{{short description|None}} {{Use British English|date=April 2018}} {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2023}} [[File:1981-springbok-tour-auckland-kingsland-station.jpg|thumb|right|Police officers guarding a barbed wire perimeter around Eden Park near Kingsland railway station]]
The '''1981 South African rugby tour''' (known in New Zealand as the '''1981 Springbok Tour''', and in South Africa as the '''Rebel Tour''') polarised opinions and inspired widespread protests across New Zealand. The controversy also extended to the United States, where the South African rugby team continued their tour after departing New Zealand.<ref name = rm-1995/><ref name = tu-2013/>
Apartheid had made South Africa an international pariah, and other countries were strongly discouraged from having sporting contacts with it. Rugby union was (and is) an extremely popular sport in New Zealand, and the South African national team, known as the Springboks, were considered to be New Zealand's most formidable opponents.<ref name = hist-p2/> Therefore, there was a major split in opinion in New Zealand as to whether politics should influence sport in this way and whether the Springboks should be allowed to tour.
The dispute was similar to that involving Peter Hain in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s, when Hain's Stop the Tour campaign clashed with the more conservative 'Freedom Under Law' movement championed by barrister Francis Bennion. The police response to the protests also became a focus of controversy. Although the protests were among the most intense in New Zealand's recent history, no deaths or serious injuries resulted.
After the tour, no official sporting contact took place between New Zealand and South Africa until the early 1990s, after apartheid had been abolished. The tour has been said to have led to a decline in the popularity of rugby union in New Zealand, until the 1987 Rugby World Cup.
== Background == thumb|250px|right|A 1959 poster advertising a meeting of the Citizens' All Black Tour Association to protest against racially selected All Blacks teams touring South Africa The Springboks and New Zealand's national rugby team, the All Blacks, have a long tradition of intense and friendly sporting rivalry.<ref name=trad-rival/> From 1948 to 1969, the South African apartheid regime affected team selection for the All Blacks, with selectors passing over Māori players for some All Black tours to South Africa.<ref name=poli-sport/> Opposition to sending race-based teams to South Africa grew throughout the 1950s and 1960s, and prior to the All Blacks' tour of South Africa in 1960, 150,000 New Zealanders – 6.25% of the country's population at that time – signed a petition supporting a policy of "No Maoris, No Tour".<ref name=poli-sport/> Despite this, the tour went ahead, and in 1969, Halt All Racist Tours (HART) was formed.<ref name=tour-1973/>
During the 1970s, public protests and political pressure forced on the NZRFU the choice of either fielding a team not selected by race, or not touring South Africa:<ref name=poli-sport/> after South African rugby authorities continued to select Springbok players by race,<ref name=trad-rival/> the Norman Kirk Labour Government barred the Springboks from touring New Zealand in 1973.<ref name=tour-1973/> In response, the NZRFU protested about the involvement of "politics in sport".
On 28 March 1976, the final game of ex-All Black Fergie McCormick was played at Lancaster Park in Christchurch, to which two Springbok players had been invited. Ten days before the game, protesters had written "WELCOME TO RACIST GAME" in 20-foot high letters on the pitch using weed-killer.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Say it in acid |url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/press/1976/03/19/1 |access-date=2 March 2023 |website=paperspast.natlib.govt.nz}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=29 March 1976 |title=Message with a difference |work=The Press |url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19760329.2.174}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=WELCOME TO RACIST GAME |url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/press/1976/03/20/1 |access-date=2 March 2023 |website=paperspast.natlib.govt.nz}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Film, activism and cabbages |url=https://www.ngataonga.org.nz/explore-stories/stories/film/film-activism-and-cabbages/ |access-date=2025-07-30 |website=www.ngataonga.org.nz |language=en-NZ}}</ref>
The All Blacks toured South Africa in 1976 with the blessing of the newly elected New Zealand prime minister, Robert Muldoon.<ref name="close-chpt" /> In response, 25 African nations boycotted the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal,<ref name="olym-1976" /> stating that in their view the All Blacks tour gave tacit support to the apartheid regime in South Africa: the IOC declined to ban New Zealand from the Olympics on the grounds that rugby union was no longer an Olympic sport. The tour attracted several anti-apartheid protests in New Zealand, including one on 28 May 1976 in Cathedral Square, Christchurch, which attracted 1000–1500 people and included guerrilla theatre.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Rally in Cathedral square |url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/press/1976/05/29/1 |access-date=2 March 2023 |website=paperspast.natlib.govt.nz}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=29 May 1976 |title=1500 in City Protest |pages=15 |work=Christchurch Star}}</ref> Protesters also attempted to disrupt television coverage of the first test by vandalising the Makara Hill microwave station in Wellington, which was responsible for relaying programming in and out of TV One's Avalon studios.<ref>{{Cite news |date=26 July 1976 |title=Saboteurs try to cut rugby TV coverage |pages=1 |work=The Press |url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19760726.2.2}}</ref>
The 1976 tour contributed to the creation of the Gleneagles Agreement that was adopted by the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 1977,<ref name="gleneagles" /> wherein Commonwealth heads of state agreed to discourage competition with sporting teams from South Africa.
