Brian McKechnie

Brian John McKechnie (born 6 November 1953) is a former "double All Black" - representing New Zealand in both rugby union and cricket. He was born at Gore in Southland and educated at Southland Boys' High School.^[2]

Brian McKechnie

Birth name	Brian John McKechnie
Date of birth	(1953-11-06) 6 November 1953 (age 71)[1]
Place of birth	Gore, New Zealand
Height	1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)
Weight	79 kg (12 st 6 lb)
School	Southland Boys' High School
Rugby union career
Position(s) First five-eighth, fullback Amateur team(s) Years Team Apps (Points) Invercargill Star () Correct as of 23 January 2007 Provincial / State sides Years Team Apps (Points) Southland () Correct as of 23 January 2007 International career Years Team Apps (Points) 1977–1981 New Zealand 26 [10 tests] ((148 [2t, 22c, 28p, 4dg])) Correct as of 23 January 2007
Cricket information
Batting	Right-handed
Bowling	Right-arm fast-medium
International information
National side	New Zealand (1975–1981)
ODI debut (cap 21)	7 June 1975 v East Africa
Last ODI	1 February 1981 v Australia
Domestic team information
Years	Team
1971/72–1985/86	Otago
1971/72–1986/87	Southland
Career statistics
Competition ODI FC LA Matches 14 50 26 Runs scored 54 1,169 168 Batting average 13.50 13.26 14.00 100s/50s 0/0 0/2 0/0 Top score 27 51 32 Balls bowled 818 8,154 1,450 Wickets 19 100 32 Bowling average 26.05 30.65 24.93 5 wickets in innings 0 0 0 10 wickets in match 0 0 0 Best bowling 3/23 4/24 3/23 Catches/stumpings 2/– 24/– 3/–
Source: Cricinfo, 2 May 2017

Rugby career

He played 26 matches for the All Blacks as a first five-eighth and fullback, most memorably being the player to kick the winning penalty goal against Wales in 1978 when Andy Haden dived out off a lineout near full-time and was apparently awarded a penalty (the referee later said the penalty was for a completely separate incident and was clearly visible in video footage) which would secure the "Grand Slam" for the All Blacks against the home country unions.

Cricketing career

As a cricketer, McKechnie was an economical right-arm pace bowler and useful lower-order batsman who played 14 one day games for the New Zealand national cricket team, including in the 1975 and 1979 World Cup tournaments in England.^[3] His last match for New Zealand was the infamous "underarm match" against Australia in 1981, when McKechnie was the batsman who faced Trevor Chappell's underarm delivery in the final ball of the match, throwing his bat away in disgust after blocking the delivery. McKechnie represented Otago in top-level domestic competitions from 1971–72 to 1985–86 and played Hawke Cup cricket for Southland until 1986–87.^[3] He later served on the national selection panel.^[4][5][6][7]

Beyond sports

With Lynn McConnell, he wrote McKechnie: Double All Black: An Autobiography (Craigs, Invercargill) in 1983.^[8]

References

1. • Brian McKechnie at the All Blacks (archived)
2. McCarron A (2010) New Zealand Cricketers 1863/64–2010, p. 86. Cardiff: The Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. ISBN 978 1 905138 98 2 (Available online at the Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. Retrieved 5 June 2023.)
3. Brian McKechnie, CricketArchive. Retrieved 13 November 2023. (subscription required)
4. "Grim prophecy fulfilled". Cricinfo. Retrieved 23 March 2017.
5. "Underhand, underarm". Cricinfo. Retrieved 23 March 2017.
6. "Australia v New Zealand 1980-81". Cricinfo. 4 February 2009. Retrieved 23 March 2017.
7. "Cricket Photos | Global | ESPN Cricinfo". Cricinfo. Retrieved 23 March 2017.
8. "McKechnie : double All Black". National Library of New Zealand. Retrieved 11 April 2024.

External links

• Brian McKechnie at ESPNcricinfo
• Brian McKechnie at the All Blacks (archived)
• Swanton, Will (23 January 2006). "25 years along, Kiwi bat sees funnier side of it". Cricket. The Age. Retrieved 27 June 2006.