Rugby boots & royalty BILL'S PALACE CONFESSION

The All Black was a little forward taking a memento during a 1978 tour of the UK

- Fleur Guthrie

By his own admission, Bill Bush was an unlikely All Black. A kina diver at primary school and a labourer at Marsden Point refinery at 14, Bill was keener on swimming.

It took the promise of a bit of kai – Fanta and a mince pie – to lure him into his first game of rugby as an 11-year-old for the Wairaka Marae third-grade side.

“I did go to Rugby Park in Whakatāne after rugby games, but it was only to collect empty bottles to earn enough to get into the local picture theatre,” he recalls. “When I was asked why I wasn’t playing rugby, I’d reply, ‘Oh, no... it’s too rough for me!’

“Honestly, for a long time I couldn’t get over how the hell I’d got into the All Blacks team! It feels like I didn’t pick rugby – it picked me.”

The reluctant player became a fearsome, revered All Black prop in the 1970s, playing 37 games between 1974 and 1979, and captaining and coaching the Māori All Blacks.

He played two tests against the Springboks in South Africa in 1976, and earned three caps against the touring British and Irish Lions the following year.

Chatting to the Weekly over Zoom from his home in Christchurch – where he lives with long-time partner Annette Nelson – the 74-year-old could have probably become a comedian too. He’s quite a hoot, retelling stories from the past.