== Tour of New Zealand == [[File:1981-springbok-tour-auckland-entry-to-ground.jpg|thumb|right|Entry to Eden Park before the Auckland test match]]
By the early 1980s, the pressure from other countries and from protest groups in New Zealand such as HART reached a head when the NZRFU proposed a Springbok tour for 1981. This became a topic of political contention due to the international sports boycott. After the Australian Prime Minister, Malcolm Fraser, refused permission for the Springboks' aircraft to refuel in Australia,<ref name="SMH_cricket">{{cite web | title = When talk of racism is just not cricket | work =The Sydney Morning Herald | date = 16 December 2005 | url = http://www.smh.com.au/news/opinion/when-talk-of-racism-is-just-not-cricket/2005/12/15/1134500961607.html | access-date = 19 August 2007 }}</ref> the Springboks' flights to and from New Zealand went via Los Angeles and Hawaii.{{sfn|Chapple|1984|page=60}}
thumb|Anti-tour poster from Wellington
Despite pressure for the Muldoon government to cancel the tour, permission was granted for it, and the Springboks arrived in New Zealand on 19 July 1981. Since 1977 Muldoon's government had been a party to the Gleneagles Agreement, in which the countries of the Commonwealth accepted that it was: <blockquote>the urgent duty of each of their Governments vigorously to combat the evil of apartheid by withholding any form of support for, and by taking every practical step to discourage contact or competition by their nationals with sporting organisations, teams or sportsmen from South Africa or from any other country where sports are organised on the basis of race, colour or ethnic origin.</blockquote>
Despite this, Muldoon also argued that New Zealand was a free and democratic country, and that "politics should stay out of sport". In the years following the Gleneagles Agreement, it seemed that New Zealand government members did not feel bound to the Gleneagles agreement, and disregarded it. However, some historians claim that, "the [Gleneagles] agreement remained vague enough to avoid the New Zealand government from having to use coercive powers such as withdrawing visas and passports."<ref name=:1>{{cite web|url=https://researchonline.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/100966/ |title=The whole world's watching|website=LSE Research Online|access-date=31 May 2023}}</ref> This means Muldoon's government technically was not bound to the agreement to the extent it outwardly appeared to the public. In addition to this, Ben Couch, who was the minister for Māori development at the time, stated, "I believe that the Gleneagles agreement has been forced upon us by people who do not have the same kind of democracy that we have."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Looking Back – Episode 11 – Parliament On Demand |url=https://ondemand.parliament.nz/looking-back-snapshots-from-new-zealands-past/?itemId=62994 |access-date=25 May 2023 |website=ondemand.parliament.nz}}</ref>
Muldoon made some effort to discourage the tour and stated that he could see "nothing but trouble coming from this".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gleneagles Agreement |url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/1981-springbok-tour/gleneagles-agreement |access-date=25 May 2023 |website=nzhistory.govt.nz |language=en}}</ref> "A Springbok tour would dash to the ground all that has been achieved as a result of international acceptance", wrote deputy Prime Minister Brian Talboys to the chairman of the NZRFU in a further attempt to discourage the tour, "[the tour] may affect the harmonious development of the Commonwealth and international sport".<ref name=":1" />
Some rugby supporters echoed the separation of politics and sport,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/1981-springbok-tour/politics-and-sport |title=Politics and sport – 1981 Springbok tour | work = New Zealand history online |publisher=Nzhistory.net.nz |date=24 February 2009 |access-date=1 October 2009}}</ref><ref name="nzhistory1981">{{cite web|url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/1981-springbok-tour/battle-lines-are-drawn |title=Battle lines are drawn – 1981 Springbok tour {{pipe}} NZHistory.net.nz, New Zealand history online |publisher=Nzhistory.net.nz |date=24 February 2009 |access-date=1 October 2009}}</ref> while other rugby supporters argued that if the tour were cancelled, there would be no reporting of the widespread criticism of apartheid in New Zealand in the controlled South African media.
Muldoon's critics felt that he allowed the tour in order for his National Party to secure the votes of rural and provincial conservatives in the general election later in the year, which National won.<ref name="nzhistory2">{{cite web|url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/1981-springbok-tour/impact-of-the-tour |title=Impact – 1981 Springbok tour {{pipe}} | publisher=Nzhistory.net.nz |access-date=1 October 2009}}</ref> Along with Muldoon's policy of "leaving sporting contacts to sporting bodies", Muldoon also held the opinion that the disruption and division of New Zealand was not caused by the NZRFU, nor the Springboks, but the anti-tour protesters themselves.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-Salient44121981-t1-body-d40.html|title=Who Takes the Blame — A Society Divided Over the Springbok Tour {{pipe}} NZETC|website=nzetc.victoria.ac.nz}}</ref> This argument was vehemently refuted by anti-tour voices, political activist Tom Newnham claimed that the government enabled "the greatest breakdown in law and order [New Zealand] has ever witnessed."{{sfn|Newnham|1981|p=39}}
The ensuing public protests polarised New Zealand:<ref name="nzhistory2"/> while rugby fans filled the football grounds, protest crowds filled the surrounding streets, and on one occasion succeeded in invading the pitch and stopping the game.<ref name = wt-2006/>
Initially the anti-tour movement was committed to non-violent civil disobedience, demonstrations and direct action.{{Citation needed|reason=How do we know this? And 'by and large' suggests that some were keen to be violent – more detail on those people and their plans would be appreciated|date=October 2008}} As protection for the Springboks, the police created two special riot squads, the Red and Blue Squads.<ref name=police/><ref name=tvnz-2006/> These police were, controversially, the first in New Zealand to be issued with visored riot helmets and long batons (more commonly the side-handle baton).{{Citation needed|reason=How do we know they were the first in New Zealand to be issued with them, and more detail and explanation or a citation is needed as to why it was controversial.|date=October 2008}} Some protesters were intimidated and interpreted this initial police response as overkill and heavy-handed tactics.{{Citation needed|reason=How do we know this, are there interviews with the protesters? How many is 'some'?|date=October 2008}} After early disruptions, police began to require that all spectators assemble in sports grounds at least an hour before kick-off.{{Citation needed|date=October 2008}} While the protests were meant to be largely peaceful resistance to the Springbok tour, quite often there were "violent confrontations with rugby supporters and specially trained riot police".<ref name=:0>{{cite web |url=https://ourarchive.otago.ac.nz/bitstream/handle/10523/10438/%28Re%29Presenting%201981-%20Narrating%20the%20Springbok%20Tour%20-%20Revised.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |title=Narrating the Springbok Tour|website=otago.ac.nz|access-date=31 May 2023}}</ref>
