cricket, England managed to win a 6 Test series in Australia in 1970, under Ray Illingworth, without getting ONE LBW decision from the Australian Umpires !! 😂

[@tonyatwood9505]

Rugby isn't the game it was back then, a running passing game! Nowadays, no good passing, just crash, tackle etc. It doesn't flow. No mucking around back then, way better!

[@simonhellier7281]

NZ ref - some of the decisions here are ridiculous!

[@dantewalters5209]

They still are today wherever New Zealand is involved. Although they are a very good rugby nation, they are still crooks.

[@addrock7695]

Have you ever watched a team tour Great Britain back in day?? The referees were worse! Tour South Africa back in day,every game you played it was 50/50 if you played the test on the weekend, The hope refs never saw a thing.

[@wobblertv8083]

Lions could have drawn this series. ...grant battys interception was the killer. Lions had 3 man overlap as well. Trevor Evans of all people through the pass. He was a top player though

[@ldfreitas9437]

Yeah, and if Gareth Edwards had been available for this series! It should have been a year earlier, when Edwards was a year younger and not thinking about retiring yet, but the ABs went to South Africa that year instead, 1976.

[@topofthecircle]

No haka?

[@michaelrapson]

Incredible scrummaging by the Lions. Possibly the best ever.

[@paulwebb6087]

Fran Cotton and Graham Price with Peter Wheeler excellent front row

[@jantaljaard835]

What I saw from this is that Doug Bruce was an underated player.

[@andywatson611]

Only a few of these guys from both teams would survive the modern game today

[@ldfreitas9437]

True: it was not professional yet and wouldn't be for another 18 years. Since about five years into the pro era, the players started getting paid enough they could quit their day jobs and just train five days a week. They've gotten bigger, faster, and the laws have changed. It does not mean the game is better though. If anything, it can be so boring to watch with just about every team, whether international or low level amateur, plays to the same pattern, and it's so much big brutes running into each other which = head concussions.

[@andywatson611]

@@ldfreitas9437 I agree, can be very boring to watch now. You look back 20 years to the sweeping back line movements and tries that used to happen - so good.

[@howardpohatu3868]

Not many modern players would like the old style rucking...js.

[@neilbe7118]

Place kicks for touch 😂 madness

[@admiralbenbow5083]

13 35 Watch Graham Price do a number on Brad Johnstone at that scrum. Only one man in it !

[@markkeohane9850]

Love the St John Ambos coming on to administer first aid!

[@Wolf-hh4rv]

No takers for that shambles today

[@UK-10086]

Where is new Zealand is that in Australia or in Europe ?

[@jamesmckay-mount8689]

Have you heard of maps?

[@paulbennett4315]

It's part of Australia .....I thought everyone knew that 😏☺

[@rayclark3043]

We now aotearoa oi.

[@nickcrosby9875]

Ouch, Derek Quinnell shoed at 30'20

[@huepix]

William Bush. He was a shocker. He'd be banned these days. A lot of them would be

[@martybourke2428]

Billy rucked Del boy for lying on the ball... you know it makes sense

[@barneyboy2008]

Lazy bastard should have moved his fat arse. The Lions knew that's how all Rugby was played in NZ back then, not just against them. It was a badge of honour to get a raking down your back, because you knew you were slowing the ball down.

[@normanno8514]

this is really the nadir of modern rugby, the condition of the pitch is risible. The New Zealanders had twisted the rules of the game in their favour to make the game almost unwatchable with constant interruptions. The lack of punition of their more egregious characters in previous matches - notably Keith Murdoch and Grant Batty on the 1973 tour gave them the correct impression that they could act pretty much as they pleased on the pitch. Bryan Williams attempt to behead steve fenwick should have been a sending off in any era. Late tackling in this game by the All Blacks was at epidemic levels and was to a great extent unpenalised. The kicking and stamping at the bottom of the ruck was never legal. In fact rucks and mauls were a recent (NZ) invention and no provision was made for the use of feet , either way the rules against violent play should still have been enforced.

[@otumoetaipat]

rucks and mauls were invented by nz? hahaha in the 20 mins i watched of this game i saw the lions give as well s they got. stop crying.

[@wjamre]

Steve Fenwick was the king of the high tackle, and along with Phil Bennett and JJ Williams and their terrible coach were the weak links in this team!

[@philipmarsden7104]

NZ- the kings of the cheap shot.

[@dantalbot1201]

sounds like sour grapes from a losing pommy bastard mate,lol

[@normanno8514]

@@dantalbot1201 only a fool laughs at his own jokes

[@phillipsmith6416]

JJ Williams try looks like it was not grounded .

[@garyrobets6147]

Now that what I call scrummaging

[@Johnny-cf3jp]

Bloody hell! The ABs look like something out of a David Lynch film. Who said rugby used to be better? This is garbage.

[@jallancam5503]

ahhhh memories but the pain of seeing those stupid chip kicks close to the Lions goal line ,,,Giving the ball back instead of keeping it in hand.

[@matthewhope3664]

love the old school biased commentary, eg late shoulder charge = 'defensive blocking tackle'

[@shanecook3102]

should have got sid going to kick.

[@zzzaaa0990]

Today’s rugby is a bore,never a big fan of it but rugby back then had something,you could engage and there were some memorable matches unlike today,dreadful stuff. Amen.

[@nicholaskearney678]

21st century, a crowd of 60,000. Christchurch City Council wants too build a 25,000 seater, indoor stadium. All Blacks only play in 30 thousand plus. Money now, for players and television viewing around the world. Enjoyed watching this amateur game as a kid. Simple game then. Aroha too the game.

[@Oilibhear333]

Shown in the USA! Do not like the soccer plus in the pic as it does not have anythink in common with soccer!! Good luck to MLR!!

[@bazking]

when men were men...

[@wobblertv8083]

Destroyed the All blacks up front .But as John dawes said he took his eye off they're backs . If Gareth JPR and Gerald had gone it may have been a different story .Saying that though Gareth always said Sid going always made his life difficult.

[@petelosuaniu]

Where is the NZ anthem?

[@michaeljg67]

That was the NZ anthem.

[@petelosuaniu]

@@michaeljg67 seriously? It's the british anthem. I thought it was played for the British Lions.

[@michaeljg67]

God Save the Queen was New Zealand’s sole anthem until 1977. Because the Lions represent two sovereign nations they don’t have an official anthem.

[@fletmok3548]

Place kicking for touch?? Ffs

[@zzzaaa0990]

They should have played the Irish national anthem as there were Irish players playing also! Amen.

[@MarkRiles1]

At that point God Save the Queen was New Zealand's national anthem.

[@zzzaaa0990]

@@MarkRiles1 how formidable. Amen

[@geoffaldwinckle1096]

I will never get why rugby people cheer when the ball gets kicked into touch. Can someone explain why this is exciting ? Im still lost after 50 years.

[@chrismclaren1247]

You kick into touch to gain ground on the field, it would reduce pressure on your line

[@geoffaldwinckle1096]

@@chrismclaren1247 but is that really a reason for cheering? It still seems unexciting.

[@cynic252]

what appalling kicking by the all black number 14

[@huepix]

I remember it was a national scandal. He didnt even kick for his club side. But there was no one else at the time.