Legendary All Black Brad Thorn has opened up about his fervent rivalry with the Springboks, describing matches against them as the “ultimate battle” of his rugby career. At 50, Thorn's legacy spans both rugby league and union with a trophy-laden resume including a World Cup victory, multiple Super Rugby titles with the Crusaders, a Champions Cup with Leinster, and three NRL titles. Yet, it's his clashes with South Africa that remain etched in his memory as the pinnacle of competition.
Thorn's appetite for intense one-on-one battles became a defining feature of his career. “If I played the Bulls [for the Crusaders] in rugby, I wanted to be man of the match in that game,” Thorn shared with DSPN's Martin Devlin. His zeal for confrontation was unmatched, especially in high-stakes settings like State of Origin in league, and notably, Test matches on South Africa's highveld.
"You had other teams spend time talking about the haka being an advantage; you would never hear that from the Springboks."
In the realm of international rugby, Thorn admired the mutual respect and the sheer physicality of the contests with the Springboks. He likened the indoctrination of rugby greatness to a predestined calling embedded from birth in the children of New Zealand and South Africa. “When a New Zealand child is born, there’s a chip they put in his head which tells you that you want to be an All Black, and when he’s born he looks west towards South Africa,” Thorn mused. Conversely, “When a South African child is born, he gets a chip and wants to be a Springbok, and they look east.”
The confrontations were not just about tactics and skills but also about endurance and sheer will, especially when playing at altitude which brought its own set of challenges like dry throat and shorter recovery times. Thorn’s philosophy during these matches was straightforward and brutal: “Sometimes you’ll see with UFC and in the last 10 seconds, they say: ‘let’s just go, let’s swing’, and that’s the mindset with how I used to feel with the Springboks.”
Thorn's reflections not only underscore the fierce but respectful rivalry between New Zealand and South Africa but also highlight the unique cultural and physical dimensions that make rugby more than just a game when these two titans clash on the field.
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Legendary All Black Brad Thorn has opened up about his fervent rivalry with the Springboks, describing matches against them as the “ultimate battle” of his rugby career. At 50, Thorn's legacy spans both rugby league and union with a trophy-laden resume including a World Cup victory, multiple Super Rugby titles with the Crusaders, a Champions Cup with Leinster, and three NRL titles. Yet, it's his clashes with South Africa that remain etched in his memory as the pinnacle of competition.
Thorn's appetite for intense one-on-one battles became a defining feature of his career. “If I played the Bulls [for the Crusaders] in rugby, I wanted to be man of the match in that game,” Thorn shared with DSPN's Martin Devlin. His zeal for confrontation was unmatched, especially in high-stakes settings like State of Origin in league, and notably, Test matches on South Africa's highveld.
"You had other teams spend time talking about the haka being an advantage; you would never hear that from the Springboks."
In the realm of international rugby, Thorn admired the mutual respect and the sheer physicality of the contests with the Springboks. He likened the indoctrination of rugby greatness to a predestined calling embedded from birth in the children of New Zealand and South Africa. “When a New Zealand child is born, there’s a chip they put in his head which tells you that you want to be an All Black, and when he’s born he looks west towards South Africa,” Thorn mused. Conversely, “When a South African child is born, he gets a chip and wants to be a Springbok, and they look east.”
The confrontations were not just about tactics and skills but also about endurance and sheer will, especially when playing at altitude which brought its own set of challenges like dry throat and shorter recovery times. Thorn’s philosophy during these matches was straightforward and brutal: “Sometimes you’ll see with UFC and in the last 10 seconds, they say: ‘let’s just go, let’s swing’, and that’s the mindset with how I used to feel with the Springboks.”
Thorn's reflections not only underscore the fierce but respectful rivalry between New Zealand and South Africa but also highlight the unique cultural and physical dimensions that make rugby more than just a game when these two titans clash on the field.