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The final ride for Highlanders cult hero Marty Banks
A fortuitous quarter-final berth has handed departing Highlanders first-five Marty Banks at least one more week with the club of which he has earned cult hero status.
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After pummelling the Waratahs 49-12 at Rugby Park in Invercargill on Friday night, the Dunedin-based franchise had to rely on results to fall in their favour in order to qualify for Super Rugby’s knockout stages.
With six wins, three draws, seven losses and 36 points to their name, a win without a bonus point for the Chiefs over the Rebels at AAMI Park in Melbourne immediately after the Waratahs clash would have secured the Highlanders a place in the post-season, but a 59-8 thrashing put their play-off ambitions in doubt.
Stranded in eighth place with one more fixture left in the round, the only way the Highlanders could continue their season was if the Bulls denied the Lions a single competition point during their local derby at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria.
An inspired display by Pote Human’s side in the opening and closing quarters of the match solidified the Highlanders’ place in the last eight, with talismanic playmaker Handre Pollard guiding the hosts to a 48-27 victory.
The result means that the Lions, runners-up of Super Rugby for the past three seasons, have missed the play-offs altogether, while the Highlanders have sneakily booked a date with the all-conquering Crusaders at the newly-renamed Orangetheory Stadium in Christchurch in the first of four quarter-finals this weekend.
It’s not as if Banks stayed up into the early hours of Sunday morning to watch the South African derby from New Zealand, though.
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“I’m a pretty good sleeper,” Banks said on Monday.
“I had the phone on silent, I think I found out at about eight o’clock when all the hoo-ha was coming through on the phones, but it was pretty exciting to wake up to that.
“Whatever happened in Africa was out of our control, but obviously the Bulls did us a favour, and we’re pretty grateful to be back at training on a Monday.”
The Bulls’ favour also extends Banks’ farewell party from the club, as he is one of at least a whopping 13 players leaving the franchise at the end of the campaign.
Joining the Highlanders from the Hurricanes in 2015, Banks has gone on to make 40 appearances across two stints with the club, and played key roles in two of the biggest wins in the team’s history.
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He landed a drop goal in the closing stages of the 2015 Super Rugby final against the Hurricanes, which helped the Highlanders to a 21-14 win over his former side at Westpac Stadium, and he slotted the match-winning penalty inside the final 10 minutes during the club’s famous 23-22 upset over the British and Irish Lions at Forsyth Barr Stadium two years later.
2017 was a particularly standout year for Banks, from an individual perspective.
Star pivot Lima Sopoaga was sidelined with a leg injury for the majority of the season, so it was Banks who was tasked with guiding the Highlanders around the park for nine matches straight.
He subsequently played a key role in the side’s record nine-match winning streak, impressing with his composed demeanour with ball in hand, solid distribution skills, and incredible goal-kicking accuracy.
Although they were dumped in the quarter-finals through a 17-0 defeat to the Crusaders in Christchurch – the same fixture at the same stage of the competition that the Highlanders face this weekend – Banks’ exploits didn’t go unnoticed.
That year, he was named Highlanders Fans’ Player of the Year, which confirmed his status as a cult hero figure, not just within the Highlanders region, but all across New Zealand.
There are many other reasons why he’s become such a prominent figure within the New Zealand rugby landscape throughout his unorthodox professional career.
Mingling with underworld personnel during his time in Russia at the beginning of his career, winning the Heartland Championship with home province Buller, infamously swigging a can of beer before nailing a sideline conversion during his title-winning tenure with Tasman and being the target of many a joke from teammates and friends on social media have all contributed to Banks’ unconventional story.
However, it has been with the Highlanders where he has really established his credentials, so he will be hoping to extend his loan spell from Japanese Top League club NTT DoCoMo Red Hurricanes for as long as possible as the play-offs begin on Friday.
“I just love being apart of the team,” he said.
“Every year that I’ve been here, we’ve been part of the play-offs, and it’s just an exciting time.
“The boys just really love it, and there will obviously be a few boys heading away at the end of the year, so it’s just exciting to be around guys like that and just looking forward to enjoying the time, whether it’s a week to whatever it turns out to be, it’s just an exciting time, so pretty stoked to be apart of it.”
Banks will be joined in Japan next year by current Highlanders teammates Liam Squire (NTT DoCoMo Red Hurricanes), Jackson Hemopo (Mitsubishi DynaBoars), Elliot Dixon (Ricoh Black Rams), Tevita Li (Suntory Sungoliath), Tom Franklin and Richard Buckman (both Kobe Steelers).
Others, such as Ben Smith, Luke Whitelock (both Pau), Waisake Naholo (London Irish) and Matt Faddes (Ulster), are headed for Europe, while Kiwi rivals, the Hurricanes, yesterday announced their signing of young All Blacks prop Tyrel Lomax.
