Bryan Williams lit the spark that ignited Polynesian fire

By CHRIS RATTUE

Samoan superstar Bryan Williams was for many the player who paved the way for Polynesians to make their extraordinary mark in New Zealand rugby, beginning with his brilliant performances on the All Blacks' 1970 tour of South Africa.

Yet nearly 40 years earlier, another Ponsonby player became the first Polynesian to wear the All Black jersey.

The story of loose forward Frank Solomon and his brother Dave, the great uncles of the outstanding flanker Josh Kronfeld, is an All Black enigma.

Although the Tongan-born Walter Batty, who is believed to have been from European stock, played in 1928, Frank is regarded as the first Polynesian to become an All Black.

That he should play for Ponsonby is fitting, for arguably the most famous club in New Zealand rugby has been pivotal in the rise of Polynesian players.

Frank was a teenager when his family moved to this country in 1921, and he played the first of his three test matches against Australia in Auckland 10 years later.

Frank was born in American Samoa, and Dave - a back who played in non-test All Black matches in the 1930s - was born in Fiji.

That was a curiosity in itself, but not the only one. Frank also played for New Zealand Maori as - presumably - no one bothered to check his credentials.

Sports statistician and aficionado Paul Neazor, in his Ponsonby club book entitled Passion and Pride, says: "With Islanders being something of a novelty in New Zealand back then, it was automatically assumed his skin owed its colour to Maori blood, and into the team he went."

As Williams quickly points out, Fijian Arthur Jennings played in tour matches as a lock for the All Blacks in the 1960s.

But the arrival of the Auckland-born Williams proved a watershed for Polynesian players. They would have found their place in the game anyway, but the legendary three-quarter was the first major inspiration and has remained a towering force.

Williams remembers the Solomons, who passed away in the 1990s, as regular influences at Ponsonby.

"Both Frank and Dave were very modest men. They didn't trumpet their achievements.

"The older fellas recognised what they had done, although the younger ones probably weren't too aware. From talking to players around the club, I knew what they had achieved. They were ground-breakers.

"They were probably a little bit forgotten when I made the All Blacks, although old scribes like the doyen T. P. McLean knew what had gone on.

"My first tour was to South Africa and I was not only seen as a Polynesian player, but also one of the first players with dark blood to go to [apartheid] South Africa.

"I guess that was the real focus at the time. But it had been a long time since a Polynesian had played for the All Blacks so it was good to be re-breaking new ground in the 1970s. It was good to carry on their traditions.

"As time went by, more and more Polynesian players made a name for themselves in New Zealand rugby and now it is a flood.

"I always felt comfortable in the All Blacks and was proud of my heritage, still am. It was good to be illustrating that Polynesians could play the game well and become a bit of a role model for others."

It is impossible to retrace the rise of Polynesian rugby in this country without focusing on Williams, whose flamboyant game broke the mould. His deeds as a 19-year-old on the hard South African grounds are among the most glorious in rugby's history.

Ponsonby is also a major part of the story. Neazor traces the club's influence to a meeting in a downtown Auckland billiards saloon, where recent arrivals from Western Samoa decided to form a competitive team.

Initially they played for Parnell, where they overcame obstacles including getting used to wearing boots. Traditionally, they played with bare feet strapped with bandages.

Just as all Polynesian migrants faced adjustments and hurdles, their sparkling rugby style faced suspicions in New Zealand rugby, which was built on a low-risk approach.

Neazor: "There were suspicions about players from the islands back then. It was automatically assumed each tackle would come in hard, at neck level.

"Some [players] became highly excited during matches and did silly things. There had been one or two spectacular punch-ups involving players and spectators which received bad publicity.

"Whether we like to admit it or not, there was a fairly strong racist streak in many New Zealanders. New Zealand had, historically, treated Samoa shabbily."

When Parnell folded, the Grammar, University, Grafton, Cornwall and Pt Chevalier clubs rejected the Samoan team's approaches, according to Neazor. But not Ponsonby, although the club supplied the coach.

A great tradition had begun, and Ponsonby became a centre for other Polynesian teams.

Williams' parents came to New Zealand at the beginning of World War II, a little earlier than many others, which he says helped put him at the forefront of the rugby revolution. But there was more to it than that, including his playing gifts. And some other Polynesians were content to stick with their mates in lower grades.

"I think once some of us were able to make senior teams and fly the flag, it created a bit of confidence," says Williams, whose brother Ken made an All Black trial in 1968.

Williams and clubmate Peter Fatialofa became inspirational forces for Samoan rugby, and Williams has sometimes hit out at New Zealand's treatment of Pacific Islands rugby.

He hopes the Pacific Islanders team remains - along the lines of the British Lions rather than as a yearly proposition.