One of the greatest All Blacks of all time, Sir Wayne “Buck” Shelford, has spoken about his sensational axing from the national team, the Bring Back Buck campaign, racism in rugby ranks and a lack of tikanga around Ka Mate.
New Zealand Rugby says while the former captain is a much loved and cherished taonga of Aotearoa rugby, they are unable to comment on rugby decisions made more than 20 years go, or the rationale behind them.
In an interview with the Herald, Shelford, Ngapuhi, claimed that once he was dropped from the All Blacks in 1990, he was quickly yesterday’s man.
“I was forgotten. I look at [my dropping] because I’m a Māori, whereas you look at the likes of Richie McCaw and Kieran Read doing all sorts of things with the All Blacks.
“I have never been invited in to talk to the All Blacks at all.”
Shelford, 65, who was a PE teacher in the Navy, became a member of the 1987 All Blacks and later took over the captaincy of the national team. He captained New Zealand during the 1987 tour of Japan and during his reign as All Blacks skipper, from 1987 to 1990, the All Blacks did not lose a game, drawing once with Australia in 1988.
Shelford’s untimely axing from the All Blacks saw a massive campaign with fans carting “Bring Back Buck” signs to All Blacks matches.
Shelford, knighted in 2021 for services to rugby and the community, was also instrumental in bringing mana back into the All Blacks’ haka, Ka Mate (written by the infamous Ngāti Toa rangatira Te Rauparaha). The All Blacks had been performing Ka Mate before all matches, but had little understanding of what the haka stood for.
He and hooker Hika Reid inspired the non-Māori players to buy into the haka the proper way and to perform and pronounce the words. They also explained to the group what Ka Mate meant to Māori and what gives that haka the mana it still holds in world sport today.
Shelford said the way the current All Blacks perform Ka Mate is rushed. He said the All Blacks perform their other haka, Kapa o Pango, with the right timing and rhythm, but they race through Ka Mate like they are going through a fast food drive-through.
“The All Blacks do their haka at the right pace but rush through Ka Mate haka,” Shelford said.
“They don’t emphasise the right words and phrases and race through it so fast. It’s like a train coming out 100 miles an hour. They try to get it over and done with as fast as possible, but that’s the way they do it.
“I don’t get asked anything.”
Shelford said despite the perceived wrongs of the past, when all is said and done, he achieved his goal and lived his dream.
“Reaching the All Blacks was my dream and very satisfying,” Shelford told the Herald.
“Once you leave, you look back and think, ‘what a great thing’.
“I was an All Black, played and coached professional rugby overseas and was travelling for coaching post-1995. It was a great lifestyle.”
He has not let his perceptions of what happened to him hold him back.
“At the end of the day, I have moved on,” Shelford said.
“I bought a business and worked hard. My wife and I took the opportunities when we could and being an All Black did open a lot of doors.”
The problem is - for many New Zealanders and Sir Wayne “Buck Shelford” - the New Zealand Rugby door has been shut since 1990.
A New Zealand Rugby spokesperson said: “New Zealand Rugby and the All Blacks hold Sir Wayne Shelford in the highest regard. He was an unbeaten All Blacks captain and a leader on and off the field during his playing days and has continued to make a positive and significant contribution to New Zealand society since, including as an ambassador for men’s health, youth suicide prevention, Māori education, and now as President of the New Zealand Returned and Services Association.
“New Zealand Rugby stands against racism in any form but cannot comment on the reasons or rationale for historical selections to national teams more than 20 years ago.”
