If ever a nickname summed up perfectly the sporting career of an individual it was the "Goldie" tag that members of the 1993 All Black touring team to Scotland and England bestowed on their new young star, Jeff Wilson.

Truly in New Zealand sport Wilson was a golden one for few in any generation have been as gifted and so diversely accomplished. At a time when many had decided it was a distinction no one could ever achieve again because of the overlaps of sporting seasons and ever increasing professionalism Wilson became that rare animal in New Zealand sport, the so called double All Black. That is someone who has represented the country in the premier winter code, rugby, and the leading summer sport, cricket. Wilson not only joined that select band but he achieved the dual honour while still a teenager.

His All Black debut in 1993 came just one day before his 20th birthday. Earlier that year during the 1992-93 cricket season he had played for the country in four one-day internationals against Australia. A lively medium pace bowler and hard hitting batsman in the late middle order, Wilson excelled in those matches hitting a match winning innings in the New Zealand win in the international at Hamilton.

As a schoolboy in Invercargill Wilson had also shone in other sports, in track and field where he won national and South Island secondary school titles and in basketball. And it was as a schoolboy at Cargill High School in Invercrgill that Wilson shot into early prominence. In one match for the school he scored a staggering 66 points in one match from nine tries (counting then for four points) and 15 conversions. He scored, too, a sensational try playing at fullback in 1992 for the national secondary schools side against Australia which was another early sign of his colossal potential.

Unlike other schoolboy prodigies Wilson quickly adapted to the higher levels, making his representative debut for Southland while still at school. One year later, having moved to Dunedin to become a trainee teacher, he had quickly established himself in the Otago representative side which at the time had one of the country's best provincial backlines. Among his team-mates were Stu Forster, Stephen Bachop, John Leslie, Marc Ellis and John Timu. But even in that illustrious lineup Wilson shone and a brilliant solo try enabled Otago to secure an upset win over Auckland in the NPC roundrobin match at Carisbrook. Largely on the strength of that effort Wilson edged out the great John Kirwan as the first choice right wing for the 1993 tour of Scotland and England.

In his test debut against Scotland Wilson scored three tries and kicked a sideline conversion in the All Blacks' 51-15 win. He enjoyed less fortune, though, in the international against England. The match was lost 15-9 and while he landed three penalty goals Wilson had a mixed return with his goalkicking, which was something he performed usefully but with some reluctance.

By 1994 Jonah Lomu had emerged, if only for the season's opening two tests against France, Kirwan had been restored and Timu switched from fullback to wing. Wilson only had one test appearance during the season but it was a dramatic one. In the Bledisloe Cup test played at night midweek in Sydney Wilson appeared to be heading for what would have been a spectacular matchwinning try when as he was diving to score a desperate tackle by covering Wallaby halfback George Gregan jolted the ball from his arms.

But Wilson recovered from that trauma and with Lomu gave the All Blacks a pair of contrasting but potent wings for the 1995 World Cup. For the next four seasons, with John Hart having succeeded Laurie Mains as coach, Wilson remained an automatic test selection. The only interruptions came from occasional injuries -- he often suffered from double vision -- or whether the All Blacks' game plans were better suited having him at either fullback or on the wing. That was especially so in the late 1990s when the All Blacks found themselves with a dilemma over their back three positions where there were available four world class players in Christian Cullen, Lomu, Tana Umaga and Wilson.

For the 1999 World Cup the solution seemed to be Wilson at fullback, Lomu and Umaga on the wings and Cullen at centre. That, though, fell apart in the shattering semifinal loss to France at Twickenham. Some of Wilson's finest football was at fullback and his 1997 NPC performance for Otago against Wellington at Athletic Park is rated as one of the most consummate fullback displays in memory. But wing at the highest test level was probably Wilson's best position.

He was especially lethal in the 1996-97 seasons and won an accolade from Hart at that time as the finest all round rugby player in the world. Wilson was pretty well a complete player. He could run, kick and defend and did everything with a precise, polished skill. He also had an acute appetite and instinct for scoring tries. He finished his career with 44 tries from his 60 tests, scoring nine alone from two appearances at North Harbour's Albany Stadium: five against Fiji in 1997 and four against Samoa in 1999. Though subsequently beaten by Cullen he was a for a time the country's record test try scorer, having taken the honour from Kirwan.

Wearied by some of the bitter controversies which followed the 1999 World Cup disappointment, Wilson took a break from rugby at the end of the 2000 Super 12. But he returned to the game at all levels in 2001, playing four games for the All Blacks as a wing and two at fullback. He scored another five test tries and after playing well in the 2002 Super 12 for the Highlanders looked set to continue his All Black career.

