After 45 years at the Daily News, which included 32 years as sports editor in Durban and London – and eight years as entertainment editor on the Tonight section, Michael Tarr has retired. In this two-part series he looks back and chooses his 10 most memorable sporting events and occasions
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When the editor and I discussed writing this farewell article looking back at 45 years, the first question was: where do I start?
It was quickly decided that, because it was an account of my personal journey, I should choose my 10 most memorable sporting events or occasions.
This seemed sensible: there are so many flashbacks of wonderful times, reporting on golf and tennis tournaments, major soccer, cricket and rugby matches, and famous sporting celebrities I met and interviewed.
Friends and colleagues have often said that being a sports writer has to be one of the best jobs in the world and they are right.
You get paid to get a front row seat and then meet the stars afterwards to get quotes and fill the sports pages with your (and their) opinions.
In my time I was fortunate enough to get transferred to our now defunct London office where I was able to cover several Wimbledon tournaments and British Opens, cricket Tests at Lord’s and The Oval, rugby internationals at Twickenham and Cardiff Arms Park and generally see a whole new world of sport during our apartheid years.
Here in South Africa I saw some wonderful boxing matches, was there for the birth of the Sun City golf Million Dollar tournaments and also saw our re-entry into world sport in the early 1990s after the isolation years.
I started out in the sports department in 1969, a year after the famous Basil d’Oliveira affair which saw our cricketers shunned and banned.
I witnessed the “rebel” tours in rugby and cricket, but at the same time felt resentment our government’s policies robbed a generation of competing against the best in the world.
Thankfully that all ended in the second half of my sports career and I was able to sit in the Kingsmead and King’s Park press boxes and watch us compete in the real and legitimate world of cricket, rugby and soccer.
Far too much has happened for me to record everything and the famous Comrades Marathon does not feature here, even though I covered it in the early days, just as Bruce Fordyce was making his first mark on the race.
But I hope that in my 10 best sporting moments, I have captured some of the best of what I experienced and enjoyed.
It has been a wonderful ride, one I never took for granted, working alongside some of the best journalists in South Africa – and overseas.
Now the time has come to log off.
I have played my final innings. But at the back of my mind, I have a feeling I am still not out!
THE BRITISH OPEN
The 1978 and 1984 British Opens remain my fondest golf memories abroad as a golf writer.
In 1978, Jack Nicklaus completed a career Grand Slam for the third time by winning his third Open Championship. It was also his second straight win on The Old Course at St Andrews, the spiritual home of golf.
Nicklaus began the final round one stroke behind co-leaders Tom Watson and Peter Oosterhuis. But neither Watson (who shot 76) nor Oosterhuis (73) figured in the end game.
Nicklaus was paired with Simon Owen, and the championship came down to the two of them.
Owen led by one after a chip-in birdie on the 15th hole. Nicklaus reclaimed the lead after a two-shot swing on the 16th: the Bear birdied, while Owen three-putted. Nicklaus gained another stroke on the 17th and sealed the win, his 15th career victory in a professional Major.
Best memory for me was walking down the 18th fairway inside the ropes, with thousands lining the huge fairways.
It was made all that more special for me because I managed to “borrow” a spare press armband for my late father, who could also soak up the emotion and historical significance of this, walking only a few metres from Nicklaus inside the ropes as he made his triumphant walk up the last hole to claim the most coveted prize in golf.
The 1984 Open Championship will always be remembered for Seve Ballesteros’s famous fist pump when he birdied the last hole to win his second Open Championship and fourth Major title, two strokes ahead of runners-up Bernhard Langer and five-time champion Tom Watson, who got into trouble at the famous 17th “Road Hole”.
Watching that action live also remains one of my favourite sporting memories.
LOCAL BOXING
Besides golf, one of the first “beats” given to me by my first sports editor was boxing. I loved it.
As a schoolboy I had watched, among others, my hero Bernie Taylor and Raymond Becker fighting it out in the Durban City Hall. What bouts they were.
Then when I started reporting on boxing, I saw everyone from Gert Steyn, Mike Schutte, Gerrie Coetzee, Arnold Taylor and the late and great Brian Baronet.
In fact, my saddest memory was joining Brian and his girlfriend, who were getting engaged at the old Aldo’s restaurant in Smith Street. A few weeks later, Baronet was dead, sent into a coma after his fateful meeting with Kenny Vice at West Ridge Park.
My favourite fight took place at the same venue in 1979.
It featured Stanger-born Tap Tap Makhathini against Charlie Weir, known as the “Silver Assassin” because of the patch of silver in his dark hair.
I had met Tap Tap socially a few times, including a great lunch at the Blue Waters Hotel. His English was not that good, but manager Chin Govender did the talking.
