Former All Black captain and coach Sir Brian Lochore has died aged 78 after a battle with cancer.
Lochore is one of the true icons of New Zealand rugby having achieved it all in the game as player and coach.
Born in Masterton in 1940, Lochore loved horses and dreamed of being a jockey but soon outgrew that dream.
He got his start in first class rugby with Wairarapa Bush in 1959 before debuting for the All Blacks in 1964 aged 23.
The great coach Fred Allen handed him the captaincy in 1966 despite Lochore having just six Tests to his name.
His teammate Colin Meads would describe Lochore as being everything you would want in a number 8.
Lochore went on to be one of the great All Black captains having been in charge of one of the greatest sides in the team’s history. In 18 Tests as skipper, Lochore lost just three times.
He transitioned to coaching after a career where he played 68 games for the All Blacks, captain in 46 of them.
After starting by coaching his club side Masterton, Lochore became an All Black selector in 1983 before taking charge of the side in 1985.
Under his coaching, the All Blacks won the inaugural Rugby World Cup on home soil in 1987.
After stepping down as coach that year, Lochore stayed involved with the All Blacks, managing the team at the 1995 World Cup and then playing a role in player negotiations as rugby transitioned to the professional era.
He would return to the All Blacks in a management role in 2004 after a request from then-coach Graham Henry and was a selector as the team broke their 24-year World Cup drought in 2011.
Away from rugby, Lochore was chairman of the Hillary Commission. He also chaired the Queen Elizabeth II National Trust and served on the Sports Foundation.
Lochore was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1970. He was knighted in 1999 for services to sport and the community.
He was diagnosed with bowel cancer in June.
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