Wynne Gray: Modest Eden Park start for world tournament

The Webb Ellis Cup. Photo / NZ Herald

It was the year of the first Lotto draw and the first heart transplant in New Zealand.

Herbs won best album of the year with Sensitive to a Smile and the nation was stunned by the murder of Napier 6-year-old Teresa Cormack.

Silver Ferns netballer Maria Tutaia was born, so too Hayley Westenra, and the Rugby World Cup made its first appearance.

The official march past was underwhelming. It was a showery Friday afternoon and pictures of the first global tournament show sparsely populated grandstands at Eden Park as former All Black flanker Waka Nathan led the march that capped a relay run by 15 former test players from the airport to the ground.

The Auckland union had been asked to take over running the promotion just three weeks before kickoff and executive director Lew Pryme and choreographer Lynette Perry pulled the ceremony together.

The 3kg of gold-plated silver on the Webb Ellis Cup was introduced during an hour-long preamble and the players milled around for a while before referee Bob Fordham eventually whistled time on in the tournament.

Two years earlier, the event was given the green light by the International Rugby Board, although Ireland and Scotland were dissenting voices. Japanese communications firm KDD bailed out tournament organisers with a $3 million sponsorship, a figure which matched the IRB's eventual tournament profit.

A week before kickoff, there were serious doubts Fiji would be able to take their place in the 16-team competition as the island nation was hit by a military coup. Eventually they made it and Samoa stayed as first reserve.

Surveys later revealed 600,000 spectators went to the matches and 300 million watched the television coverage in 17 countries.

What do we remember of it?

For some it will be the image of Buck Shelford staying on the field after knocking out Welsh lock Huw Richards. Referee Kerry Fitzgerald waited until Richards came to, then ordered him off for starting the trouble and warned Shelford about his retaliation.

For others it will be the sight of All Black skipper David Kirk scoring in the final and then sharing the trophy with the side's original but injured skipper Andy Dalton.

The All Blacks' eventual triumph came after the political fallout from the rebel Cavaliers trip to South Africa the year before.

South Africa became the only IRB member not invited because they would not have gained visas to New Zealand or Australia and even if they had, their involvement would have caused great angst and problems.