It is something that every rugby player has thought about at some point, but in this past weekend’s ITM Cup game between Northland and Southland it finally happened, as a rugby ball exploded mid-game.
You can hear an audible pop and see the ball deflate when Southland flanker Tim Boys charged down a clearance kick from Northland player Dan Hawkins.
“I got all of it,” Hawkins said of his clearance kick. “It just came off the old size-10 Nike quite nicely, I guess it’s testament to the power of my right boot.
“A few of the boys were ducking for cover. It was like being in the trenches. When it hit Tim Boys’ hands it made a noise like a shotgun going off.”
Southland ended up winning 27-18 but what of the ball? Well, it has ended up being sent to Adidas’ headquarters in Germany for analysis.
“You need a bit of luck every now and then, don’t you? It stung a bit though. I looked down and seen the seams had burst and just picked it up,” try scorer Boys said.
It would have gone over the dead ball line otherwise. When you watch the video you can hear a loud bang when I charge it down.”
It’s the same game in which Matt Talaese was red carded in the final minutes, resulting in a suspension and a chance for Southland to rob Northland of a losing bonus point, which they did. Talaese was giving a three week ban. You can view that here.
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