At Gisborne on the day before the match anti-tour activists, including Mereana Pitman, gained access to the pitch with a vehicle and tipped broken glass on the pitch.<ref name="Gisborne protests">{{Cite web |title=Film: Gisborne game, 1981 Springbok tour {{!}} NZHistory, New Zealand history online |url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/video/gisborne-game-springbok-tour |access-date=23 May 2023 |website=nzhistory.govt.nz}}</ref> On 22 July,<ref name="nzhistory3">{{cite web |url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/1981-springbok-tour/tour-diary |title=Tour diary – 1981 Springbok tour | work = New Zealand history online |publisher=Nzhistory.net.nz |access-date=1 October 2009}}</ref> protesters managed to break through a fence, but quick action by spectators and ground security prevented the game being disrupted. Some protesters were beaten by police. From the very first match of the tour in Gisborne, protester tension levels ran high, and one protester, cartoonist Murray Ball, who was the son of an All Black, recalled that it "was strange for New Zealanders to feel so aggressive towards other New Zealanders" and that he was "scared as hell" when he came up against pro-tour defenders.<ref name="Gisborne protests"/>
===Hamilton: Game cancelled=== {{Robert Muldoon sidebar}} At Rugby Park, Hamilton (the site of today's Waikato Stadium), on 25 July,<ref name="nzhistory3"/> about 350 protesters invaded the pitch after pulling down a fence. The police arrested about 50 of them over a period of an hour, but were concerned that they could not control the rugby crowd, who were throwing bottles and other objects at the protesters.<ref name="NZhistory Hamilton">{{cite web |title=Film: game cancelled in Hamilton, 1981 Springbok tour |date=24 July 2017 |url= https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/video/game-cancelled-in-hamilton |work=NZHistory |publisher=Ministry for Culture and Heritage |access-date=13 July 2024}}</ref> Following reports that a stolen light plane (piloted by Pat McQuarrie){{sfn|Chapple|1984|pages=77–78, 91, 99–102}} was approaching the stadium, police cancelled the match.<ref name="NZhistory Hamilton"/>
The protesters were ushered from the ground and were advised by protest marshals to remove any anti-tour insignia from their attire, with enraged rugby spectators lashing out at them.<ref name="NZhistory Hamilton"/> Gangs of rugby supporters waited outside Hamilton police station for arrested protesters to be processed and released, and assaulted some protesters making their way into Victoria Street. There are many reports from protesters feeling unsafe during this protest. "It was terrifying, I don’t know how big the crowd was, but they were clearly furious .... The police looked vulnerable as they spread out around the whole ground", recollects one protester.<ref name="NZhistory Hamilton"/>
===Wellington: Molesworth Street protest=== The aftermath of the Hamilton game, followed by the bloody batoning of marchers in Wellington's Molesworth Street in the following week, in which police batoned bare-headed protesters, led to the radicalisation of the protest movement. There were many instances where the protesters feared for their safety, especially considering the violence that began on Molesworth Street, where police are said to have "behaved rather too similarly to South African police", according to Tom Newnham.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rankin |first=Elizabeth |date=January 2007 |title=Banners, batons and barbed wire: Anti-apartheid images of the Springbok rugby tour protests in New Zealand |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00043389.2007.11877076 |journal=De Arte |volume=42 |issue=76 |pages=21–32 |doi=10.1080/00043389.2007.11877076 |s2cid=127562230 |issn=0004-3389|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Former police officer, Ross Meurant, who was pro-tour, said of the Molesworth St protest: "The protestors, who so obviously lacked self-control, were that evening privy to a classic display of discipline."<ref name="Meurant 123–124">{{Cite journal |last=Meurant |first=Jacques |date=February 1987 |title=Ces lieux où Henry Dunant...''Story in stone...'' |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0020860400061155 |journal=International Review of the Red Cross |volume=27 |issue=256 |pages=123–124 |doi=10.1017/s0020860400061155 |issn=0020-8604|url-access=subscription }}</ref> This perspective of the police tactics was opposed by anti-tour activists, with claims that protesters were "savagely attacked by police", and that "police provoked violence".<ref name=":0" /> While Newnham's claims that the violence towards protesters from police was unjustified was likely true in his experience, Meurant maintained that there were protesters who intended to inflict "serious injury or disfigurement" on the police.<ref name="Meurant 123–124"/>
After this event many protesters began to wear motorcycle or bicycle helmets to protect themselves from batons and head injury.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/video/clash-on-molesworth-street-springbok-tour |title=Film: clash on Molesworth St – 1981 Springbok tour {{pipe}} NZHistory.net.nz, New Zealand history online |publisher=Nzhistory.net.nz |access-date=1 October 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | date = 24 May 2008 |author=Eddie Gay |url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10512234 |title=Minto's battered helmet to go on display at Te Papa | work =The New Zealand Herald |access-date=1 October 2009}}</ref>
The authorities strengthened security at public facilities after protesters disrupted telecommunications by damaging a waveguide on a microwave repeater, disrupting telephone and data services, though TV transmissions continued as they were carried by a separate waveguide on the tower.<ref>"Lecturer admits 1981 tour sabotage", The Press, 14 July 2001.</ref> Army engineers were deployed,<ref>{{Cite news |date=22 August 1981 |title=Relaxed Welcome for Springboks at Nelson |url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19810822.2.27 |work=The Press}}</ref> and the remaining grounds were surrounded with razor wire and shipping container barricades to decrease the chances of another pitch invasion. At Eden Park, an emergency escape route was constructed from the visitors' changing rooms for use if the stadium was overrun by protesters. Crowds of anti-tour protesters stood outside as the police were overwhelmed but the hundreds of police still managed to prevent the protesters from entering the stadium.<ref name="NZ Herald, National News">{{cite web | title = Eden Park revamp uncovers secret escape route | work = The New Zealand Herald | date=7 August 2008 | url = http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10525791 | access-date = 25 November 2014 | first=Edward | last=Gay}}</ref>
