Career Summary
Ireland and Lions second row Willie-John McBride developed into the finest lock forward of his generation and was a charismatic leader who skippered the Lions on their unbeaten tour of South Africa in 1974. McBride went on five Lions tours in total and often used to smoke a pipe as part of his pre-match ritual.
Greatest Moment
Like all great players, Willie John had a great sense of timing. He had played for Ireland 33 times at Lansdowne Road before, in his 34th and final appearance there, he scored his first and only try.
The Famous "99" Call
Arguably the best-known and most successful Lions team toured South Africa in 1974 under the esteemed Irish forward Willie John McBride. It went through 22 games unbeaten, and triumphed 3-0 (with one drawn) in the test series. The test series featured a lot of violence. The management of the Lions concluded that the Springboks dominated their opponents with physical aggression. At that time test-match referees came from the home nation, substitutions took place only if a doctor found a player unable to continue and there were no video cameras or sideline officials to prevent violent play. The Lions decided "to get their retaliation in first" with the infamous "99 call" ("99" representing a shortening of "999", the phone number in Britain and Ireland for emergency services such as the police, ambulance or fire brigade). The Lions postulated that a South African referee would probably not send off all of the Lions if they all retaliated against "blatant thuggery". Lions fullback, JPR Williams, ran over half of the pitch to launch himself at van Heerden after such a call.
