Grant Batty

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Grant Batty
Birth nameGrant Bernard Batty
Date of birth (1951-08-31) 31 August 1951 (age 73)
Height1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)
Weight65 kg (143 lb)
School Kuranui College
Rugby union career
Position(s) Wing
Provincial / State sides
YearsTeamApps(Points)
1970 - 1975 Wellington ()
1976 - 1977 Bay of Plenty ()
International career
YearsTeamApps(Points)
1972–1977 New Zealand 15 (16)

Grant Bernard Batty (born 31 August 1951 in Greytown, New Zealand) is a former rugby union footballer. A diminutive but effective wing for the All Blacks, Batty played domestically for Wellington and Bay of Plenty. A crowd favourite, "Batts" was almost invariably the smallest man on the field. He was also nicknamed "Twinkle Toes", or "Pocket Rocket" for his small size, explosive acceleration, and fearless combative approach. His rugby career was cut short by a knee injury, leading to his retirement in 1977 at age 25.

Contents

Rugby career

"Grant Batty" a biography by Bob Howitt was published in 1977 by Rugby Press Limited (ISBM 0 9597553 0 6). This states Grant played 102 first class matches and scored 109 tries. He stated his 3 favourite tries out of the 45 he scored for New Zealand to be:

Later life

After retiring, Batty won the New Zealand edition of the televised multi-sport competition Superstars for three years running from 1977–1979.

After a failed hotel venture in the 1980s, Batty and his family moved to Australia. He coached various teams in Queensland, including a spell as assistant coach for the Queensland Reds, and in 2004-2005 he coached Japanese Top League team Yamaha Jubilo. He now lives in the small rural community of Wallabadah, New South Wales. [1]

Views of other rugby players

Chris Laidlaw likened Batty to Robert Muldoon, 'small, stunted and radiating a single message to all around him: "Don't mess with me or I'll punch your lights out."' (Rights of passage : beyond the New Zealand identity crisis : Laidlaw, Chris, Auckland, N.Z. : Hodder Moa Beckett, 1999. p. 101.)

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References

  1. Gone Bush, NZ Rugby, 1 June 2021, via pressreader