Pioneers of Rugby in Wellington 079: Dick Burke

Richard ‘Dick’ Burke is one of several prominent players whose careers were curtailed by World War II, but whose playing days finished with a flourish before moving on to a meritorious coaching career.

One of the leading players in a middling University team in Wellington club rugby throughout the latter half of the 1930s, Burke is frequently praised as one of the best and most inspired players on the field when reading match reports of the day.

Burke was the original ‘tigerish’ hooker, as part of the by then three-man front row that New Zealand teams begrudgingly adopted by edict from World Rugby in the early 1930s.

In the space of a dozen years, the Hutt Valley High School educated Burke went from lower grade player to Jubilee Cup winning captain, and then on to captaining the Wellington represeantive team that same year and in his final year of playing in 1947 and subsequently into topflight selectorial and coaching roles.

Burke joined the University club in 1932 and became a Wellington Fourth A Representative. He was a third grade [more or less today’s Reserve Grade or until recently Senior 2 in Wellington] player in 1933 and was promoted to the Senior A side in 1934.

Burke’s crowning playing achievement was captaining the University team to their second Jubilee Cup title in 1946, which was a popular win given there were no expectations at the start of the season, and there was an appetite amongst the fair-weather fans for change as the same clubs had dominated throughout the war years, Athletic, Petone, Army and the combined Poneke-Oriental team.

The end of the war precipitated an influx of players back to Wellington from the armed services and they joined and re-joined the rugby clubs in droves. As such, the eight-team Senior A competition was expanded back to 12.

Burke had captained University between 1938-40 before joining the army in 1941 and returned to his home club to lead a mix of young players and some more experienced ones such as himself.

Burke had also captained the New Zealand Services side in 1945 against a New Zealand XV and had several years’ experience prior to the war as part of New Zealand Universities teams.

University opened their season with a decisive 16-6 victory over defending champions Athletic. They then lost consecutive matches to Wellington College Old Boys (9-11) and Marist (5-13) before stringing together 10 wins and a draw. Written off as a ‘bunch of college boys’ by opposing captain G.R Wales, University’s forwards tore into Athletic’s in the final and deciding match of the season and came out on top with a famous16-3 win.

John Anderson in his comprehensive history book of the University club cited the Weekly News’ reporting that “much of the success on the field of University, winners of the Wellington senior rugby championship, can be attributed to the leadership of Dick Burke…he held the pack together splendidly, and in the deciding game with Athletic he kept his forwards up to it all the way.”

Anderson continued, in his own words: “Burke was an extremely fast striker and an astute and capable captain, but he never became an All Black, probably because he was regarded as lacking in size. An unusual speciality of his was charging down fullbacks’ clearing kicks, almost literally taking the ball off their boots, and running in a try. As early as 1937 he did this to Petone’s All Black fullback Bunk Pollock.”

Six University players played for Wellington in 1946: Burke, Hal Greig, Sam Meads, Pat Murphy, Ray Shannon and Ranfurly Jacob.

Burke went on to play for Wellington in eight first-class matches in 1946 and four in 1947 before hanging up his boots. These were on top of five for Canterbury in 1935 – having moved down there for that season to attend Teachers Training College – four for Wellington between 1936-38 and five for the Army team in 1945. Combined, he played a total of 22 first-class matches.

During the war, he also played for the 7^th Brigade Group and the 4^th NZ Division teams.

Post retirement, Burke moved into team management roles and became Wellington’s sole selector in 1949 and 1950.

He co-coached (with Ken Uttley) the University team to its third, fourth and fifth Jubilee Cup titles in 1952, 1953 and 1954.

In 1956 he was the coach of the New Zealand Universities teams that won a famous victory over the Springboks, and was a NZU selector between 1958-64.

The match by NZU was their first against a full international team and was played at Wellington. Played in front of a midweek crowd of 40,000 in fine conditions, the Springboks scored a try inside the opening minute. NZU rallied to lead 6-4 at halftime and the lead changed hands a couple of times in the second spell before NZU scored late to make the winning score 22-15. The end of this match was also famous for wing Ron Jarden’s ‘try that wasn’t, having torn through the Springboks on a 65-yard weaving run to the line only to be called back for a foot in touch.

Burke died at Paraparaumu Beach on 4 October 1991.

References:

• Akers, Clive. New Zealand Rugby Register 1870-2015. New Zealand Rugby Museum, 2016.
• Anderson, John. Victoria University of Wellington Rugby Football Club. The story of the Green and Golds 1902-1987. Tolan Printing Company, Wellington, 1988.
• Chester, R.H. and McMillan, N.AC. The Visitors. The History of International Rugby Teams in New Zealand. Moa Publications, Auckland, 1990.
• Evening Post 1930s-1940s – various rugby reports.
• Swan, A.C. History of New Zealand Rugby Football, Volume 1 1870-1945. Christchurch. Whitcombe and Tombs 1948.
• Swan, Arthur C.; Jackson, Gordon F. W. (1952). Wellington’s Rugby History 1870 – 1950. Wellington, New Zealand: A. H. & A. W. Reed.