@stodders said in Boks v Wobblies I:
@sparky Grant Fox is overrated
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Nah, that was Fox in his twilight. He played that game and a Test against Western Samoa before retiring.
In the Test before, he'd kicked brilliantly and been the calm director in a decider test win against the BILs at Eden Park. He hit a cool as you like goal from 50 metres out at Lancaster Park to win Test One.
He was very, very different indeed to the "run and gun" First Fives we've largely had post Carter. And he didn't tackle much.
But his reading of the game, his vision, was very, very special. So was his ability to impose his will on proceedings.
At his best, in 1987-9, and behind the dominant pack we had at the time his passing was outstanding. Some of great miss-out passes for Joe Stanley, Terry Wright or John Kirwan to run on to were poetry.
Most of all, he was a winner. He fucking hated losing. At one stage during the eras of great All Blacks and Auckland dominance in the late eighties he went more than four years without losing.
Apart from Dan Carter, I'd say he's the best All Black First Five I've seen.