The Chum Bucket: It's another case of heartbreak for the Lions, losing the series with the last kick of the game. How are they going to cope with yet another Test Series defeat?
Reg Granite: Defeat is an ugly thing. It gnaws at you, you keep thinking about the mistakes you’ve made and the teammates you've let down. But you mustn’t get disheartened. You have to pick yourself up, get out onto the field, and do the same things all over again.
TCB: It certainly was a physical match, with the Springboks’ intentions apparent right from the start.
GRANITE: It was a damn disgrace what Burger did. There are some things you just don’t do on a rugby field. Throwing a punch, a boot to the ballbag, or a carefully concealed sock full of pool balls to the head? These are all part of the game; and I’ve got a sock full of pool balls for anyone who says any different. But what Burger did was a travesty.
TCB: Should he be banned?
GRANITE: He should be given hard labour and have his legs sawn off. He should be cut up and made into beef cutlets. He should be involved in a motorway pile up and be trapped for twelve hours just bleeding away like a leaking bottle of vermouth. Banning is just too good for him. He should be tried in a court of law and then sent to a rusty guillotine.
TCB: That sounds a bit harsh.
GRANITE: You've simply got to enforce discipline! This is rugby for crying out loud, not an organised barney between eight men outside The Barrels in Hereford after they’ve had one too many pints of rough of a Saturday night. Now there are occasions when you've got to kick, bite and chew all you can. And of course there are situations where it’s right and proper that your mouth be filled with blood, your ears be filled with screams and your hands be filled with bits of chin. We all know that there’s a time and a place for the mindless bloody evisceration of your fellow human beings and the homicidally violent extraction of psychopathically merciless revenge; but a Rugby field on a pleasant summer’s afternoon just isn’t one of them.
TCB: The injuries are mounting up for the Lions. Who do you think they’ll bring in?
GRANITE: They've got to go for class, someone who can make a real difference, someone who has that star quality which can turn a match.
TCB: Who will that be?
GRANITE: I've got no idea.
TCB: Finally, given that the Lions last won a Test Series a full eight years ago, can further tours really go ahead?
GRANITE: Absolutely. Playing on regardless is the measure of a team’s real character. You know, holding in there despite the embarrassment, the loss of pride, and the unending ridicule. Being able to carry on even though you’re being pointed and laughed at by pensioners and passing children in the street; that certainly was the hallmark of my career, and it’s what being a Lion is all about. The boys won’t be in any mood to give up, I can tell you, they’ll be just as confident as I am that they’ve got many a crushing defeat still left in them.
Reg Granite: Defeat is an ugly thing. It gnaws at you, you keep thinking about the mistakes you’ve made and the teammates you've let down. But you mustn’t get disheartened. You have to pick yourself up, get out onto the field, and do the same things all over again.
TCB: It certainly was a physical match, with the Springboks’ intentions apparent right from the start.
GRANITE: It was a damn disgrace what Burger did. There are some things you just don’t do on a rugby field. Throwing a punch, a boot to the ballbag, or a carefully concealed sock full of pool balls to the head? These are all part of the game; and I’ve got a sock full of pool balls for anyone who says any different. But what Burger did was a travesty.
TCB: Should he be banned?
GRANITE: He should be given hard labour and have his legs sawn off. He should be cut up and made into beef cutlets. He should be involved in a motorway pile up and be trapped for twelve hours just bleeding away like a leaking bottle of vermouth. Banning is just too good for him. He should be tried in a court of law and then sent to a rusty guillotine.
TCB: That sounds a bit harsh.
GRANITE: You've simply got to enforce discipline! This is rugby for crying out loud, not an organised barney between eight men outside The Barrels in Hereford after they’ve had one too many pints of rough of a Saturday night. Now there are occasions when you've got to kick, bite and chew all you can. And of course there are situations where it’s right and proper that your mouth be filled with blood, your ears be filled with screams and your hands be filled with bits of chin. We all know that there’s a time and a place for the mindless bloody evisceration of your fellow human beings and the homicidally violent extraction of psychopathically merciless revenge; but a Rugby field on a pleasant summer’s afternoon just isn’t one of them.
TCB: The injuries are mounting up for the Lions. Who do you think they’ll bring in?
GRANITE: They've got to go for class, someone who can make a real difference, someone who has that star quality which can turn a match.
TCB: Who will that be?
GRANITE: I've got no idea.
TCB: Finally, given that the Lions last won a Test Series a full eight years ago, can further tours really go ahead?
GRANITE: Absolutely. Playing on regardless is the measure of a team’s real character. You know, holding in there despite the embarrassment, the loss of pride, and the unending ridicule. Being able to carry on even though you’re being pointed and laughed at by pensioners and passing children in the street; that certainly was the hallmark of my career, and it’s what being a Lion is all about. The boys won’t be in any mood to give up, I can tell you, they’ll be just as confident as I am that they’ve got many a crushing defeat still left in them.