Anyway, Weir was one of the biggest names in the country and when one of his opponents pulled out of a fight, Makhathini stood in. The venue was buzzing as usual and because Tap Tap was our Natal man, my money (and heart) was on him.
He was a powerfully-built man, the super middleweight champion of the country, and being a southpaw made it awkward for opponents.
I remember an even first two rounds with both boxers going at it.
Suddenly, in the third round, Tap Tap unleashed a thunderbolt and Weir was on the canvas.
I remember standing up in the front row seats (the press area) and raising my hands as Weir was counted out.
It’s sometimes hard to be an unbiased journalist when you know one boxer personally and not the other!
MUHAMMAD ALI
When anyone asks me the highlight of my 45-year career only one thought comes to mind – my lunch with The Greatest, Muhammad Ali.
It took place at the Hilton Hotel overlooking Hyde Park in London in 1977 when Ali, at the end of his career, but still fit and healthy, was going on a promotional tour of England.
Thanks to a former colleague, Farook Khan (who was ‘best man’ when Ali re-took his vows at this third wedding in Newcastle, England) I managed to be part of the touring circus as we went around the streets of London, waving to adoring fans.
Then we drove to the hotel for lunch. It was a long table, packed with journalists and Ali’s entourage, but somehow Farook got me seated right opposite the champ.
So for two hours I had him to myself, only occasionally being interrupted by other diners in the restaurant who kept coming up and having pictures taken with him.
It was a wonderful two hours as we discussed everything from apartheid, religion (my Christianity and his Islamic views) boxing (naturally), women and life in general.
As we are both talkative and chatty, I think I might have out-gabbed (as opposed to out-jabbed him!) a few times. What an afternoon!
WEMBLEY MEMORIES
The 1979 FA Cup final remains possibly the most exciting climax to a game at Wembley in living memory, according to many soccer writers.
This was my second final (I also covered the 1976 final between Southampton and Manchester United) and this time I was rooting for United because in goal was our South African boy, Gary Bailey,
For 85 minutes, the match was pretty tame stuff as Arsenal cruised into a 2-0 lead through goals from Brian Talbot and Frank Stapleton.
However, with just four minutes remaining, Gordon McQueen had the United fans buzzing as he pulled one back from a set-piece. Two minutes later, the scores were level as Sammy McIlroy set off on a mazy run, dribbling past two players to equalise.
I remember standing in the press box, my hands raised in jubilation.
But the drama was far from complete.
In the final minute, Liam Brady received the ball on the left wing, made a run and crossed the ball goalward.
It seemed as if Bailey would reach the ball, but he was slightly out of position. It flew over his head and an unmarked Alan Sunderland dived in at the far post to convert to spark jubilation in the Arsenal end.
I felt crushed, but still managed to secure an exclusive interview with Bailey at the team’s hotel the next day, describing how they lost the biggest prize in English football.
My other Wembley highlight was the European Cup Final (now called the Champions League final) in 1978.
Club Brugge from Belgium came to the famous stadium. It was a dreary match for the neutrals, with Brugge content to just defend and “park the bus”, in common parlance. Liverpool striker Kenny Dalglish finally lit up the evening.
After receiving the ball from a Graeme Souness pass, he took a few strides and, with the goalkeeper rushing him, calmly chipped the ball over his head and into the net.
WIMBLEDON
The first time I saw Wimbledon’s Centre Court, I thought I had gone to heaven. The green grass almost hurt the eyes, it was so bright, and the atmosphere, the cozy ambience, was more than I had ever imagined.
I was lucky enough to see, close up, finals between Chris Evert and Evonne Goolagong (who was then Mrs Cawley) and Martina Navratilova winning the first of her many titles against Evert in 1978.
In the men’s singles, my outstanding final was in 1979 when Bjorn Borg won one of his six titles in an epic five-setter against the hard serving American left-hander Roscoe Tanner.
It was an absorbing clash, the ever poker-faced Borg relentless against the dashing and extrovert Tanner. I clearly remember the break point that helped Borg on the way in the final set. He played one of his typical, heavy top spin forehands. Tanner was a great volleyer, but as he approached the net, the ball dipped and Tanner could not get his racket there in time.
Other great Wimbledon memories include watching Jimmy Connors and Boris Becker in the early stages of their careers and, of course, watching Frew McMillan and Bob Hewitt winning the men’s doubles.
My only regret... not being there to see the famous John McEnroe-Borg final of 1980 which featured that classic tie-break 18-16 in the fourth set before Borg took the fifth for victory.
STRUCK BY LIGHTNING BOLT
Although I never watched him in person, I rooted for him from my couch.
* Don’t miss Part 2 of Michael Tarr’s trip down memory lane, where he will look at cricket, football, rugby and golf