The Tri Nations is an annual International rugby union series between the national rugby teams of the Australia Wallabies, New Zealand All Blacks, and the South Africa Springboks. The competition is organized by SANZAR with the inaugural even held in 1996.
Overview
New Zealanders' Farewell
History
Tri-Nations is a lineal descendant of the AGC South Pacific Championship started in 1986 by New South Wales. It was a competition for six teams - New South Wales, Queensland, Fiji, Auckland, Canterbury and Wellington - a competition dominated by Auckland. It collapsed in 1991 when the NSW RU found itself in financial difficulties but came back in 1992 as the Super 6.
Then South Africa came back into international rugby and Super 6 became Super 10 in 1993. After the 1995 World Cup and professionalism and all that television money, Super 10 became Super 12. And a new body, SANZAR, was born with representatives of the Australia, New Zealand and South Africa as midwives.
The representatives were Leo Williams, the president of the Australian Rugby Union, Ritchie Guy, the chairman of the New Zealand Rugby Union and Louis Luyt, the president of the South African Rugby Football Union. They met and discussed things. A and established SANZAR, with David Moffit as chief executive officer, succeeded in 1996 by Rian Oberholzer who held the post till 1997. Since then SANZAR has been run by the chief executive officers of the three participating countries.
Besides the Super 12, SANZAR brought the Tri-Nations into being, a double round of tests amongst the three countries each year, food for the hungry maw of television, played even in a World Cup year. The matches were played a week apart, something which first happened in international rugby during the NZ Cavaliers' tour of South Africa in 1986.
As in Super 12 there was to be a bonus point for scoring four or more tries and another for losing by seven or fewer points.
New Zealand have dominated the Tri-Nations from the start, winning three of the first four tournaments (1996, 1997, 1999).
South Africa was the first team to spoil New Zealand's perfect title record on their unbeaten record run of 17 matches back in 1998. Indeed that year New Zealand became the only team in Tri-Nations not to win a match in a season.
In 2001, a late match-winning try from Toutai Kefu in the last game against New Zealand gave Australia their second consecutive Tri-Nations title after they won it in 2000 for the first time.
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New Zealanders' Farewell
The New Zealanders' Farewell to The South Africans.
Tis to bid farewell to you, Springbok boys,
That we gather here to-night,
For we leave you soon in the homes you
left to join the Empire's fight.
You did your share in German West when
the Kaiser cast the die,
And we are sorry now to leave you, but war
is all "goodbye"
And we envy those rows of ribbons that
some of your veterans wear,
and their faces brown from the lands they've
seen and their smile so devil-may-care.
We met you first twelve months ago when we
chased the Sennussi gang.
And you proved you were true Colonials then,
and your name thro the Empire rang.
Then with us again you came to France, and
were put to the shell-fire test,
and the word went round, "Springboks on our left"
And old Fritz got no rest,
for you worried the Huns the whole day long,
you strafed him day and night,
and the Crown Prince found to his Army's cost
that the Springbok boys could fight.
And you did the job at Delville Wood, and
you made it a living hell:
Twas the first tough job you were sent to do,
and you did it, and did it well,
with a Glorious rush that frightened Fritz,
you were one of the Germans ten
and when Fritz attacked you drove him off
with a handful of your men,
and you beat us once in the Rugby field
tho' we thought we knew the game,
but you showed us you could play it too,
and played it like gentleman.
But when sports meet sports in the playing field,
defeat is no disgrace,
and the Springbok now with the Fern Leaf
on the Black Flag take it's place,
then here's good luck to your fighting men,
for we know you will see it through,
when the bloody sword shall clash no more
We'll play rugby again with you.
But we hope this peace will do away
with all War and War's alarms
but if the Empire calls may our children meet
and like us the brother in arms.
This was written by 2nd Lt. Thomas A. Clark Snr. died 1918. Featherston Military Camp.
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