WORLD RUGBY is mourning the death of one of its true sons.
Former Fiji rugby national coach George Simpkin, who helped modernise Fiji rugby and revolutionised global rugby 7s, has died. He passed away in New Zealand on Thursday after suffering from cancer.
He was 77.
Simpkin, globally, helped change the rules of 7s rugby such as using drop kicks instead of place kicks for conversions and kick-offs.
He also introduced the quick lineout throw-in, eight ball boys/girls retrieving the ball, the try-scoring team kicking off at the restart and hookers binding under the props at scrum time.
They were to speed up the game and make it more entertaining.
He is a rugby legend.
A father figure, not only on the field to those he served while he worked in Fiji. He helped groom rugby stars such as Mosese Taga, who went on to become a Fiji national rugby captain.
“Isa George, I’m saddened to learn that he has passed on,” Taga said yesterday.
“He was a friend, a father, a mentor and someone who loved Fijian Rugby very much.
“Overall he was a Fijian all over. He loved his grog and mixed very well with everyone in Fiji.
At times, you could mistake him as a local in the way he joked and behaved when around other Fijians.
He was someone you could trust and respect to get the best out of you.” Simpkin, a New Zealander, helped transform Fiji rugby.
“We did not know much about New Zealand rugby until George arrived. He was very religious with rucks and was very serious about his training sessions. He went around Fiji to find players to suit his game plan and with the assistance of the late Ratu Jo Sovau and Dr Taka, they managed to create an environment that produced great results for Fiji Rugby.
“His first Fijian word was probably “Dodonu” which means running straight at your opposition at pace and the rest to follow the ball carrier and clean up to allow quality balls to be generated for the back line to use.”
Taga said Simpkin helped expose some players at international level, improved Fiji’s playing techniques and helped Fiji reach the Rugby World Cup quarter-final in 1987.
“Rest in heavenly peace dear George! Moce mada, sota viro ni roaroa. Your memories will live on! Thanks for being part of Fiji Rugby!”
Renowned rugby commentators Graham Eden and Charlie Charters said Simpkin was the best coach to have coached Fiji.
“He was the best we ever had,” Eden said.
“His example was just superb and he was the devil who put speed into the game of 7s. He certainly injected a lot of energy into the game.
“He is one of the founding members of rugby 7s in Fiji. Everything changed when he took 7s like nobody’s business.
“He also introduced the kicking-tee which put an end to digging holes on the ground to kick conversions and kick-offs. He will sorely be missed.
“He was a coaching legend and innovator in Waikato (NZ) before he moved to Fiji and somehow became even more of a legend. So influential was he on the shape of Fiji rugby, a Ben Ryan presence before Ben Ryan, that the imperious Dr Jo Taka promised him a piece of land at Nakelo Landing whenever he made his plans to retire to Fiji,” added Charters.
“There are so many genuine accomplishments to remember him by.
“But the easiest for the average person to comprehend: it was thanks to George and his outside-the-box thinking that the IRB (now World Rugby) changed the rules to drop goals only for penalties and conversions in 7s rugby, and reversed the restart in 7s and 15s so that the team that concedes the try receives the ball from the kickoff.
“Not many people have the force of personality to bend single-handedly not just one but two sets of the laws of rugby. “That was the sort of guy George was.”
Simpkin, who started who started coaching in Waikato at the age of 22, also coached in Hong Kong, China, Sri Lanka and his home New Zealand.
