KEY POINTS:
When the feats of the all-conquering Auckland team of 1977 are remembered before the Warriors' match against Manly next weekend, it will be a strange but special day for Dennis Williams.
Williams is regarded as one of this country's greatest rugby league players, and was inducted as one of the original members of the Legends of League in 1995. But he remembers very little of his glittering career after a serious car accident in 1984.
He spent five years off work, recovering from brain damage and a stroke that affected the right-hand side of his body. While his memories are vague, his love of the game of rugby league has not diminished and he is often seen down at his old Te Atatu club and at Warriors home games.
What Williams is well aware of, however, is how special that Auckland side of 30 years ago was.
Coached by Bill Sorenson and containing the likes of a young Mark Graham (who, incredibly, wasn't wanted by the Kiwis), Gary Kemble, Fred Ah Kuoi, Warren Winter, Lyndsay Proctor, Olsen Filipaina and John Smith, they achieved something the Kiwis couldn't - beating Australia, Great Britain and France.
And it was done all in the space of 20 days.
New Zealand lined up alongside the other three major rugby league nations in what was called the international championship, or a pseudo World Cup, but went down to Australia (27-12) and Great Britain (30-12) before sneaking past France (28-20) to finish third in the tournament.
Auckland, however, disposed of all three under lights at the intimidating cauldron of Carlaw Park, beating Australia 19-15, Great Britain 14-10 and France 17-0.
Williams was influential in all three matches and scored two tries, including a superb solo effort against Australia that is still talked about as one of the great tries of all time, and he was man-of-the match against France.
"My memory is a bit hazy," Williams confessed.
"It was non-existent after the accident but some of it has come back through talking to people. I remember more about the people rather than incidents."
In those days, provincial rugby league was an important part of the game and it was a highlight of any player's career.
The gifted five-eighths or centre still holds the record for being the youngest international in history, when he made his debut a day after his 18th birthday in the great Kiwis side of 1971.
He went on to play 31 tests and more than 60 games for the Kiwis but had to endure the lean times of the 1970s when New Zealand struggled at international level.
The 1977 Auckland side is worth remembering and the Warriors will mark the achievement by, among other things, wearing replica Auckland jerseys against Manly.
"It's going to be quite emotional," Williams said. "You don't go through your career to be remembered because you do it because you love it. It's going to be a special day."
