Thorne: My heartbreak

Grahame Thorne with his son Bruce after playing together in 1995. Photo / Supplied

All Black great Grahame Thorne has spoken of his grief at losing his eldest son and "best mate" in a Christmas Eve car crash in South Africa.

Former Super 12 player Bruce Thorne, 38, died at Kroonstad, about 200km south of Johannesburg, after his car spun off the road and rolled.

Bruce's wife Siobhan and 13-month-old son Benjamin survived the impact.

It is the second blow for Thorne, coming three years after his son David suffered a stroke that left him unable to speak or function properly after a botched rugby tackle.

In an emotional interview, hours after learning of Bruce's death, the 63-year-old said he was struggling to take in the loss.

"It's just terrible, I just can't believe it. Three years ago David gets whacked, and now we've got Bruce gone," he said.

"The cards haven't fallen very well the last few years. We must have pissed someone off in spades."

Thorne said he'd been told Bruce had lost concentration or fallen asleep at the wheel.

"His wife woke up and the car was going off the road. He over-corrected and the car spun and rolled, and his seatbelt broke.

"He was just too young to leave a widow and young son. It's just so unfair."

Bruce was Thorne's only child from a previous marriage to a South African woman he met on tour.

As a 3-year-old, his mother took him to South Africa to live. The acrimonious split meant Thorne didn't see his son for 13 years.

When they reunited, Bruce was already almost 2m tall. The long separation had made them more like brothers than father and son.

"He was my best mate," he said. "We had the same sense of humour. When we went over for his wedding, my wife said, 'You're just so alike, you have the same mannerisms'."

They also shared a passion for rugby. Bruce played for South African provincial and Super 12 teams and the Junior Springboks.

He took the step up from second-grade rugby after playing with his father, a former MP, in the New Zealand Parliament team in 1995.

Thorne called the experience "one of the great thrills of my life".

Bruce was encouraged to take rugby seriously after impressing ex-All Black coach John Hart, who coached the parliamentary team.

He played one season for Narbonne in France, then made the Transvaal team, coached by former All Black coach Alex "Grizz" Wylie.

Wylie remembered him as a lively and talented player. "He was a hell of a nice guy as well, it's just a tragedy," he said.

Bruce was over the moon when Transvaal took South Africa's provincial championship, the Currie Cup, in 1999, Thorne said.

It was a repeat of his father's win with Northern Transvaal in 1971, the week after Bruce was born.

In 2000 Bruce was picked for Super 12 team the Cats, coached by Laurie Mains, another former All Black coach who said yesterday that he was devastated.

"Bruce was a committed and talented rugby player, and off the field he was just an absolute delight," he said. "He could always find a reason to smile, no matter what the circumstances. Just a thoroughly good bloke."

Thorne, who played 29 times for the All Blacks as three-quarter and second five-eighths, was planning to fly to South Africa tomorrow with daughter Hannah, one of four children he has with second wife Briony.

He said Bruce was loved by his siblings. "Hannah just adored him. They all loved him like chocolate cake."

Bruce and Siobhan, who married two years ago, had set up an employment firm together.

Siobhan was yesterday undergoing surgery for a broken elbow and broken fingers. Benjamin was unhurt in the crash.

Meanwhile, Thorne said David had been in good health after being in hospital several times last year in the aftermath of his stroke. He was learning to read and write again.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY