Rugby World Cup 2023: The Irish rugby hero who’s due a win on Sunday

Hawke's Bay's Irish 'blond bombshell' Jonathan Moffett says the odds are in Ireland's favour for Sunday's game. Photo / Paul Taylor

Irish rugby hero-turned-Hawke’s Bay orchardist Jonathan Moffett is due a win.

He hasn’t seen much of the memorabilia he gathered from his test rugby days in the 1960s, bar a few newspaper clippings, since water from Cyclone Gabrielle swept through his rural Hawke’s Bay property at shoulder height in February.

It is of course possible the 86-year-old has mislaid his jerseys and other items in his shed.

And it’s also possible that Sunday’s Rugby World Cup quarter-final clash with the All Blacks could sweep away some of the bad memories of the year’s weather events for Moffett.

“They’re the favourites to take the cup,” he says, confident the team that normally goes in as the underdogs will not only beat New Zealand but will clinch their first World Cup title ever - because this Irish team of 2023 is apples and oranges from the side the horticulture boss played halfback for in the 1960s.

Moffett played just two tests, but was noted by the Irish press in his first match against England in 1961 when he scored eight of the team’s 11 points.

‘Moffett Destroys England’ was one of the headlines that day. ‘Ballymena blond bombshell blasts Irish to victory’ was another.

“The local newspaper published an article saying that there was no truth in the rumour that Moffett had come home with a suitcase full of newspapers and left his clothes in Dublin,” he said.

Unlike the bulk of today’s rugby players, Moffett said the job didn’t stop when he was off the field or at the training ground.

“They were the amateur days when I was playing. I had to take annual leave to go to the games,” he said.

Moffett continued to work for the ministry of agriculture as a forestry official in Northern Ireland while also keeping up with his training.

After two test matches, the world beckoned and Moffett took his agriculture skills abroad, settling in New Zealand in 1963.

What started with a block of ripe Hawke’s Bay peaches in 1968 grew into Moffett Orchards Ltd, one of the largest family-owned and operated orchards in Hawkes Bay.

The 86-year-old still works in the business today, with his sons managing most of the day-to-day operations.

He’s been chairman of Fruitpackers (HB) Cooperative Ltd since 1982 and the Moffett family group is the largest shareholder, at some 35 per cent.

“I’m still working. I’m helping the boys get messages in town.”

He said he wasn’t aware of a wider Irish community in the Bay or any large-scale celebrations, but said his family will all be showing their support on match day.

“I’ll be watching the game at my son’s place on Swamp Rd,” he said.

Understandably, he’ll likely skip out on a traditional pint of Guinness considering the timing of the match at 8am (NZ time).

“Not that early in the morning.”

Mitchell Hageman joined Hawke’s Bay Today in late January. From his Napier base, he writes regularly on social issues, arts and culture, and the community. He has a particular love for stories about ordinary people doing extraordinary things.