Obituary: Brian Purdy

Rugby administrator. Died aged 57.

Brian Purdy was in rugby administration, firstly with the Takapuna club, then the North Harbour union and finally the New Zealand Rugby Football Union, for only a short time.

But it was sufficient for him to achieve some mighty deeds.

A measure of the respect in which he was held was shown in the large turnout at his funeral at the North Harbour Stadium in Albany.

It was an appropriate venue as in recent years Purdy had been a member of the stadium's trust.

Among the mourners were several All Blacks, including former captains Andy Dalton and Wayne Shelford.

One eulogy came from North Harbour captain Mark Robinson, who regarded Purdy as his main off-field mentor.

Purdy, Robinson said, had included him in family gatherings and had provided him with balances - an important facet in the life of a professional sportsperson.

Educated at Takapuna Grammar, where he played in the First XV with lifelong friend, Chris Kennings, Purdy had a modest playing background, firstly as a flanker, then, because of his small physique, as a halfback.

Besides rugby he had other sporting passions such as fishing, diving, cars and martial arts in which he gained a black belt and served for many years as an instructor.

Purdy was a builder by trade and a perfectionist in his craft.

He often chided friends and colleagues for failing to keep their cars spotless.

He built a successful construction company and it was through this and his friendship with Kennings that he began an involvement with rugby in the late 1980s.

As inaugural chairman of the Harbour union, Kennings arranged a sponsorship with Purdy's company just at a time when Purdy's interest was being re-ignited in the game by his son Gavin, a promising schoolboy player at the Takapuna club.

Purdy quickly became a member of the Takapuna executive and from there became chairman of the Harbour union in 1996-2000.

Last year he displaced former chairman Richie Guy as a northern zone representative on the board of the New Zealand Rugby Union.

In the space of a year he made an impression - especially at a time when the union was seen to be becoming increasingly corporatised - for emphasising the importance of the game at grassroots.

Purdy, who died after a brief battle with cancer, is survived by his wife, son, daughter and three grandchildren.