Norman Mbiko is probably not a name that resonates strongly here in Britain and Ireland, but the feisty scrum-half from the Western Cape, who died earlier this week, was one of the unsung heroes in the black rugby community in the 1960s and 70s who paved the way for a multi racial game in South Africa.
Mbiko, below, was a standout for the South African Rugby Board XV – the Union that administered rugby separately for the black community – from 1966 onwards and was appointed skipper in 1969.
As proud South Africans, they unashamedly called themselves the Black Springboks, but until 1972 were ...
