The black flag was a well-known symbol of a ruthless combat, symbolising giving no quarter to the enemy. In contemporary 19th-century England it was also a symbol of the plague.

In picking this colour, New Zealanders showed their marketing savvy right from the outset of All Black rugby, intentionally striving for the emotive edge, even in their dress on the field.

At the other end of the spectrum, the Springboks picked green because they already had a supply of used jerseys. Within this contrast lies the ultimate eternal difference between rugby from South Africa and New Zealand.

'The first miracle of Springbok rugby is that it repaired a war-torn country'


New Zealanders were pay-for-play professionals from their very first tours, taking a portion of the stadium's gate earning and touring for incredibly long periods of time to make a buck while competing with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, the great circuses, freaks and escapologists.

They added value to their shows with a crowd pleasing ''haka'' and fine-tuned their image to maximise returns for their pockets. These were not country New Zealanders as you'd imagine when thinking of Colin Meads - the vast majority were city slickers and out-and-out professional showmen.

Through the Boer War South Africa divided itself. Language was a great divider and rugby union a miraculous uniter. Look at these teams circa 1900 and pick the English, South African and New Zealanders:

G. Gillet, B.A Wallace, D. McGregor, E.C Booth, G.E. Smith, H. Abott, H.D Thompson, E.J Harper, B. Deans, G. Nicholson, G.C Tyler, D.Gallaher, J.H O'Sullivan, B.I Johnston, B.Cunningham, F.Roberts, J.D Corbett

C. Campbell, C. J. Caborn, T. Marshall, H. Whitfield, H. A. Swepstone, J. Hunter, S. W. Widdowson, E. Luntley, J. F. Princep, N. C. Bailey, H. McNeil, E. C. Bambridge, M. Linsay, J. Sands, F. J. Sparks, F. W. Earp, T. Brindle and W. Mosforth.

P.J Stegmann, C.Z Krige, A.J Greef, B.J Daneel, R.Brooks, Morkel, Moore, Carolin, Burger, Marthys, Roos, Le Roux, Loubser, Becker, Miller, Burmeister, Jackson, Hirsch and De Villiers.

The first miracle of Springbok rugby is that it repaired a war-torn country. The second is that it remained, unlike New Zealand's ''shamateurs'', a strictly amateur game. The third is the diversity of the members (German, Dutch, French, English and Jewish).

They ALL had to earn a living and couldn't play rugby full-time like their Aussie and Kiwi counterparts. Roos was a school teacher, De Villiers a wine-farmer, Carolin a shop-keeper, Greef a mechanic and so on and so forth. Every last one was gainfully employed.

Cecil John Rhodes, the richest man in the world at the time, insisted the Springboks remain amateurs and paid for the costs of all tours to and from early South Africa. The Springboks didn't put on a show in England, their tours were short and to the point. No gate earning were taken by South Africans and they didn't perform ''hakas'' and other party tricks to amuse the crowds.

The Springboks behaved with decorum and never questioned the referee while the All Blacks were renowned for arguing and rough unheard-of tactics.

Today, the All Blacks boast an extravagent record of success and claim to be the greatest while the Springboks look on typically amused. They have done a grand job, and it all started with an all-black jersey and a catchy song-and-dance routine.

I'm sure Black Sabbath copied their act, but I'd rather choose the real thing than some show from the South Sea Islands, no matter how well they sell it.