Ian Bruce Deans (25 November 1960 – 16 August 2019) was a New Zealand

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

player. He played for

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

during the 1980s and was a key part of the squad for many years. He played for two seasons for

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. He was selected to be the understudy to half-back

David Kirk David Edward Kirk (born 5 October 1960) is a former New Zealand rugby union player. He is best known for having been the captain of the All Blacks when they won the inaugural Rugby World Cup in 1987. Early years Kirk was born in Wellington an ...

in the All Black squad for the inaugural

Rugby World Cup The Men's Rugby World Cup is a rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams, the winners of which are recognised as the World championship, world champions of the sport. The tournament is administer ...

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

, but

Frano Botica Frano Michael Botica (born 3 August 1963) is a New Zealand-Croatian rugby union and rugby league coach and former player in both codes, who played in the 1980s and 1990s. He is the head coach of the Philippines sevens team. He represented New ...

and himself didn't play a match. His first selection came during an end of seasons tour of Japan. Deans also played cricket for Canterbury Country in the

Hawke Cup The Hawke Cup is a non-first-class cricket competition for New Zealand's district associations. Apart from 1910–11, 1912–13 and 2000–01 the competition has always been on a challenge basis. To win the Hawke Cup, the challengers must beat ...

Personal life

Bruce Deans played his club rugby at Glenmark Rugby Club, in North Canterbury alongside his brother

Robbie Deans Robert Maxwell Deans (born 4 September 1959) is a New Zealand rugby union coach and former player, currently the head coach of Japanese club Saitama Wild Knights. He was head coach of the Australian national team between 2008 and 2013. Deans prev ...

. After retiring from rugby, Deans managed his sheep farm near Cheviot. Deans' brother

and great-uncle

Bob Deans Robert George Deans (19 February 1884 – 30 September 1908) was a New Zealand and Canterbury rugby union footballer. In 1905, Deans entered New Zealand rugby folklore for his disallowed try against Wales in the famous '' Match of the Century''. ...

also played for Canterbury and the All Blacks. Bruce Deans died of cancer on 16 August 2019, aged 58.

References

External links

*
Bruce Deans at Cricket Archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Deans, Bruce 1960 births 2019 deaths New Zealand international rugby union players Canterbury rugby union players New Zealand rugby union coaches New Zealand rugby union players People educated at Christ's College, Christchurch Old Belvedere R.F.C. players New Zealand expatriate rugby union players in Ireland People from Cheviot, New Zealand Rugby union scrum-halves Deaths from cancer in New Zealand

Bruce The English language name Bruce arrived in Scotland with the Normans, from the place name Brix, Manche in Normandy, France, meaning "the willowlands". Initially promulgated via the descendants of king Robert the Bruce (1274−1329), it has been ...

Harper family 1987 Rugby World Cup players