A Great Player Passes
He was only 65 but had been ill for a long time in a battle against leukaemia, ironic for such a fit man who helped so many others to fitness.
He played in five Tests for South Africa – not many but then there were not many in the seventies and it was that much harder for a Rhodesian to be selected.
He first became a Springbok in 1974 as part of the rebuilding of the team after the trashing by the 1974 B&I Lions. He was chosen as a centre and played his first test against France in Toulouse and then his second at Parc des Princes in Paris. The Springboks won both, 13-4, the second 10-8 In each case his centre partner was Johan Oosthuizen. In 1976 the All Blacks came and Robertson played fullback against them in two Tests and centre in one. The Springboks won the series 3-1. He also played for a World XV against Cardiff that year.
Robertson was Rhodesia's Sportsman of the Year in 1976.
The year after he Prince Edward School he played first league rugby for Hararians and the next year, at the age of 19, he made his debut for Rhodesia. He moved from time to time between Rhodesia and South Africa but in all played 56 times for the land of his birth, ending as a flyhalf, between 1969 and 1979. In his last match for Zimbabwe Rhodesia he was badly injured in a tackle against Transvaal
His moves were motivated by his desire to be a Springbok, arguments with Rhodesia's rugby administration and then his need to develop a working career.
His first move was to Johannesburg when he played for Transvaal B in 1973. His second move was to Cape Town in 1975 when he played for Villagers and Western Province. In 1985, now aged 35, he played flyhalf for Pretoria Harlequins and Northern Transvaal.
Putting his achievements in perspective, he once said: "The most important day of my life was when 1 married my wife Sonia, and the next most important days of my life were the births of our two sons Brendon and Gareth. Playing rugby at international level is now therefore the fourth most important thing to have happened to me."
Ian William Robertson was born in Salisbury, Rhodesia (now Harare, Zimbabwe) on 28 April 1950. He died in Durban, survived by his wife Sonia (They were married in 1973) and their sons Brendon and Gareth and their daughter Natalie.
He was a fine player, a perfectionist, and a fine man.
