Book Review: Rugby at Newlands

It looks so beautiful, this wonderful history of a great rugby ground, one of the very greatest in the history of great grounds, older than Twickenham, Murrayfield and Eden Park and still where it was for its very first Test in 1891. The cover is so beautiful.

There is Newlands in the case lining in early evening with the Springboks playing the Wallabies with Table Mountain and Devil's Peak in the background, a packed, colourful Newlands with the floodlights on. And an old man's heart swells with joy and pride at the splendour of his home.

The Western Province RFU acquired the ground in 1888, played its first matches there in 1890 and its first Test in 1891. In 2015 the 50th Test was played on the ground, South Africa vs Australia. All of the 50 tests are presented in the book with full date, match report and teams. Each match is also put into its historical context, including the 1976 Test during the uprising in South Africa. Then there is the reaction to each match and its place in the rest of the series/tournament.

Many of the matches are of great historic importance, such as the first Test win, the first Series win, the non-Test when the New Zealand Imperial Services toured, the first Test in 1949 when all the Springboks were new caps and the first Test of the 1995 Rugby World Cup, though it does not include the semifinal that year when England were Lomu-ed, for the 50 Tests are Springbok Tests.

There are also interesting titbits and bigger feature articles, as the one on Paddy Mayne and the one on Okey Geffin. There are bits in which great players like Naas Botha, Frik du Preez and Willie-John McBride speak as visitors to Newlands.

The foreword to the book is by one of the great men of Newlands, Cecil Moss, the oldest living Springbok. He played his first Test in 1949 and went on to be a selector, coach and rugby savant, still as alert as ever today.

Add to the excellent text the illustrations, taken from the great collections of Hymie Sibul and Don Vale, many of them available to a general readership for the first time, and you have an excellent book, a prize possession.

There is the elephant in the room – the possibility of a move to Green Point Stadium. This book takes no side at all in this matter and was not produced as a part of a Keep Rugby at Newlands campaign. But read what people like Gareth Edwards, Frik du Preez, Divan Serfontein, Willie-John McBride have to say and indeed just savour the book and you know that rugby should stay where it is.

Title: Rugby at Newlands A History of 50 Test Matches 1891-2015

By David McLennan & Chris Schoeman with Hymie Sibul & Don Vale

Published by Burnet Media

208 pages

Hard cover

2015

Illustrated with colour throughout

ISBN9781928230212