The most incredible teacher at FirTree Middle School in Leeds during the 80s, I was lucky enough to be coached by him and taught by him for a few years alongside Tony Biscombe. He tamed his Lions, his pack, to ensure that when they were uncaged, freed, they delivered and were one. An inspiring speaker, teacher, coach and man. Thank you Geech.
Ian McGeechan is an inspiration and, what is evident from this video and the 1997 videos, a man who cares deeply about rugby and what it means as an expression of who we are--as people and players. There is a depth of feeling to this-- and reference the 1997 videos-- which is remarkable. It's inspiring, moving and respectful also to a great sport.
Such emotions involved in rugby, such commitment involved in rugby. If only 10% of the whole population in the world have these values and commitments toward whatever their life involved, the world will definitely be a better place.
This is what the Lions is about. Honour. Respect. Pride. Passion. Ian McGeechan has every one of those qualities, and that is the bare minimum we expect for anyone wearing that jersey.
they did win the game,they battered the boks and only very narrowly lost the first 2 tests , macgeechan is a very passionate man, the lions means every thing to him, he was a great rugby player and coach and a pleasant man to boot. a few tears once in a while dont hurt any one, he cares. theres nothing wrong with that, hes given most of his adult life to rugby , to both scotland and the lions and being a rugby man myself i say, well done iain and, thank you. jimmy mufcum
He is crying because he feels as if he has let everyone down, the lions had already lost the series prior to this match, he has a large history with the team, and has also played with them before, playing for the lions is the maximum honour any british or irish rugby players can get, his passion is incredible he is a true legend in the game.
Wrong. The Lions won the first two Tests. His speech was based on whether they could win 3-0. They lost the final Test 35-16 however,but still won the series
Emotional moments and prove how much Geech put into Rugby and what a legacy he leaves. He coached 89, 93, 97 and 2009 (number 2 in 2005) and he won two series and lost two series. That is a remarkable record,given the ad hoc nature of the Lions. He also comes across in his rugby work and devotion as a great, inspiring man.
Ian McGeechan is Mr Lions, he knew the team had their hearts ripped out in the way they lost the 2nd test. This was a speach from his very soul. I really hope that he is invited to be involved if only to manage the next Lions Tour.
He could have quite easily have gone 4-0 or 2-0-2 as a Lions coach. As it was, 2-2 was very special, considering he went against some incredible sides.
He's obviously a very emotional man who as we all know is passionate about sport, in particular rugby, and has dedicated much of his energy over the course of his life so far to rugby, so in a way the end of this clip shouldn't be very surprising, although I'll admit I didn't expect it.
You're right, wasn't great at either or Scotland (in coaching), but will go down as a Wasps and Lions legend, but still, like I said, he has given so much to rugby still, no one can surely deny that....., can they ?
@jimmymufc58 Think you summed it up there. These guys have get all set play, defensive patterns sorted out. Also these lads have just finished a tough season in the Northern Hemisphere.
@ForrestGunner The difference between the Boks and the lions was strength of character. Where the lions cried, the Boks emotionlessly worked on getting better. Where the lions complained to the press and referees, the Boks worked in training. Where the lions tried to manufacture a Hollywood inspired atmosphere about the occassion which made them too nervous, the Boks remained calm and saw the series for what it was, 3 games. Where the lions lost a series they could have won, the Boks won.
@ackerbee Dan C was outstanding that year. Incredible in the 2nd test. The frustrating things for the Lions was mainly missed tackles in the 2nd Test where Umaga's breakaway try knocked the stuffing out of us. But the NZ forwards had us for breakfast, especially the back row. I thought we regained some pride in South Africa, and I'm hoping we can do something very special in Australia.
@thecyberpunkten It is from the Tour DVD 'Living With The Pride' which is the sequel to 1997s 'Living With The Lions'. It is a fascinating DVD to watch and I recommend it to anyone. Until you see these DVDs, you won't understand what it means to be a Lion and how much respect it breeds/
Fourie, Steyn, Du Preez, Beast, Smit, Matfield, Smith and Brussow were hardly second string players, and the Lions had to make 8 changes from the second test team as well because of injuries and fatigue.
Have you considered that he may have simply forgotten to turn his microphone off in the emotional state he was in, I mean its not as if its a high priority in his mind to turn the microphone off.
I think the main reason he was so upset was because he feared that he would not be able to give Simon Shaw a winning Lions test jersey after such a long time.
@ratfac my friend,winning isnt everything in life,in sport it is about representing your homeland and doing your best,in the british isles this holds true,we arnt really worried if we win or lose,the pride we have in representing our nation,or in this case the british isles and ireland.the lions jersey means more to us than any series victory,as mcgeechan said in a earlier speech,we have got something that the sth africans want but can never have.THIS LIONS JERSEY.we just love rugby win or lose.
