Club Rugby’s Battlers XV

The Crowd Goes Wild television show has been running a very entertaining and thought provoking competition entitled the “Rugby Battlers XV.

The idea is to vote for 15 players who epitomise the phrase' battler', honest players who weren't quite stars but toiled away none the less. Interestingly, eight All Blacks were selected for the side. A team of ‘Battler’ non-internationals only from the last quarter of a century or so is offered below:
    
15. Warren Johnston - The fullback played 165 matches and scored 1669 points for Northland. He then went and played three seasons for Nelson Bays and retired in 2000 with over 200 provincial caps to his name. Boasting a huge left foot, Johnson was as save as houses under the high ball, but lacked the flair and speed of some of his contemporaries

14. Brent Ward - A jack of all trades, but a master of none, Ward played three positions and was an efficient finisher and accurate goal-kicker. He scored 643 points in 70 games for Auckland and also played for North Harbour and the Hurricanes, Blues and Crusaders. In 2004 he was the leading kiwi try scorer in Super Rugby.

13. Jason Shoemark - The nomad midfielder has played for Northland, Otago, Hawke's Bay, the Blues and the Highlanders during his long career where reliability rather than flash has been his greatest asset.  In 2009 Shoemark was a late inclusion on the All Blacks European Tour as an injury replacement. However, he remains a 'nearly' All Black as he never took the field in a game.

12. Steve Tarrant - The Temuka product played 153 games for South Canterbury and represented three different divisional selections. In 1993 South Canterbury beat Counties, Southland and Manawatu in one of their best seasons ever, the steady play of Tarrant was a big part of it. He later coached South Canterbury in the early 2000s.

11. Nigel Geany - The Wellington wing holds the record for most tries for his province in a single game with seven in a match against Wanganui in 1991. In an underperforming Wellington side of the late 1980s, Geany played 55 games and scored 28 tries.

10. Simon Porter - The fly-half was a prolific scorer for North Otago, before switching to North Harbour for a brief stint. Today he is a prominent player manager.  

9. Richard Jarman - The feisty Taranaki halfback, a nuggety pest to mark, always played with his socks down. He appeared in 82 games for the Amber and Blacks and later had spells with the Hurricanes, Manawatu and Worcester in England.

8. Errol Brain - The Manurewa man not only did he lead his Counties team to win the NPC Second Division title but he went on to be the only man to skipper Counties to consecutive NPC First Division Finals against Auckland and Canterbury respectively in 1996 and 1997. A New Zealand rep at several levels, he never made the All Blacks but was universally respected for his uncompromising play and inspirational leadership.

7. Tim Boys - The Southland openside with a long rat’s tail has played over a century of games for his province and frequently appears in top tackle stats during the Mitre 10 Cup. Prone to the occasional freakish try, Boys at 31 has just cracked Super Rugby again making the Crusaders squad for 2016.

6. Luke Brownlee - When Buller played South Canterbury this year Brownlee made a record 138th consecutive first class appearance. Buller is the smallest Union in New Zealand and Brownlee hasn't missed a game since 1999.

5. Paul Tito - Yarrow Stadium in New Plymouth was coined "the Fish Bowl" in honour of  ginger-haired Tito's committed play. He was a national rep at Under-21 and Maori level and played over 100 games for Taranaki and 84 games for the Hurricanes. A reliable lineout winner and niggly defender Tito was never quite cut out for test level, but enjoyed a fine career.  

4. Jim Coe - The Counties Iron Man played 182 games for the Steelers and made several national rep squads including the Colts, Barbarians and Maori. In fact in 1992 he was an All Black reserve who never got on the field.

3. Orcades Crawford - Veteran prop Orcades Crawford was still playing club rugby in Hawke’s Bay in 2006, aged 40. Crawford played well over 100 first-class games for Hawke’s Bay, Central Vikings and East Coast.  During his spell with East Coast, Crawford became one of a select group of players to have played against all 27 New Zealand provincial unions. A hard running ball carrier who sported a distinctive headband and always played his heart out.

2. David Latta – One of Balclutha’s favourite sons, Latta played a record 161 games for Otago. He infamously conceded a penalty in the last-minute of the 1994 Canterbury Ranfurly Shield challenge, but was a fiercely loyal and durable Otago captain.

1. Lee Lidgard - The Counties prop played well over a century of games for his province and also represented the New Zealand Maori. Never flashy, Lidgard was rock solid in the scrums and always in the engine furnace of the engine room for Counties.