Invercargill like Chernobyl, says former Lions hooker

Former British Lion Brian Moore. Picture / Fotopress

Mick Jagger once called it the "arsehole of the universe".

Now his fellow Brit, former England rugby player Brian Moore, has likened Invercargill to the nuclear disaster zone Chernobyl.

Moore, capped 64 times for England, was a member of the 1993 Lions team to New Zealand.

Now as a BBC commentator he could make a return to Invercargill for the Lions match against Southland on June 21. But he will not be getting a particularly warm reception from the southern city's mayor.

In the documentary A Mighty Pride, which will screen here next week, Moore says visiting places like Invercargill was one of the low points of the 1993 tour. "One of the difficulties is you go on a Lions tour, you've got 13 weeks in a foreign country - a beautiful country, I witnessed The Lord of the Rings - and you don't get to see any of it," Moore said.

"You see a lot of airports, you see Invercargill, which is, I think, twins with Chernobyl, or should be, or Bhopal or wherever really."

Moore also called into question the communication skills of southern folk.

"You know, you go down there and they say to you, 'Do you like oysters, mate?' and I say, 'I don't like oysters' and that's the end of the conversation really."

Invercargill Mayor Tim Shadbolt was predictably defensive yesterday.

"He [Moore] sounds like one of those that need Swiss masseurs to pander to their every need.

"If he wants to sip latte in Ponsonby or go shopping in Parnell all well and good, but he must think he's some kind of rock star. What he will get down here is true Kiwi life."

Mr Shadbolt also took issue with Moore's criticism of southern communication skills. He would challenge the commentator to a debate on any subject and verbally "belt the living daylights out of him".

"For that matter, I'll take him on in the Fight For Life boxing ring and do just the same."

He reckoned the Chernobyl rugby team would probably beat the Argentinians (who drew with the Lions yesterday) but the Lions couldn't even manage that.

Moore and his ilk should "focus on their game plan" rather than insulting the hosts. Moore was considered one of England's best front-rowers, but has the ability to polarise opinion.

He appeared as the frontman for a line of videos glorifying violence on the rugby field and had a complaint upheld against him by the BBC after describing an altercation between two players last year as a "gay slap".

Moore, who played seven games on the 1993 tour, made his Lions debut in their second test victory in Wellington. After a Lions try, Moore was met with a hail of beer cans after waving to the crowd as he ran back to halfway.

Unperturbed, he opened up a full one and drank it before throwing the can back into the stands and waving to the crowd again.

* A Mighty Pride, TV One, Monday, 8.30pm