But at 28 he finally retired from the game and instead set out to revive a cricket career which had been pretty well neglected for the best part of a decade.

Profile by Lindsay Knight
for the New Zealand Rugby Museum.

FULL NAME

Jeffrey William Wilson

BORN

Wednesday, 24 October 1973 in Invercargill

AGE

36

PHYSICAL

1.80m, 94kg

POSITION

Wing and Fullback

LAST SCHOOL

Cargill High

RUGBY CLUB
(First made All Blacks from)

Harbour

PROVINCE

Otago

RUGBY NICKNAME

Goldie

ALL BLACK DEBUT

Saturday, 23 October 1993
v London & SE Division at London
aged 19 years, 364 days

INTERNATIONAL DEBUT

Saturday, 20 November 1993
v Scotland at Edinburgh
aged 20 years, 27 days

LAST TEST

Saturday, 25 August 2001
v South Africa at Auckland
aged 27 years, 305 days

ALL BLACK TESTS

60 (0 as Captain)

ALL BLACK GAMES

11 (0 as Captain)

TOTAL ALL BLACK MATCHES

71 (0 as Captain)

ALL BLACK TEST POINTS

234pts (44t, 1c, 3p, 1dg, 0m)

ALL BLACK GAME POINTS

65pts (6t, 10c, 5p, 0dg, 0m)

TOTAL ALL BLACK POINTS

299pts (50t, 11c, 8p, 1dg, 0m)