===Christchurch=== At Lancaster Park, Christchurch, on 15 August,<ref name="nzhistory3"/> some protesters managed to break through a security cordon and a number invaded the pitch.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Frahm |first=Lois |date=22 August 1981 |title=Test day [letter to editor] |url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19810822.2.87.6 |work=The Press}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite news |date=17 August 1981 |title=Demonstrators’ laughter turns to anger when batons used |url=https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19810817.2.20 |work=The Press}}</ref> They were quickly removed and forcibly ejected from the stadium by the police.<ref name=":2" /> A large demonstration managed to occupy the street adjacent to the ground and confront the riot police.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/video/police-and-the-first-springbok-test|title=The first test: Lancaster Park, Christchurch, 15 August 1981|date=9 February 2015|website=New Zealand History|publisher=Ministry for Culture and Heritage|access-date=3 August 2016}}</ref> Spectators were kept in the ground until the protesters dispersed.{{Citation needed|date=October 2008}}
===Auckland: plane invasion=== [[File:1981-springbok-tour-auckland-smoke-bomb.jpg|thumb|A smoke bomb at Eden Park]] A low-flying Cessna 172 piloted by Marx Jones and Grant Cole disrupted the final test at Eden Park, Auckland, on 12 September<ref name="nzhistory3"/> by dropping flour-bombs on the pitch, despite which the game continued.<ref>{{cite web |title=Film: the third test – 1981 Springbok tour |url= https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/video/the-third-test-auckland |website=NZHistory |publisher=Ministry for Culture and Heritage |date= |access-date=13 July 2024}}</ref> "Patches" of criminal gangs, such as traditional rivals Black Power and the Mongrel Mob, were also evident.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} (Black Power were Muldoon supporters.<ref>{{cite book | editor1-first = Kayleen M. | editor1-last = Hazlehurst | editor2-first = Cameron | editor2-last = Hazlehurst | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=JhObWrzxcWIC&q=%22black+power%22+muldoon&pg=PA249 | title=Gangs and youth subcultures | publisher = Transaction | year = 2008| isbn = 9781412824323 }}{{dead link|date=June 2011}}{{cbignore}}</ref>) A group of peaceful protestors dressed as clowns were beaten with batons by police.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=206678 |title=The code of silence over a tour's infamous bashing | work =The New Zealand Herald |date=11 August 2001 |access-date=1 October 2009 |first=Eugene |last=Bingham}}</ref> The same day in Warkworth, Dunedin and Timaru protesters stormed the local TV transmitters and shut off coverage of the game.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.odt.co.nz/opinion/whats-with-that/recalling-day-rugby-coverage-was-cut |title=Recalling the day rugby coverage was cut |newspaper=Otago Daily Times |date=28 May 2018 |first=Paul |last=Gorman}}</ref>{{sfn|Chapple|1984|pages=288–291}}
== The protest movement == Some of the protests had the dual purpose of linking racial discrimination against Māori in New Zealand to apartheid in South Africa. Some of the protesters, particularly young Māori, felt frustrated by the image of New Zealand as a paradise for racial unity.<ref name="nzhistory1981"/> Many opponents of racism in New Zealand in the early 1980s saw it as useful to use the protests against South Africa as a vehicle for wider social action.{{Citation needed|date=October 2008}} However, some Māori supported the tour and attended games.{{Citation needed|date=December 2007}} John Minto, the national organizer for HART, thought that the tour "stimulate[d] the whole debate about racism and the place of Māori in our community."<ref>{{Cite web |title=John Minto – 1981 Springbok tour {{!}} NZHistory, New Zealand history online |url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/video/john-minto-1981-springbok-tour |access-date=23 May 2023 |website=nzhistory.govt.nz}}</ref> Political activist Tom Newnham's opinion echoes that of Minto's, albeit considerably more radical, stating that "we are basically the same as white South Africans, just as racist."<ref>"Man rugby fans hated", Sunday Star Times, 13 March 1994.</ref> Some of those protesting racism in South Africa felt inclined to reflect on the racial divide in their own country, before condemning another – part-Māori rugby spectator Kevin Taylor did not join the protests because he "wanted New Zealand to fix its own issues before New Zealanders started telling other countries how to fix their problems."<ref>{{cite thesis|author=Melissa A. Morrison |title=The Grassroots of the 1981 Springbok Tour: An examination of the actions and perspectives of everyday New Zealanders during the 1981 Springbok Rugby Tour of New Zealand |url=https://ir.canterbury.ac.nz/handle/10092/14533 |location=University of Canterbury|degree=MA|doi=10.26021/4219|year=2017 |hdl=10092/14533}}</ref>
==Tour of the United States== With the American leg of the tour following directly after the events of New Zealand, further protests and clashes with police were expected.<ref name = tu-2013/> Threats of riots caused city officials in Los Angeles, Chicago, New York City and Rochester to withdraw their previous authorisation for the Springboks to play in their cities.<ref name = tu-2013/>
===Midwest=== The Springboks' match against the Midwest All Stars team had originally been intended to be played in Chicago. Following the anti-apartheid protests, it was secretly rescheduled to the mid morning of Saturday 19 September at Roosevelt Park in Racine, Wisconsin.<ref name= tjt-2013/> The clandestine strategy seemingly worked as around 500 spectators gathered to watch the match. Late in the game, however, a small number of protesters arrived to disrupt proceedings and two were arrested after a brief altercation broke out on the field.<ref name= tjt-2013/>
===Albany: pipe bomb=== The cancelled New York City match against the Eastern All Stars was moved upstate to Albany.<ref name= nyt-1981/> The long serving Mayor of Albany, Erastus Corning, maintained that there was a right of peaceful assembly to "publicly espouse an unpopular cause", despite his own stated view that "I abhor everything about apartheid".<ref name= tjt-2013/> Governor Hugh Carey argued that the event should be barred as the anti-apartheid demonstrators presented an "imminent danger of riot", but a Federal court ruling allowing the game to be played was upheld in the United States Court of Appeals. A further appeal to Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall was also overruled on the grounds of free speech.<ref name= nyt-1981/>
The match went ahead with around a thousand demonstrators (including Pete Seeger) corralled 100 yards away from the field of play, which was surrounded by the police. No violence occurred at the game but a pipe bomb was set off in the early morning outside the headquarters of the Eastern Rugby Union resulting in damage to the building estimated at $50,000.<ref name= nyt-1981/> No one was injured.
