The vote for the Class of 2009 induction into the IRB Hall of Fame moves up a gear as the names of this year’s pride of Lions are unveiled to an expectant world rugby constituency on Tuesday.
This year, the IRB Hall of Fame induction is geared towards the history of the encounters between the British and Irish Lions and South Africa – the first of which took place in 1891 with a visit of a British team.
The nominees for the 19th Century feature several of the Game’s heroes, including the legendary Scotsman Bill Maclagan, the captain of the 1891 pioneers.
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There are 10 Lions among the 20th Century nominees, including Scotland back-row giant and master of “Total Rugby” Jim Greenwood.
Born on 2 December 1928, Greenwood has achieved lasting world fame as coach, author and mentor of students at Loughborough University as well as for his remarkable feats with Scotland and the 1955 Lions in South Africa.
Greenwood won his first Scottish cap from the Dunfermline club while a student at Edinburgh University in 1952. However he then dropped out of the limelight for a couple of years while doing his National Service in the RAF , turning out infrequently for the Harlequins in London.
He returned to Scotland in 1954 and started teaching English and coaching rugby at Glenalmond, resuming his international career against France the following year.
His scintillating form in the 1955 Five Nations, but more than anything else his rugby brain and outstanding work-rate won him a place on that year’s Lions touring party to South Africa, the first ever to travel by airplane.
On a tour loaded with talented players he established himself as the leading contender for the openside back row position and played in all four Tests, scoring two tries.
It is thought that the hard South African grounds suited his style of play, though for Scotland he played most of his rugby at number 8.
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Greenwood captained Scotland until 1959, when an injury suffered against Ireland brought his playing career to an end, but not before he had led his side to a win over the 1958 Wallabies.
With his playing days behind him, Greenwood embarked on a teaching and coaching career that made him the leading and probably most influential rugby thinker of his time.
His book “Total Rugby”, first published in 1978 and four more times since, has been described as the most significant of all rugby coaching manuals.
Wayne Smith, the former All Black coach and currently Graham Henry’s assistant, said: “It took maybe 20 minutes to recognise that Jim’s way of coaching was the most effective I’d come across. I was an All Black then, and when I became the All Blacks coach I was into his methods, helped by his books.”
Greenwood travelled the world over to help Unions implement his revolutionary “Total Rugby” vision, while back at Loughborough he started coaching women’s rugby and helped the formation of the Great Britain, then England teams whom he coached and nurtured to the World Championship title in 1994.
The 20th Century list of nominees also features 14 South African players alongside Greenwood and the other nine Lions, including one from the 1910 tour, the legendary Cherry Pillman of England and four from the 1955 Lions – the first to share the series with the Springboks last century – in England’s Jeff Butterfield, Cliff Morgan of Wales, Greenwood and flying Irish wing Tony O’Reilly.
They are joined by three from the invincible 1974 tour in Willie John McBride of Ireland and Welsh duo Phil Bennett and JPR Williams, along with two from the 1980 tour in England’s Fran Cotton and Graham Price of Wales.
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Three players have been nominated in the 21st Century, including Ian McGeechan who will be hoping for a second series win in South Africa as coach when he takes his 2009 pride of Lions on tour next month.
Chris Thau is the Secretary of the IRB Hall of Fame.
