RIP Kevin Skinner . . .

Kevin Skinner may not go down in history as the greatest All Black and he will probably not be remembered with great fondness by many old-school Springbok supporters (including the late Dr Danie Craven who was famously outspoken about Skinner) but he will certainly be remembered as one of the most influential players in rugby history.
Here is a link to the NZ article regarding Skinner's passing but while it makes mention of the infamous 1956 tour - and specifically Kevin Skinner's recall from retirement for the sole purpose of "intimidating" the Springboks and reclaiming the physical advantage - it doesn't put the impact of that tour into perspective. 
The Springboks had dominated world rugby ever since the series win in New Zealand in 1937 and they had not lost a series between 1937 and 1955. The Kiwis were determined to end the Springboks golden era in 1956 and the Springboks lost the first test of that series in Dunedin, but then they sent a wave of panic through New Zealand by beating the All Blacks in the second test in Wellington. That was when the New Zealand management made a highly controversial decision to select Kevin Skinner for the final two tests of that series. Skinner had played against the Springboks in 1949 but had since retired from rugby. He was an ex heavyweight boxing champion and the late Dr Danie Craven was in no doubt that he was selected for the last two tests of the 1956 tour for his boxing prowess rather than any rugby abilities. Skinner's only real contribution in that infamous third test match in Christchurch was to punch the lights out of his opposition props Jaap Bekker and Chris Koch. The All Blacks won the match and wrapped up the series a week later in Auckland.

To hear the Kiwis tell the story, you'd be inclined to believe the Springbok props deserved what they got but from the Springbok perspective, Skinner was nothing but a thug. Either way, he played a big part in the outcome of that tour and almost single-handedly ended South Africa's golden age of rugby.
RIP Kevin Skinner, if nothing else, a truly influential player.

An atheist' s RIP is not only not very comforting, it displays an alarming degree of ignorance. 

Rooi: thanks for posting this mate. Those were the days, lol Players sorted each other out on the field for any rough tactics . Here is a link that reminds us of the time that players didn't always rely on the ref to sort things out
1956 Boks vs ABs in NZ

 That was some messy rugby back in those days. I just watched a 10 minute highlight reel of the 3rd test 1956 and it's primary school stuff. No one seems to have the ability of picking the ball up once it goes to the deck or just controlling it in general, it's mostly just kicked and juggled and fumbled all over the place until a lucky bounce puts it in a player's hands. As boring and robotic as much of the modern game has become, I can't imagine watching 80 minutes of that type of unstructured chaos either.

 Agreed and a lot of things were allowed back then which would get players banned for life these days.  BTW, most of the Boks players held no grudges against Skinner and held him in high regard as player and as person.

The Kiwis were determined to end the Springboks golden era in 1956 and the Springboks lost the first test of that series in Dunedin, but then they sent a wave of panic through New Zealand by beating the All Blacks in the second test in Wellington. That was when the New Zealand management made a highly controversial decision to select Kevin Skinner for the final two tests of that series. Skinner had played against the Springboks in 1949 but had since retired from rugby. He was an ex heavyweight boxing champion and the late Dr Danie Craven was in no doubt that he was selected for the last two tests of the 1956 tour for his boxing prowess rather than any rugby abilities.
Clearly Doc C raven was correct - Skinner was retired but hauled out to do some punching.Is there a more disgusting episode in rugby history? If so name it.
The next worse was Bryce Lawrence. Some things dont change. 

Beeno: watch some of the footage of that game. The boks were hardly shrinking violets. 

 That was how they played the game back then. The game only started to get more civil when TV started to show the games live.

 When slow motion came in a few of the black arts were cast into the light of day, lol Talk about niggle back then, there were late hits, high hits, punches, head stomps, etc. & that was just in the first five minutes.

 Come on JW we didn't ever put in a heavyweight boxer to ever punch the lights out of your props. Please get real.Imagine if Gerrie Coetzee had been put into the side to do that. He of course was a world heavy weight champion so would probab ly have killed the kiwi props.No it cannot be condoned what happened. Own up to your misdeeds JW.Past and present!!! Bwahhahahahahaha
 

 But it's ok to beat up a ref Beeno?
Those boys were tough back then & didn't expect any quarter & gave none. It was like legalized assault. Skinner said it was all hyperbole, the  press must have loved the story even if it didn't happen. 
Are you saying you never through a punch in a game Beeno? I did & I have a few scars on my head from the kicks I received. No complaints about the ref cause he didn't have to police the rucks - if there was someone on the wrong side he soon had cleat marks on his back & was sent crawling.