===Glenville=== The final match of the tour, against the United States national team, took place in secret at Glenville in upstate New York.<ref name= hp-2001/> The thirty spectators recorded at the match is the lowest ever attendance for an international rugby match.<ref name = rm-1995/>
== The matches == {{Infobox Tour Rugby |bodystyle = min-width:17em; max-width:25%; |team= South Africa |yearstart=1981 |name = 1981 Springbok tour |manager= Johan Claassen |captain= Wynand Claassen |matchplayed=17 |matchwon=14 |matchdraw=1 |matchlost=2 |testplayed=4 |testwon=2 |testdraw=0 |testlost=2 |opponent1= {{nrut|New Zealand}} |icon1= |played1=3 |won1 = 1 |draw1 = 0 |lost1 = 2 |opponent2= {{nrut|United States}} |icon2= |played2=1 |won2 = 1 |draw2 = 0 |lost2 = 0 }}
===In New Zealand=== {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; max-width:75%;" <!--border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="4"--> |+ Schedule of matches<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/1981-springbok-tour/tour-diary|title=Tour diary|website=nzhistory.govt.nz}}</ref> ! style="width:135px;"| Date ! style="width:120px;"| Venue ! style="width:170px;"| Team ! style="width:90px;"| Winner and score |- |Wed 22 July||Gisborne ||Poverty Bay || SA 6–24 |- |Sat 25 July||Hamilton ||Waikato ||cancelled |- |Wed 29 July||New Plymouth ||Taranaki ||SA 9–34 |- |Sat 1 August||Palmerston North ||Manawatu ||SA 19–31 |- |Wed 5 August||Whanganui ||Wanganui ||SA 9–45 |- |Sat 8 August||Invercargill ||Southland ||SA 6–22 |- |Tue 11 August||Dunedin ||Otago ||SA 13–17 |- |Sat 15 August||Christchurch ||'''New Zealand''' (1st Test) ||NZ 14–9 |- |Tue 19 August||Timaru ||South Canterbury ||cancelled |- |Sat 22 August||Nelson ||Nelson Bays ||SA 0–83 |- |Tue 25 August||Napier ||NZ Māori ||12–12 |- |Sat 29 August||Wellington |||'''New Zealand''' (2nd Test) ||SA 12–24 |- |Tue 2 September||Rotorua ||Bay of Plenty ||SA 24–29 |- |Sat 5 September||Auckland ||Auckland ||SA 12–39 |- |Tue 8 September||Whangārei ||North Auckland ||SA 10–19 |- |Sat 12 September||Auckland |||'''New Zealand''' (3rd Test) ||NZ 25–22 |}
===In United States=== {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"<!--border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="4"--> |+ Schedule of matches<ref name= tjt-2013>[http://journaltimes.com/news/local/from-the-archives-secret-site-curbs-rugby-protest/article_28d585fe-174a-11e3-b341-0019bb2963f4.html 1981: Secret site curbs rugby protest]. The Journal Times. 8 September 2013.</ref><ref name= nyt-1981>[https://www.nytimes.com/1981/09/23/nyregion/protesters-in-albany-shout-as-springboks-triumph-in-rainfall.html Protesters in Albany shout as Springboks triumph in rainfall]. ''The New York Times''. 23 September 1981.</ref><ref name= hp-2001>[http://www.houstonpress.com/news/a-test-of-the-times-6559902 A Test of the Times]. Houston Press. 13 December 2001.</ref> ! style="width:135px;"| Date ! style="width:120px;"| Venue ! style="width:170px;"| Team ! style="width:90px;"| Winner and score |- |Sat 19 September||Racine, Wisconsin ||Midwest All Stars || SA 46–12 |- |Tue 22 September||Albany, New York ||<!--Eastern Rugby Union-->Eastern All Stars || SA 41–0 |- |Fri 25 September||Glenville, New York||{{nowrap|'''{{nrut|United States}}''' (Test match)}}|| SA 38–7 |}
===Touring party===
*Manager: Johan Claassen *Assistant Manager: Abe Williams *Coach: Nelie Smith (Free State) *Captain: Wynand Claassen
{| class=wikitable ! Name !! Position !! Provincial Team !! Age<br>(in 1981) !! Height<br>(m)!! Weight<br>(kg) !!Occupation !! Caps |- | Gysie Pienaar || Fullback || Free State || 26 || 1.75 ||85 ||Development Officer || 10 |- | Johan Heunis || Fullback || Northern Transvaal || 23 || 1.85 || 85|| Serviceman || – |- | Edrich Krantz || Wing || Free State || 26 || 1.83||82|| Doctor || 2 |- | Ray Mordt || Wing || Transvaal || 24 || 1.81 ||89 || Representative || 10 |- | Darius Botha || Wing || Northern Transvaal || 26 || 1.83 || 93 || Pastor || – |- | Gerrie Germishuys || Wing || Transvaal || 31 || 1.83 || 90 || Sports