Anthony Gordon Steel (31 July 1941 – 4 May 2018) was a New Zealand

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player, politician and educator.

Early years

He was born in

Greymouth Greymouth () (Māori: ''Māwhera'') is the largest town in the West Coast region in the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the Grey District Council. The population of the whole Grey District is , which accounts for % of the West Coas ...

, and played rugby first for his school,

Christchurch Boys' High School , motto_translation = I Seek Higher Things , type = State school, Day and Boarding school , gender = Boys , song = The School We Magnify , colours = Blue and Black , established = , address = 71 Straven R ...

, and then for

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

before finally playing for the

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987 ...

between 1966 and 1968. He was a part of the All Blacks

1967 New Zealand rugby union tour of Britain, France and Canada The 1967 New Zealand rugby union tour of Great Britain, France and Canada was a tour undertaken by the New Zealand national rugby union team (the All Blacks). The series consisted of 17 matches, four of Test status against international oppositi ...

. After retiring from sport due to injury, he took up

teaching Teaching is the practice implemented by a ''teacher'' aimed at transmitting skills (knowledge, know-how, and interpersonal skills) to a learner, a student, or any other audience in the context of an educational institution. Teaching is closely re ...

, first at the

Brisbane Grammar School , motto_translation = Nothing Without Labour , established = 1868 , type = Independent, day & boarding , gender = Boys , denomination = Non-denominational , slogan = , key_people = , ci ...

and then back in New Zealand. He eventually became

headmaster A head master, head instructor, bureaucrat, headmistress, head, chancellor, principal or school director (sometimes another title is used) is the teacher, staff member of a school with the greatest responsibility for the management of the school ...

Hamilton Boys' High School Hamilton Boys' High School is a boys' secondary school in Hamilton, New Zealand and is the largest secondary school in the Waikato region. The school was established as Hamilton High School in 1911 but was later split into separate boys' and gir ...

Member of Parliament

In the 1990 election, he stood for Parliament as a candidate for the National Party, defeating

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

's Bill Dillon in the Hamilton East electorate. In the 1993 election, however, he was defeated by Labour's

Dianne Yates Dianne Fae Yates (born 29 November 1943) is a New Zealand politician. She is a member of the Labour Party. Member of Parliament Yates first entered Parliament in the 1993 election, representing the Hamilton East electorate. In the 1 ...

. He regained the seat in the 1996 election, and retained it in the 1999 election, but in the 2002 election, he was defeated again by Dianne Yates. Having opted not to seek a position on National's

party list An electoral list is a grouping of candidates for election, usually found in proportional or mixed electoral systems, but also in some plurality electoral systems. An electoral list can be registered by a political party (a party list) or can ...

, Steel left Parliament. Testament to Steel's popularity in the city of Hamilton is the fact that he lost what has traditionally been regarded as a

bellwether A bellwether is a leader or an indicator of trends.bellwether
" ''Cambridge Dictionary''. Ret ...

seat by a mere 600 votes, in an election where the National Party was almost destroyed by its lowest polling result in recent history.

Death

Steel died in Hamilton on 4 May 2018.

Legacy

In 2000, an extra

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

was added at

, named Steel house, after Tony Steel. Apart from Argyle House (the boarding house), all of the other houses are also named after former Headmasters. Tony Steel also won the New Zealand 100/200metres Sprint double at the 1965-66 New Zealand Track and Field Championships representing Canterbury as well as being a member of the winning Canterbury 4x100 metres Team that took Gold

References

External links