'Controlled chaos' of inaugural cup

Rugby writer Chris Rattue looks back at the lighter side of the 1987 World Cup with All Black prop, and now New Zealand Herald columnist, John Drake.

Former All Black prop John Drake remembers the 1987 World Cup campaign with plenty of affection but also asserts: "It was controlled chaos at times."

Drake, now a match commentator and columnist in the New Zealand Herald, was part of an All Black side which swept all before them in the inaugural World Cup tournament, staged in New Zealand and Australia.

From wo to go, he says, the preparation of the All Black side and the staging of the tournament had a touch of the crazy to it which reflected the old mentality of the New Zealand union and that the world tournament was still finding its feet.

It began for the All Blacks with a trial match in Whangarei after which the team was announced.

"Everyone, apart from Michael Jones, had an enormous hangover the next day," says Drake.

"We assembled a week later, I think it was, at the Poenamo on the North Shore.

"As I remember, some of the team weren't there for the first day because of snow at the South Island airports. I don't even think (coach) Brian Lochore had arrived yet.

"(captain) Andy Dalton decided we should walk to the nearby Hato Petera College for a training, and first up he thought we should do these 400 metre sprints around the field.

"Even at the time I didn't think this was such a good idea.

"Andy blew his hamstring almost straight away and never played in the World Cup."

Drake says the second training run was at the same school ground, and ended up involving the Romanian side.

"They were training on the same field and it was decided that our dirt trackers should train against them," says Drake.

"They had no idea about the game but they seemed quite keen to knock us about.

"Can you imagine the All Blacks these days being asked to go and train with someone like Spain in the middle of the World Cup."

Drakes' potted history of 1987 World Cup memories include.-

• The New Zealand union refused to supply the players with dress belts or shoes, which was okay in most cases, because the players supplied their own. But reserve halfback Bruce Deans arrived with only a pair of brown Nomad shoes, and decided to polish them black rather than go and buy a pair.

"Blokes like Deans and Worzel (Andy Earl) just didn't own things like that," says Drake.

"Andy Dalton tried to get those things for us but they weren't in the New Zealand union's handbook."

• Drake and John Kirwan were the food committee and were allocated, as Drake recalls, just $12 per player per meal to feed the troops.

"JK had all these new ideas about eating pasta and we wanted to feed the side well. In the end I reckon the Poenamo helped subsidise that World Cup campaign," says Drake.

• The team management decided the ABs should turn up, unannounced, at a function to honour squash champion Susan Devoy.

"To be honest, I don't think some of us even really knew much about her at that time," says Drake.

"We walked in, shook a few hands, and walked out. The whole thing was a bit of a mad roadshow really."

• The players were expected to frequently show their support for Steinlager, their sponsors, by turning up at functions where it was expected that they would partake fairly freely of the sponsors' products.

"Steinlager were very good to us though," says Drake.

• Unheralded teams like Italy turned up in the most stylish of gear and stayed at all the best hotels. Drake recalls that even though the All Blacks were measured for their clothing, nothing seemed to fit properly, and they were put up at middle-of-the-road accommodation like the Poenamo.

• After the game against Argentina in Wellington, Lochore decided it would be a good idea for the team to stay with people on Wairarapa farms for a couple of nights.

Drake and Craig Green were billeted with a farmer who took them on a turkey shoot, then ordered the All Blacks to get plucking. Green took the turkeys back to their Wellington hotel for the chef to cook up.

"Craig had turkey entree, turkey dinner and turkey dessert," says Drake.

"We stayed on the farms for a couple of nights and it was great.''

The World Cup ended, of course, with victory over France at Eden Park and the celebrations for the players were brief.

Drake says: "We won the cup on Saturday and by Monday, I was back at my job at the BNZ.

"Craig Green, who was a roof contractor, headed straight home and was picked up on Monday morning by his boss to go to work. He won the cup on Saturday, and by Monday morning he was sitting on a roof in Christchurch.

"We were on $7 a day or whatever at the time and I remember a few weeks later when we were in Sydney for the Bledisloe Cup, Greenie said to me: "I'm out of here soon.' And off he went to play in Italy.

"I remember the tournament and those days with a lot of affection but I think it's fantastic the way things have progressed."