officer|| 17 |- | Carel du Plessis || Centre|| Western Province || 21 || 1.84 ||85|| Student || – |- | Willie du Plessis || Centre || Western Province || 25 || 1.80 || 83|| Serviceman|| 9 |- | Errol Tobias || Centre || Boland|| 31 || 1.74 ||77|| Artisan|| 2 |- | Danie Gerber || Centre || Eastern Province || 26 || 1.85 ||90 || Clerk || 35 |- | Colin Beck || Flyhalf || Western Province || 22 || 1.80 ||82 || Student || – |- | Naas Botha || Flyhalf || Northern Transvaal || 23 || 1.79 || 73|| Sports officer || 11 |- | Divan Serfontein || Scrumhalf || Western Province || 26 || 1.67 ||64|| Doctor || 9 |- | Barry Wolmarans || Scrumhalf || Free State || 32 || 1.65 || 68 ||Development Officer|| 1 |- | Wynand Claassen || No. 8 || {{Rut|Natal}} || 30 || 1.85 ||90 || Architect|| 2 |- | Johan Marais || No. 8 || Northern Transvaal || 22 || 1.94 ||92 || Student || – |- | Thys Burger || Flanker || Northern Transvaal || 26 || 1.95 ||92 || Sports Officer || 2 |- | Burger Geldenhuys || Flanker || Northern Transvaal || 25 || 1.88 ||91 || Student || – |- | Eben Jansen || Flanker || Free State || 27 || 1.90 || 98|| Development Officer || – |- | Rob Louw || Flanker || Western Province || 26 || 1.89 ||91|| Sports Officer || 11 |- | Theuns Stofberg || Lock || Northern Transvaal || 26 || 1.95 || 105|| Physiotherapist|| 15 |- | Div Visser || Lock ||Western Province || 23 || 1.95 ||109 || Air Force Technician|| – |- | Hennie Bekker || Lock || Western Province || 28 || 2.00 ||113|| Sports officer || – |- | Louis Moolman || Lock || Northern Transvaal || 30 || 1.95 ||111|| Farmer || 12 |- | Flippie van der Merwe || Prop || South Western Districts || 23 || 1.96 || 130|| Serviceman || – |- | Ockie Oosthuizen || Prop || Northern Transvaal || 26 || 1.88 ||102 || Serviceman || 2 |- | Hempies du Toit || Prop || Western Province || 28 || 1.85 ||100 || Farmer || – |- | Henning van Aswegen || Prop || Western Province || 26 || 1.86 || 95 || Businessman || – |- | Willie Kahts || Hooker || Northern Transvaal || 34 || 1.80 || 91|| Teacher || 8 |- | Robert Cockrell || Hooker || Western Province || 31 || 1.83 ||90 || Representative || 7 |- | Shaun Povey || Hooker (tour replacement) || Western Province || 26 || 1.84 || 92 || Student || – |- | Gawie Visagie || | Scrumhalf (tour replacement) || {{Rut|Natal}} || 26 || 1.81 ||82 || Representative || – |- |}
== Aftermath == The Muldoon government was re-elected in the 1981 election losing three seats to leave it with a majority of one.
The NZRFU constitution contained much high-minded wording about promoting the image of rugby and New Zealand, and generally being a benefit to society. In 1985, the NZRFU proposed an All Black tour of South Africa: two lawyers successfully sued it, claiming such a tour would breach its constitution. A High Court injunction by Justice Casey saw the tour cancelled.<ref>{{cite web | first1=Geoff | last1=Adlam | url=http://my.lawsociety.org.nz/in-practice/people/obituaries/obituaries-list/rt-hon-sir-maurice-eugene-casey-1923-2012 | title=Rt Hon Sir Maurice Eugene Casey, 1923 – 2012 | publisher=New Zealand Law Society | access-date=31 December 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150122175600/http://my.lawsociety.org.nz/in-practice/people/obituaries/obituaries-list/rt-hon-sir-maurice-eugene-casey-1923-2012 | archive-date=22 January 2015 | url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | date=21 January 2012 | first1=Yvonne | last1=Tahana | url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10780155 | title=Judge's ruling halted divisive All Black tour | work=The New Zealand Herald | access-date=31 December 2014}}</ref>
Afterwards, the All Blacks would not tour South Africa until after the fall of the apartheid regime, with the next official tour in 1992. After the 1985 tour was cancelled, an unofficial tour took place a year later by a team that included 28 out of the 30 All Blacks selected for the 1985 tour, known as the New Zealand Cavaliers, a team that was often advertised in South Africa as the All Blacks and/or depicted with the Silver Fern.