ALL BLACK NUMBER

935

The All Black Games that Wilson played.
(+) = substitute; (-) = replaced

Click on the date to be taken to the Match Card

1993

 23 Oct vs London & SE Division at London 39-12  

 30 Oct vs England South West at Redruth 19-15  

 2 Nov vs England North at Liverpool 27-21  

 7 Nov vs England 'A' at Gateshead 26-12  

 13 Nov vs Scotland 'A' at Glasgow 20-9  

 16 Nov vs Scottish Development XV at Edinburgh 31-12  

 20 Nov vs Scotland at Edinburgh 51-15  

 27 Nov vs England at London 9-15  

 4 Dec vs Barbarians at Cardiff 25-12  

1994

 17 Aug vs Australia at Sydney 16-20  

1995

 22 Apr vs Canada at Auckland 73-7  

 27 May vs Ireland at Johannesburg 43-19 (-) 

 4 Jun vs Japan at Bloemfontein 145-17  

 11 Jun vs Scotland at Pretoria 48-30  

 18 Jun vs England at Cape Town 45-29  

 24 Jun vs South Africa at Johannesburg 12-15 (-) 

 22 Jul vs Australia at Auckland 28-16  

 29 Jul vs Australia at Sydney 34-23  

 25 Oct vs Italy 'A' at Catania 51-21  

 28 Oct vs Italy at Bologna 70-6  

 4 Nov vs Languedoc-Roussillon at Beziers 30-9 (-) 

 11 Nov vs France at Toulouse 15-22 (-) 

1996

 7 Jun vs Samoa at Napier 51-10  

 15 Jun vs Scotland at Dunedin 62-31  

 22 Jun vs Scotland at Auckland 36-12 (-) 

 6 Jul vs Australia at Wellington 43-6  

 20 Jul vs South Africa at Christchurch 15-11 (-) 

 27 Jul vs Australia at Brisbane 32-25  

 10 Aug vs South Africa at Cape Town 29-18  

 17 Aug vs South Africa at Durban 23-19  

 24 Aug vs South Africa at Pretoria 33-26  

 31 Aug vs South Africa at Johannesburg 22-32  

1997

 14 Jun vs Fiji at Albany 71-5  

 21 Jun vs Argentina at Wellington 93-8  

 28 Jun vs Argentina at Hamilton 62-10  

 5 Jul vs Australia at Christchurch 30-13  

 19 Jul vs South Africa at Johannesburg 35-32  

 26 Jul vs Australia at Melbourne 33-18 (-) 

 9 Aug vs South Africa at Auckland 55-35  

 16 Aug vs Australia at Dunedin 36-24  

 8 Nov vs Llanelli at Llanelli 81-3 (-) 

 15 Nov vs Ireland at Dublin 63-15  

 22 Nov vs England at Manchester 25-8 (-) 

 29 Nov vs Wales at London 42-7  

 6 Dec vs England at London 26-26  

1998

 20 Jun vs England at Dunedin 64-22  

 27 Jun vs England at Auckland 40-10  

 11 Jul vs Australia at Melbourne 16-24  

 25 Jul vs South Africa at Wellington 3-13  

 1 Aug vs Australia at Christchurch 23-27  

 15 Aug vs South Africa at Durban 23-24  

 29 Aug vs Australia at Sydney 14-19  

1999

 11 Jun vs New Zealand 'A' at Christchurch 22-11  

 18 Jun vs Samoa at Albany 71-13  

 26 Jun vs France at Wellington 54-7  

 10 Jul vs South Africa at Dunedin 28-0  

 24 Jul vs Australia at Auckland 34-15  

 7 Aug vs South Africa at Pretoria 34-18  

 28 Aug vs Australia at Sydney 7-28  

 3 Oct vs Tonga at Bristol 45-9  

 9 Oct vs England at London 30-16  

 14 Oct vs Italy at Huddersfield 101-3  

 24 Oct vs Scotland at Edinburgh 30-18  

 31 Oct vs France at London 31-43  

 4 Nov vs South Africa at Cardiff 18-22  

2001

 16 Jun vs Samoa at Albany 50-6  

 23 Jun vs Argentina at Christchurch 67-19  

 30 Jun vs France at Wellington 37-12  

 21 Jul vs South Africa at Cape Town 12-3 (-) 

 11 Aug vs Australia at Dunedin 15-23  

 25 Aug vs South Africa at Auckland 26-15  

Points scored for the All Blacks

t

c

p

dg

pts

vs London & SE Division, 23 Oct 1993

2

-

-

-

10

vs England North, 2 Nov 1993

-

2

1

-

7

vs England 'A', 7 Nov 1993

1

-

-

-

5

vs Scotland, 20 Nov 1993

3

1

-

-

17

vs England, 27 Nov 1993

-

-

3

-

9

vs Barbarians, 4 Dec 1993

-

2

2

-

10

vs Canada, 22 Apr 1995

1

-

-

-

5

vs Japan, 4 Jun 1995

3

-

-

-

15

vs Australia, 29 Jul 1995

1

-

-

-

5

vs Italy 'A', 25 Oct 1995

1

2

-

-

9

vs Italy, 28 Oct 1995

1

-

-

-

5

vs Languedoc-Roussillon, 4 Nov 1995

-

2

2

-

10

vs Samoa, 7 Jun 1996

1

-

-

-

5

vs Australia, 6 Jul 1996

1

-

-

-

5

vs South Africa, 17 Aug 1996

1

-

-

-

5

vs South Africa, 24 Aug 1996

2

-

-

-

10

vs Fiji, 14 Jun 1997

5

-

-

-

25

vs South Africa, 19 Jul 1997

1

-

-

-

5

vs Australia, 26 Jul 1997

1

-

-

-

5

vs Llanelli, 8 Nov 1997

2

2

-

-

14

vs Ireland, 15 Nov 1997

2

-

-

-

10

vs England, 22 Nov 1997

1

-

-

-

5

vs England, 20 Jun 1998

2

-

-

-

10

vs England, 27 Jun 1998

2

-

-

-

10

vs Samoa, 18 Jun 1999

4

-

-

-

20

vs South Africa, 10 Jul 1999

1

-

-

-

5

vs South Africa, 7 Aug 1999

-

-

-

1

3

vs England, 9 Oct 1999

1

-

-

-

5

vs Italy, 14 Oct 1999

3

-

-

-

15

vs Scotland, 24 Oct 1999

1

-

-

-

5

vs France, 31 Oct 1999

1

-

-

-

5

vs Samoa, 16 Jun 2001

1

-

-

-

5

vs Argentina, 23 Jun 2001

2

-

-

-

10

vs France, 30 Jun 2001

1

-

-

-

5

vs Australia, 11 Aug 2001

1

-

-

-

5

Totals

50

11

8

1

299

Test Record by Nation

P

W

D

L

t

c

p

dg

pts

Argentina

3

3

-

-

2

-

-

-

10

Australia

14

8

-

6

4

-

-

-

20

Canada

1

1

-

-

1

-

-

-

5

England

7

5

1

1

6

-

3

-

39

Fiji

1

1

-

-

5

-

-

-

25

France

4

2

-

2

2

-

-

-

10

Ireland

2

2

-

-

2

-

-

-

10

Italy

2

2

-

-

4

-

-

-

20

Japan

1

1

-

-

3

-

-

-

15

Samoa

3

3

-

-

6

-

-

-

30

Scotland

5

5

-

-

4

1

-

-

22

South Africa

15

10

-

5

5

-

-

1

28

Tonga

1

1

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

Wales

1

1

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

Totals

60

45

1

14

44

1

3

1

234