Rugby’s Greatest Rivals | Episode 4: Rebellion to isolation

2026-08-18

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In episode 4 of our special series on the fierce rivalry between rugby’s superpowers, we focus on the most controversial rugby tour in history: the 1986 New Zealand Cavaliers.Despite the global boycott, a group of rebel Kiwi players agree to tour South Africa. Former Springbok Schalk Burger Sr describes how he found out about the deal before any of his teammates - and why it opened a door to the players being paid. The chair of New Zealand Rugby and former World Cup-winning All Black captain David Kirk also explains his d...

In episode 4 of our special series on the fierce rivalry between rugby’s superpowers, we focus on the most controversial rugby tour in history: the 1986 New Zealand Cavaliers.

Despite the global boycott, a group of rebel Kiwi players agree to tour South Africa. Former Springbok Schalk Burger Sr describes how he found out about the deal before any of his teammates - and why it opened a door to the players being paid.

The chair of New Zealand Rugby and former World Cup-winning All Black captain David Kirk also explains his decision not to tour, and the fierce reaction amongst the NZ public when the tour went ahead.

This podcast was produced and edited by Alfie Reynolds, with help from Hope Federico, Rob Wallace, Jamie Wall and David Whisson.

Read more: Rugby’s Greatest Rivals: Springboks v All Blacks

Photo: Getty Images

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