After the All Blacks won the 1987 Rugby World Cup, rugby union was once again the dominant sport – in both spectator and participant numbers – in New Zealand.<ref name="87CupHealed">{{cite news| title='87 Cup healed '81 tour's wounds | newspaper =Otago Daily Times |date=18 November 2005 |last=McMurran |first=Alister}}</ref>
==In New Zealand culture == * Prominent artist Ralph Hotere painted a ''Black Union Jack'' series of paintings in protest against the tour. * Merata Mita's documentary film ''Patu!'' (1983) tells the tale of the tour from a Māori perspective.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.filmarchive.org.nz/feature-project/pages/Patu.php |title=NZ Feature Project: Patu! |publisher=New Zealand Film Archive |date=4 August 2006 |access-date=1 October 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100522022620/http://www.filmarchive.org.nz/feature-project/pages/Patu.php |archive-date=22 May 2010}}</ref> ''Patu!'' was added to New Zealand's national UNESCO Memory of the World Register in 2012.<ref name="UNESCO">{{cite web|title=PATU!|url=https://unescomow.nz/inscription/patu|website=UNESCO Memory of the World|accessdate=26 August 2020}}</ref> * Music popularly associated with the tour included the punk band RIOT 111, and the songs "Riot Squad" by the Newmatics and "There Is No Depression in New Zealand" by Blam Blam Blam.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.filmarchive.org.nz/readytoroll/view.php?id=28|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110921084612/http://www.filmarchive.org.nz/readytoroll/view.php?id=28|url-status=dead|title=The Film Archive – Ready to Roll? {{pipe}} Blam Blam Blam – There is no Depression|archivedate=21 September 2011}}</ref> * Ross Meurant, commander of the police "Red Squad", published ''Red Squad Story'' in 1982, giving a conservative view. {{ISBN|978-0-908630-06-6}} * The TVNZ 1980s police drama ''Mortimer's Patch'' included a flashback episode of the (younger) main character's tour police duties * In 1984 Geoff Chapple wrote the book ''1981: The Tour'', chronicling the events from the protesters' perspective. {{ISBN|978-0-589-01534-3}} * In 1999 Glenn Wood's biography ''Cop Out'' covered the tour from the perspective of a frontline policeman. {{ISBN|978-0-908704-89-7}} * David Hill's book ''The Name of the Game'' is the story of a schoolboy's personal struggles during the tour. {{ISBN|978-0-908783-63-2}} * Tom Newnham's book ''By Batons And Barbed Wire'' is one of the largest collections of photos and general information of the protest movement during the tour. {{ISBN|978-0-473-00253-4}} (hardback). {{ISBN|978-0-473-00112-4}} (paperback) * The documentary ''1981: A Country at War'' chronicled the tour from various perspectives.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.filmarchive.org.nz/archive_presents/1981/1981.html |title=1981: Hitting the Road |publisher=New Zealand Film Archive |access-date=1 October 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090809224720/http://www.filmarchive.org.nz/archive_presents/1981/1981.html |archive-date=9 August 2009 }}</ref> * Te Papa has objects related to the tour including images, helmets<ref>{{cite web | title = Helmet | work = Collections Online | publisher = Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa | url = http://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/objectdetails.aspx?oid=840297 | access-date = 20 November 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title = Helmet | work = Collections Online | publisher = Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa | url = http://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/objectdetails.aspx?oid=765677 | access-date = 20 November 2010}}</ref> and an entrance ticket.<ref>{{cite web | title = Ticket to Springboks versus Waikato rugby game at Rugby Park in Hamilton on 25 July 1981 | work = Collections Online | publisher = Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa | url = http://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/objectdetails.aspx?oid=914479 | access-date = 20 November 2010}}</ref> The exhibition ''Slice of Heaven: 20th Century Aotearoa'' has a section about the tour.<ref>{{cite web | title = 1981 Springbok tour | work = Slice of Heaven – Diversity & civil rights | publisher = Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa | url = http://www.tepapa.govt.nz/WhatsOn/exhibitions/SliceofHeaven/Exhibition/Diversity/Pages/1981Springboktour.aspx | access-date = 20 November 2010}}</ref> * ''Rage'', a dramatisation of the tour by Tom Scott, was filmed in mid-2011<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nzonair.govt.nz/news/newspressreleases/pressrelease_2010_12_21.aspx|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140219171519/http://www.nzonair.govt.nz/news/newspressreleases/pressrelease_2010_12_21.aspx|url-status=dead|title=NZ On Air {{pipe}} News {{pipe}} Press Releases|archivedate=19 February 2014}}</ref><ref name="Stuff.co.nz_5023086">{{cite web |url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/film/5023086/Springbok-tour-upheaval-re-enacted-with-Rage | title=Springbok tour upheaval re-enacted with Rage | last = Rothwell | first = Kimberley |date=19 May 2011 |work=Stuff: Entertainment |access-date=14 September 2011}}</ref> and was broadcast on TV One on 4 September 2011.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.tvnz.co.nz/sunday-theatre/rage-4342619 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141125041855/https://www.tvnz.co.nz/sunday-theatre/rage-4342619 | archive-date=25 November 2014 | title=Sunday Theatre {{pipe}} Television New Zealand {{pipe}} Entertainment {{pipe}} TV One, TV2 }}</ref> * ''The Engine Room'', a play by Ralph McCubbin Howell, opened at BATS Theatre in Wellington on 27 September 2011. It contrasts the stories and viewpoints of John Key and Helen Clark during the tour and the 2008 general election. * The second series of the television show ''Westside'' takes place during the events of the tour and portrays the main characters' involvement in several of the major incidents. * Uproar, a 2023 New Zealand coming-of-age comedy-drama film. In 1981, relates the story of a 17-year-old boy who supports the 1981 Springboks tour is drawn into political activism to stand up for himself, his family and his future.