With such a big exodus from Dunedin, many are fearing for what’s in store for the Highlanders in 2020, but Banks believes he and his teammates are leaving the club in good stead for the near future, especially with the anticipated arrival of a former Tasman teammate and Crusaders first-five on the horizon.
“They’ve got a couple of new guys coming down, they’ve got Mitchy Hunt, I think, off the top of my head,” he said.
“I think there will be a lot of new signings coming down here, and it’s just going to be the way New Zealand Rugby is, I guess, a lot of young guys stepping up now, and filling the void of some of the older guys moving on.
“It’s just awesome to see New Zealand footy in a good place.”
Meanwhile, Highlanders loose forward James Lentjes announced his decision to re-sign with the club and Otago for another two seasons.
The capture of the 28-year-old is a significant one for the franchise, who will be relying on his experience and expertise in a year where they will be severely lacking such attributes throughout their squad.
“We’re losing some key guys, some of our All Blacks, but it’ll be nice, it’ll be refreshing,” he said.
“We’ll have some new faces around, and sometimes you can bring in some new guys and bring in some new energy, and it’ll be an exciting year, for sure.”
Lentjes becomes just the seventh player to publicly announce his re-commitment to the Highlanders for next year, joining All Blacks Aaron Smith and Liam Coltman, as well as Marino Mikaele-Tu’u, Bryn Gatland, Teihorangi Walden and Josh McKay.
Highlanders chief executive Roger Clark said earlier this month that signings were expected to be announced in the coming weeks, with All Blacks Sevens duo Jona Nareki and Scott Gregory understood to be among the new arrivals.
Watch – Marty Banks speaks to media ahead of the Highlanders’ clash with the Crusaders:
Comments on RugbyPass
Jake White is a brilliant coach and a master in the press. This is another masterclass in media relations and PR but its also a very narrow view with arguments that dont always hold water. White wants his team to win, he wants the best players in SA and wants his team competitive. You however have to face up to the reality of a poor exchange rate and big clubs with big budgets. SA Rugby cant compete and unless it can find more money SA players will keep leaving regardless of Springbok eligibility and this happened in 2015 - 2017. Also rugby is not cricket. Cricket has 3 formats and T20 cricket is where the money is at. When it comes to club vs country the IPL is king but that wont happen because the international calendar does not clash with the club calendar in rugby. So the argument about rugby going down the same path as cricket is really a non-starter
13 Go to commentsNZ rugby seem not to have learnt anything from professional rugby. Super rugby was dying and SA left before they died with the competition. SA rugby did a u turn on their approach to international players playing overseas and such players are now selected for Bok teams. As much as each country would love to retain their players playing in local competitions, this is the way the world is evolving my friends. Move with it or stay 20 years behind the times. One more thing. NZ rugby hierarchy think they are the big cheese. Take a more humble approach guys. You do not seem to have your players best interests at heart.
3 Go to commentsBeaches? In Cardiff? Where?
1 Go to commentsHe is right , the Crusaders will be a threat. Scott Barrett, ( particularly), Fergus Burke , Codie Taylor, ( from sabbatical) etc due back soon for the Crusaders. There are others like Zach Gallagher too. People can right the Crusaders off, Top 8 , here we come !!
1 Go to commentsWe will always struggle for money to match the other sides but the least the WRU can do is invest properly in Welsh rugby. Too much has been squandered on vanity projects like the hotel and roof walk amongst others which will never see a massive return. Hanging the 4 pro sides out to dry over the last decade is now coming back to bite the WRU financially as well as on the pitch. You reap what you sow.
1 Go to commentsWhat do you get if you cross a doctor with a fish? A plastic sturgeon
14 Go to commentsWhat happened to feleti Kaitu’u? Hasnt played in a while right?
1 Go to commentsGregor I just can’t agree with you. You are trying to find something that just isn’t there. Jordie Barrett has signed until 2028. By the end of that he would have spent probably 11-12 years on Super Rugby and you say he can’t possibly have one season playing somewhere else. It is absurd. What about this scenario, the NZR play hard ball and he decides to leave and play overseas. How would that affect the competition. There seems to be an agenda by certain journalists to push certain agendas and don’t like it when it’s not to their liking. I fully support the NZR on this. Gregor needs to get a life.
3 Go to commentsHope he stays as believe he can do a great job.
1 Go to commentsMake what step up? Manie has a World Cup winner’s medal around his neck and changed the way the Springboks can play. He doesn’t have anything to prove to anyone. The win record of the Boks with him in the team is tremendous. Sacha can be wonderful and I hope he has a very succesful Bok career, but comparing him to Manie in terms of the next Bok flyhalf is very strange. Manie is the incumbent (not the next) and doing pretty incredibly.
