Sir John Kirwan announces NFT of famous All Blacks try

Screenshot of Sir John Kirwan's NFT. Photo / Greatest Moment NFT

All Blacks great Sir John Kirwan is the latest Kiwi sports figure to get into the world of NFTs.

Thirty-five years to the day Kirwan scored the iconic Rugby World Cup try against Italy, the former All Black is releasing an exclusive digital artwork or NFT (non-fungible token) and collector's edition selection of personalised JK14 Amarone wine, which will be up for auction on an NFT platform called Greatest Moment NFT.

On May 22nd, 1987 during the All Blacks v Italy game in the first-ever Rugby World Cup, Kirwan, then only 23 years old, famously ran the length of the field, ploughing through six Italian players to score a try, taking New Zealand to its first ever half century against another team, in a match that would end 70-6 to the All Blacks.

It is one of the most celebrated tries in rugby history and together with artist Nick McFarlane abd sports NFT specialists, NFT Design Works, Kirwan has created 'The Try' - an 87-second long collectable video portrait to commemorate this historic moment, offering only 14 rugby fans and art collectors an exclusive opportunity to secure a unique piece of rugby history that unveils the backstory behind the try and the man behind the legend.

Commenting on the piece Sir John Kirwan said: "This piece of art is about more than just the try. It is a deeply personal insight into what was going through my mind at the time and the long road that led to that exact moment. It peels back the layers and shows the full story, which is something I have always struggled to explain with words."

In honour of Kirwan's jersey and 'lucky number', there will be only 14 NFTs available at the auction which kicks off from 3pm on Sunday May 29th, 2022 and the successful bidders will also secure 14 bottles of unreleased and limited edition JK14 Amarone wine, with each label displaying a unique artwork derived from the NFT portrait.

Nick McFarlane, the artist and creative director for the digital artwork and wine label design, has designed album covers for the likes of The Prodigy, but said this process was something quite unique.

"Art like this can't be created without a subject who is prepared to reveal their rawest emotion. Sir John did just that.

"The visuals are extremely striking but it's Sir John's story that unfolds throughout that is by far the most compelling part."

'The Try' is certified carbon neutral thanks to a partnership with JustCarbon – a blockchain-powered marketplace that simplifies offsetting carbon emissions and supports high-quality carbon removal projects to combat climate change. Additionally, the artwork has been minted on Mintbase, an NFT marketplace built on the Carbon Neutral certified, Near protocol, with a 'green' NFT infrastructure.

What are NFTs?

According to NZ Herald tech blogger Juha Saarinen, NFTs "are digitally signed cryptographic tokens on a database that's immutable, as in you can't delete anything from it, called a blockchain".

However, Saarinen also warns that "NFTs are by themselves hard to understand which should be enough of a warning to anyone sinking money into them".

You can read Saarinen's piece on the potential pitfalls of NFTs here.