== See also == {{Commons category}} {{Portal|1980s}} * 1971 South Africa rugby union tour of Australia * History of South Africa in the apartheid era * Ces Blazey * Politics and sports * Sporting boycott of South Africa
== Notes and references == <references> <ref name = tu-2013>{{cite web |date= 6 December 2013 |first= Paul |last= Grondahl |title= All eyes were on Albany and Apartheid in 1981 |work= Times Union |access-date= 13 May 2015 |url= http://blog.timesunion.com/history/all-eyes-were-on-albany-and-apartheid-in-1981/920/ |url-status= live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150513150554/http://blog.timesunion.com/history/all-eyes-were-on-albany-and-apartheid-in-1981/920/ |archive-date= 13 May 2015}} </ref>
<ref name = hist-p2>{{cite web |date= 12 June 2014 |title= All Blacks versus Springboks |publisher=nzhistory.net.nz |url= https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/1981-springbok-tour/all-blacks-vs-springboks |access-date= 13 May 2015}} </ref>
<ref name=trad-rival>{{cite web |url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/1981-springbok-tour |title= A long tradition of rugby rivalry |access-date=17 January 2007 |publisher=nzhistory.net.nz |last=Watters |first=Steve}} </ref>
<ref name=poli-sport>{{cite web |url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/1981-springbok-tour/politics-and-sport |title='Politics and sport don't mix' |access-date=17 January 2007 |publisher=nzhistory.net.nz |last=Watters |first=Steve}} </ref>
<ref name=tour-1973>{{cite web |title= Stopping the 1973 tour |url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/1981-springbok-tour/1973-springbok-tour |access-date=17 January 2007 |publisher=nzhistory.net.nz |last=Watters |first=Steve}} </ref>
<ref name=close-chpt>{{cite news |title=It's time to close the final chapter |work=The New Zealand Herald |date=20 July 2006 |first=Gregory |last=Fortuin}} </ref>
<ref name=olym-1976>{{cite news |title=On This Day 17 July 1976 |publisher=BBC |access-date=17 January 2007 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/17/newsid_3555000/3555450.stm |date=17 July 1976}} </ref>
<ref name=gleneagles>{{cite web |url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/1981-springbok-tour/gleneagles-agreement |title= From Montreal to Gleneagles |access-date=17 January 2007 |publisher=nzhistory.net.nz |last=Watters |first=Steve}} </ref>
<ref name = wt-2006>{{cite web |date= 22 July 2006 |first=Crystal |last= Ardern |title= Springbok Tour 1981 |work= Waikato Times |url= http://www.waikatomuseum.co.nz/page/pageid/2145833249 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081015091436/http://www.waikatomuseum.co.nz/page/pageid/2145833249 |archive-date= 15 October 2008}} </ref>
<ref name=police>{{cite web |date= April 2007 |title=Protest! The Voice of Dissent at the Nelson Provincial Museum |page=2 |work= Evidence |publisher= New Zealand Police Museum |url= http://www.police.govt.nz/service/museum/evidence-2007-april.pdf }} </ref>
<ref name=tvnz-2006>{{cite web |date= 4 July 2006 |url=http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/410965/774913 |title= Springbok Tour Special {{pipe}} CLOSE UP News |publisher = TVNZ |access-date=1 October 2009}} </ref>
<ref name = rm-1995>{{cite web |date= 10 April 1995 |first= Chuck |last= Miller |title= Rugby in the national spotlight: The 1981 USA tour of the Springboks |work= Rugby Magazine |access-date= 14 May 2014 |url= http://www.chuckthewriter.com/springboks.html |url-status= live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071022234657/http://www.chuckthewriter.com/springboks.html |archive-date= 22 October 2007}} </ref> </references>
== Bibliography == {{refbegin|2}}
* {{cite book| first = Don|last=Cameron| year = 1981|title= Barbed Wire Boks| publisher= Rugby Press Ltd| location = Auckland, New Zealand|isbn= 978-0-908630-05-9 }} * {{cite book | first = Geoff | last = Chapple | year = 1984 | title = 1981: The Tour | publisher = A H & A W Reed | location = Wellington | isbn = 978-0-589-01534-3 }} * {{cite book| first = Tom| last = Newnham| year = 1981|title=By Batons and Barbed Wire| publisher= Real Pictures Ltd| location = New Zealand|isbn= 978-0-473-00112-4 }} * {{cite book| first = Trevor| last=Richards| year = 1999|title= Dancing on Our Bones: New Zealand, South Africa, Rugby and Racism | publisher= Bridget Williams Books | location = Wellington, New Zealand| isbn= 1-877-242-004 }}
{{refend}}
== External links == * [http://library.christchurch.org.nz/Heritage/Posters/1981SpringbokTour/Thumbnails/ Posters at Christchurch City Libraries] * [https://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/search/springbok+tour/results Images of the events surrounding the Springbok Tour in the collection of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20060217223452/http://wairarapa.co.nz/times-age/weekly/2001/springboks_tour.html Online account] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20051028014850/http://www.pukeariki.com/en/resources/pathfinders/springbokpath.asp A time line and references] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20070321230437/http://www.aucklandcitylibraries.com/findyoursubject/generalhistory/newzealandhistory/the1981springboktourofnewzealand.htm The 1981 Springbok Tour] * [https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/1981-springbok-tour The 1981 Springbok Tour, including history, images and video (NZHistory)] * [http://digital-library.canterbury.ac.nz/awweb/uc_redirect_spbok.jsp Letters solicited from the New Zealand public after the 1981 Springbok Tour]{{Dead link|date=August 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
{{Rugby Union Tours in New Zealand}} {{South African Tours}} <!--note:this is in both this category and the 1981 in NZ sport one, as the tour's impact went beyond just sport-->
{{DEFAULTSORT:1981 South Africa Rugby Union Tour of New Zealand}} South Africa Rugby Union Tour of New Zealand, 1981 South Africa South Africa 1981 1981 Category:Race relations in New Zealand Category:Protests in New Zealand Category:Protests in the United States Category:Māori politics Category:Māori sport South Africa Rugby Union Tour of New Zealand, 1981 Category:Sports riots South Africa Rugby Union Tour of New Zealand, 1981 Category:International opposition to apartheid in South Africa South Africa Rugby Union Tour of New Zealand, 1981 Category:Rugby union controversies Category:Rugby union and apartheid tour Category:Sports scandals in New Zealand South Africa Category:1981 protests Category:1981 scandals Category:Police misconduct in Oceania Category:Law enforcement in New Zealand 1981