1949 New Zealand rugby union tour of South Africa 1949 New Zealand rugby union tour of South Africa 1949 saw the second full tour of South Africa by a representative New Zealand rugby union team (the New Zealand national rugby union team). The All Blacks achieved a record of 13 wins, 7 losses and 4 draws, and they lost the test series 4–0. The New Zealand union left Maori players out of the 30-man tour squad to meet apartheid conditions set by South Africa. "Johnny Smith, Ben Couch and Vincent Bevan ... were not considered for the South African tour because they were Maori. All three would surely have
History of the South Africa national rugby union team '99' each Lions player would attack their nearest rival player. The idea was that a South African referee would be unlikely to send off all of the Lions. At the "battle of Boet Erasmus Stadium"—one of the most violent matches in rugby history—JPR Williams famously ran over half of the pitch and launched himself at 'Moaner' van Heerden after such a call. The 1976 All Blacks tour of South Africa went ahead, and the Springboks won by three Tests to one, but coming shortly after the Soweto riots the tour attracted international condemnation and 28 countries boycotted the 1976 Summer