1 Go to comments00 😍 U
1 Go to commentsSabbaticals have helped keep NZ’s very best talent in the country on long term deals - this fact has been left out of this article. Much like the articles calling to allow overseas players to be selected, yet can only name one player currently not signed to NZR who would be selected for the ABs. And in the entire history of NZ players leaving to play overseas, literally only 4 or 5 have left in their prime as current ABs. (Piatau, Evans, Hayman, Mo’unga,?) Yes Carter got an injury while playing in France 16 years ago, but he also got a tournament ending injury at the 2011 World Cup while taking mid-week practice kicks at goal. Maybe Jordie gets a season-ending injury while playing in Ireland, maybe he gets one next week against the Brumbies. NZR have many shortcomings, but keeping the very best players in the country and/or available for ABs selection is not one of them. Likewise for workload management - players missing 2 games out of 14 is hardly a big deal in the grand scheme of things. Again let’s use some facts - did it stop the Crusaders winning SR so many times consecutively when during any given week they would be missing 2 of their best players? The whole idea of the sabbatical is to reward your best players who are willing to sign very long term deals with some time to do whatever they want. They are not handed out willy-nilly, and at nowhere near the levels that would somehow devalue Super Rugby. In this particular example JB is locked in with NZR for what will probably (hopefully) be the best years of his career, hard to imagine him not sticking around for a couple more after for a Lions tour and one more world cup. He has the potential to become the most capped AB of all time. A much better outcome than him leaving NZ for a minimum of 3 years at the age of 27, unlikely to ever play for the ABs again, which would be the likely alternative.
3 Go to commentsJake White talks more sense than anything I've read in the last 5 years. Hope someone's listening.
13 Go to commentsThe Springboks tried going down the road of only picking home-based players and it was an unmitigated disaster in 2016 and 2017. Picking overseas-based players has been one of the main reason the Boks have done so well since 2018, not only because of the quality Rassie could call on, but because of the knowledge and experience those players brought into camp from England, France and Japan. With some of the big names playing abroad it also gave younger players in SA the chance to break through at franchise level. Would we have seen the emergence of a Ruan Nortje if RG and Lood were still at the Bulls? Not so sure. I understand why Jake would want to block players leaving since his job depends on good results but it’s an approach that would take Bok rugby back to the bad old days and no South African wants to see that.
13 Go to commentsExeter were thumped by 38 points. And they only had to hop on a train.
39 Go to commentsI am De Groot.
1 Go to commentsHad hoped you might write an article on this game, Nick. It’s a good one. Things have not gone as smoothly for ROG since beating Leinster last year at the Aviva in the CC final. LAR had the Top 14 Final won till Raymond Rhule missed a simple tackle on the excellent Ntamack, and Toulouse reaped the rewards of just staying in the fight till the death. Then the disruption of the RWC this season. LAR have not handled that well, but they were not alone, and we saw Pau heading the Top 14 table at one stage early season. I would think one of the reasons for the poor showing would have to be that the younger players coming through, and the more mature amongst the group outside the top 25/30, are not as strong as would be hoped for. I note that Romain Sazy retired at the end of last season. He had been with LAR since 2010, and was thus one of their foundation players when they were promoted to Top 14. Records show he ended up with 336 games played with LAR. That is some experience, some rock in the team. He has been replaced for the most part by Ultan Dillane. At 30, Dillane is not young, but given the chances, he may be a fair enough replacement for Sazy. But that won’be for more than a few years. I honestly know little of the pathways into the LAR setup from within France. I did read somewhere a couple of years ago that on the way up to Top 14, the club very successfully picked up players from the academies of other French teams who were not offered places by those teams. These guys were often great signings…can’t find the article right now, so can’t name any….but the Tadgh Beirne type players. So all in all, it will be interesting to see where the replacements for all the older players come from. Only Lleyd’s and Rhule from SA currently, both backs. So maybe a few SA forwards ?? By contrast, Leinster have a pretty clear line of good players coming through in the majority of positions. Props maybe a weak spot ? And they are very fleet footed and shrewd in appointing very good coaches. Or maybe it is also true that very good coaches do very well in the Leinster setup. So, Nick, I would fully concurr that “On the evidence of Saturday’s semi-final between the two clubs, the rebuild in the Bay of Biscay is going to take longer than it is on the east coast of Ireland”
11 Go to commentsWhat was the excuse for the other knockout blowouts then? Does the result not prove the Saints were just so much better? Wise call to put your eggs in one basket when you’ve got 2 comps simultaneously finishing.
39 Go to commentsReally hope Kuruvoli and his partner rock the Canes.
1 Go to commentsI wonder what impact Samson has had on their attack, as the team seems less prone to trundle it up the middle, take the tackle and then trundle it up again. I lost faith in the coach last year as the Rebelss looked like a 2nd/3rd rate South African team. I also disliked Gordon standing back, often ignored as the forward battle went on and on. Maybe its our Aussie way of not getting off our A***’s until the enemy is at the gate.
86 Go to comments