DON'T REPLY TO ME the only reason that's making me think its fake is the fact that he leaves with the microphone on , it's basic film studies but I don't think he would fake something like that
Compare Geech's speech to that of so many other rugby folks, who scream and drop f-bomb after f-bomb. Eddie O'Sullivan and Joe van Nirkerk (for Toulon), come most easily to mind.
@patergaskin There's some truth in that. The media in this country do like to hype things up and some people are a wee bit too obsessed with the heroism of playing sport - it's not necessarily much more heroic than making it through a normal day in some jobs that no one celebrates as being romantic or brave idols.
@ackerbee One of our most disappointing tours, 2005. That NEw Zealand team was utterly sensational, and we can accept defeat here. The disappointment was that we didnt make you fight or give you a fright. Usually the Lions test matches are so intense that it turns a good player into a great, and we didnt ask those sorts of questions of NZ that year. How that NZ side didnt lift the RWC in 07 I will never know. Its only the soccer fans who dont care about rugby, but they are generally inbred.
Always reminds me of this Dumb & Dumber scene. Harry… aka Rowntree in this case - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-1EzJU1Ks9NU.html Sorry Geech’s. I still love you!!
@ForrestGunner The DVD is a one sided, "music in the background" movie about how great the Lions were. It is not going to give you an objective view of the team's character. You might not like the truth my boy, but until you and your countrymen accept it and accept responsibility, you will never develop the character to beat the best. You are now dismissed.
@robsargent4 Im not talking about warmth & respect, Im talking about getting carried away in emotion. That is what the culture of British sport is all about. Not everything is a hollywood movie & not everything is fate or destiny... Thats where our sport cultures differ. We keep our feet on the ground & take responsibility. You create hype, then lose, then spin stories in the press about how gallant you were in defeat. Some of your press actually went as far as saying you'd won... Pathetic.
@patergaskin it saddens me to read your post regarding the lions and a fellow rugby enthusiast,we who love our rugby in the british isle refrain from the nasty abusive comments that so blight our football teams,winning isnt everything to us the pride of representing these islands far outweighs any series win.sadly this doesnt appear to be the case for a small minority of sth africans,fortunately the ones i met and enjoyed a beer with were not representative of their proud nation or the under 14s
@patergaskin You're right. Arguably however, the completely methodical approach of the Big 3 has taken the spirit out of the game - it's now a bit too much like the real world - like a rat race. Much of the warmth of feeling and respect between teams has gone. Somehow you're proud of that.
Well richiemav, you're entitled to your opinion, as I am to mine, unless you're actually Gaddafi posting somewhere from a hole in the ground near Tripoli, still thinking you run the place. Otherwise, I will do as you say, and encourage everyone I meet to do the same. I indeed choose to vote with my feet. You are obviously either a BL fan, or part of the structure. Your attitude and language are exactly what is wrong with BL rugby. I personally don't give a stuff about SANZAR.
i often read or hear comments by all blacks, boks and aussie that they nearly always beat the lions when they play them in the tests and often a few nasty comments come their way, let me just remind southern hem fans that the lions, travel to your own countries, play infront of hostile home support against sides that have played together often for many years, the lions meet up just 2 weeks before the tour once every 4 yr, so they do well to compete against your nations.with such mimimal prep.
@bcfsl you have perhaps the two most notorious, dirty players in the game with burger (eye gouging incidents e.g. fitzgerald and pocock - which is the most disgusting, despicable and cowardice act there is in rugby) and bakkies botha from his head butts (cowan), to stamping, eye gouging (cannon), biting, dangerous tackles (mortlock) and clearouts (duvenage). Remember what they did to bakkies?? that was the irb banning him and the springbok response was so over the top? armbands you kidding me?!
Erm the angry one is clearly you! While I respect his achievements and his standing in the game I am not impressed with his post speech antics. What has already happened is your first two comments were removed due to nature of them and your third has been flagged as spam. I don't need to reduce myself to trolling, I clearly made an observation and if it upset people then so be. It doesn't hurt my feelings if people are offended by what I think. Reply all you like as I rest my case.
SANZAR are completely out of touch with their fan base, and you clearly have no idea exactly how popular your precious Lions are or aren't. Newsflash - it's not the 1970's anymore - there are hundreds of sporting shows to watch, and the sports fan doesn't have to subject himself to the soap opera that is Lions rugby. Rugby's market share is dropping, and will continue to drop, due in no small part to the likes of these delusional BL tours - the rest of us don't care that much.
That's not a reason to cry like he lost his mother before the speech! Don't tell me because he achieved a lot it gives him the right to cry outrageously about it. Stand by what I said...PATHETIC
