Robin Brooke

The youngest of the three brothers who made significant contributions to Auckland and New Zealand Maori in the 1980s and 1990s, Robin Brooke was, in many ways, the least flashy of the trio. He certainly did not have quite the same flamboyance and flair as Zinzan, his elder brother by 22 months and with whom he played so much in the All Blacks and for Auckland and the Blues.

But Robin Brooke in his own right had special qualities. He, too, was athletic and surprisingly mobile in the open. But as a lock he was more of a workhorse and his power in scrummaging and in other forward aspects made him an invaluable member of All Black packs.

There was a strong belief into the mid to late 1990s that any below-par All Black pack performance almost invariably coincided when Brooke was either injured or unavailable. So much so that, for example, there were frantic efforts to get Brooke, as well as Zinzan, over their respective injuries so that they could take their places in the 1995 World Cup tournament.

Brooke’s longest absences from the All Blacks came on the 1993 tour of England and Scotland when, because of a calf injury he did not play a match and won the nickname, “Foodbill,” and during the 1994 season. Significantly, four of the six tests in which Brooke was absent in this period were lost.

As were his brothers, Robin excelled as a rugby player on the family farm near Warkworth and was chosen from the small Mahurangi College for the 1984 national secondary schools side coached by Graham Henry.

But though he was a New Zealand Colts player by 1987, Robin Brooke took a surprising amount of time to break into both the Auckland and All Black sides. In the Auckland side he had to beat his brother Martin, Gary Whetton and Mata’afa Keenan for a regular locking spot. And in the early 1990s the All Blacks’ preferred locks were Whetton and Ian Jones.

Laurie Mains gave Robin Brooke his first chance at All Black level, selecting him and another Aucklander, Olo Brown, for their test debuts against Ireland in 1992. Ironically, at the time of his test promotion, his illustrious brother Zinzan was struggling to win the favour of Mains and his new coaching and selection regime.

But soon both Brookes were stalwart members of Mains’ pack and when the coach finished his stint with the All Blacks at the end of the 1995 season it was the brothers who placed Mains on their shoulders and carried him from the field.

Brooke’s role in the All Blacks continued when John Hart succeeded Mains and he was one of a magnificent pack which in 1996 helped the All Blacks make history by becoming the first to win a test series on South African soil.

From the mid to late 1990s Brooke remained, too, a leading contributor to triumphs both by the Auckland provincial side at NPC and Ranfurly Shield levels and the Blues in the Super 12, including the first two titles in 1996-97. Always an uncompromising and occasionally abrasive character on the field, Brooke also had his share of controversy and made frequent appearances before the judiciary. He and Eric Rush were ordered from the field in the infamous “Battle of Onewa Domain” NPC final in 1994 and he copped a lengthy suspension for that.

By 1998 Brooke was a senior pro in the All Blacks and been made the team’s vice captain. It was even suggested that he might have replaced Taine Randell as captain in 1999 but for controversies affecting the Blues in the Super 12. Amid some confusion and debate Randell was retained as captain.

Brooke played the last of his 62 tests for the All Blacks in the disastrous semifinal defeat to France at Twickenham and may have taken some blame for the meek surrender in the second spell. He was omitted for the third-fourth playoff five days later against the Springboks.

Brooke captained the Blues in the Super 12s of 2000 and 2001 and was in the Auckland NPC sides in those two seasons before retiring at the end of the 2001 season. But he was never considered for All Black selection again.