David Kirk (playwright)
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David Edward Kirk (born 5 October 1960) is a former 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 is best known for having been the captain of the
All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, is the representative men's national team in the sport of rugby union for the nation of New Zealand, which is considered the country's national sport. Famed for th ...
when they won 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 ...
in
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 ...
.


Early years

Kirk was born in
Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...
and grew up in
Palmerston North Palmerston North (; , colloquially known as Palmerston or Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatū Plains, the city is near the north bank of the Manaw ...
. He was educated at Russell Street School,
Wanganui Collegiate School Whanganui Collegiate School is a state-integrated, coeducational, day and boarding secondary school located in Whanganui, in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand. Affiliated with the Anglican Church, it is the third oldest school in ...
, and the
University of Otago The University of Otago () is a public university, public research university, research collegiate university based in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand. Founded in 1869, Otago is New Zealand's oldest university and one of the oldest universities in ...
, where he graduated with a medical degree
MB ChB A Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (; MBBS, also abbreviated as BM BS, MB ChB, MB BCh, or MB BChir) is a medical degree granted by medical schools or universities in countries that adhere to the United Kingdom's higher education tradi ...
.


Rugby union career

Kirk played domestic rugby for
Otago Otago (, ; ) is a regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island and administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local go ...
and
Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...
, and first toured with the All Blacks in 1983. He stood out from his fellow players as "urbane, articulate and thoughtful," and when the planned 1986 All Black tour to South Africa was cancelled David and John Kirwan were the only two players to refuse to join the rebel "Cavaliers" team on moral grounds—he felt that it would give comfort to the
apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English:  , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...
regime. With the rebels banned from playing in the next two All Black test he captained the so-called " Baby Blacks". On the return of the rebels however, his position was uncomfortable and he was lucky to retain his place in the squad. Despite this, when original captain
Andy Dalton Andrew Gregory Dalton (born October 29, 1987) is an American professional football quarterback for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). Nicknamed "the Red Rifle", he played college football for the TCU Horned Frogs, wher ...
had to withdraw with an injury, Kirk was made captain—and led New Zealand to victory over France in the 1987 Rugby World Cup Final. He was appointed a
Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
in the
1988 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1988 were appointments by most of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries, and honorary ones to citizens of other countries ...
, for services to rugby.


All Blacks statistics

* Tests: 17 (11 as captain) * Games: 17 (0 as captain) * Total matches: 34 (11 as captain) * Test points: 24pts (6t, 0c, 0p, 0dg, 0m) * Game points: 44pts (11t, 0c, 0p, 0dg, 0m) * Total points: 68pts (17t, 0c, 0p, 0dg, 0m)


Post-rugby life

Kirk abruptly retired from competitive rugby after the World Cup win, at the age of 26, to take up a
Rhodes Scholarship The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford in Oxford, United Kingdom. The scholarship is open to people from all backgrounds around the world. Established in 1902, it is ...
at
Worcester College Worcester College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. The college was founded in 1714 by the benefaction of Sir Thomas Cookes, 2nd Baronet (1648–1701) of Norgrove, Worcestershire, whose coat of arms was ad ...
,
Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...
with a degree in PPE. After his studies at Oxford, he returned to New Zealand, becoming the coach of the
Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...
NPC team in 1993 and 1994 and also a media commentator. A
National Party National Party or Nationalist Party may refer to: Active parties * National Party of Australia, commonly known as ''The Nationals'' * Bangladesh: ** Bangladesh Nationalist Party ** Jatiya Party (Ershad) a.k.a. ''National Party (Ershad)'' * Californ ...
member, he sought the party's nomination for the
1992 Tamaki by-election The Tamaki by-election 1992 was a by-election held in the electorate during the 43rd New Zealand Parliament, on 15 February 1992. It was caused by the resignation of incumbent MP Sir Robert Muldoon and was won by Clem Simich with a majority of ...
, losing to
Clem Simich Clement Rudolph "Clem" Simich or Šimić (born 2 June 1939) is a New Zealand politician for the New Zealand National Party, National Party. Early life Simich was born in Te Kōpuru, Northland in 1939. Member of Parliament He was fir ...
. Kirk was also a staffer for
Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
Jim Bolger James Brendan Bolger ( ; born 31 May 1935) is a New Zealand retired politician of the National Party who was the 35th prime minister of New Zealand, serving from 1990 to 1997. Bolger was born in Ōpunake, Taranaki, to Irish immigrants. Bef ...
, and worked as a management consultant at
McKinsey & Company McKinsey & Company (informally McKinsey or McK) is an American multinational strategy and management consulting firm that offers professional services to corporations, governments, and other organizations. Founded in 1926 by James O. McKinse ...
. Later he was employed by Fletcher Challenge, then New Zealand's largest company, and one of its successors, Fletcher Energy. From October 2005 to December 2008 he was chief executive officer of
Fairfax Media Fairfax Media was a media (communication), media company in Australia and New Zealand, with investments in newspaper, magazines, radio and digital properties. The company was founded by John Fairfax as John Fairfax and Sons, who purchased ''The ...
—publisher of ''
The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuous ...
'', ''
The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...
'' and ''
The Australian Financial Review The ''Australian Financial Review'' (''AFR'') is an Australian compact daily newspaper with a focus on business, politics and economic affairs. The newspaper is based in Sydney, New South Wales, and has been published continuously since its foun ...
'' in Australia; and '' The Dominion Post'' and ''
The Christchurch Press ''The Press'' () is a daily newspaper published in Christchurch, New Zealand, owned by media business Stuff Ltd. First published in 1861, the newspaper is the largest circulating daily in the South Island and publishes Monday to Saturday. One ...
'' in New Zealand. On occasions he wrote articles for Fairfax - commentating on rugby when journalists were on strike. His most recent involvement with rugby came in late 2009, when he led an independent arbitration panel appointed by SANZAR to settle an impasse between its three member unions (
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
,
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 ...
and
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
) over whether the planned 15th franchise in the
Super Rugby Super Rugby is a men's professional rugby union club competition involving teams from Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. It has previously included teams from Argentina, Japan, and South Africa. Super Rugby started as the S ...
competition would be awarded to
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
or
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
, Ultimately, Melbourne was chosen and began play in
2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...
. On 24 October 2011, Kirk was inducted into the
IRB Hall of Fame The World Rugby Hall of Fame (formerly the IRB Hall of Fame) recognises special achievement and contribution to the sport of rugby union. The World Rugby Hall of Fame covers players, coaches, administrators, match officials, institutions and othe ...
alongside all other Rugby World Cup-winning captains and head coaches from the tournament's inception in 1987 through to 2007 (minus the previously inducted
John Eales John Anthony Eales (born 27 June 1970) is an Australian former rugby union player and the most successful captain in the history of Australian rugby. In 1999, he became one of the first players to win multiple Rugby World Cups. Early life E ...
).


Current business roles

* Co-founder and current Managing Partner of Bailador Investment Management * Chairman of the Board at The Hoyts Group, a position he has held since July 2009 * Chairman of the Board at
Trade Me Trade Me is New Zealand's largest online auction and classifieds website. Managed by Trade Me Ltd., the site was founded in 1999 by New Zealand entrepreneur Sam Morgan (entrepreneur), Sam Morgan, who sold it to John Fairfax Holdings, Fairfax in ...
Group. * Chairman of Standard Media Index Ltd (investee of Bailador). He is also a director of a number of companies, including: * Forsyth Barr Ltd * Pacific Fibre Ltd * Viocorp International Ltd (investee of Bailador) Kirk was a member of the
Lord Howe Island Board The Lord Howe Island Board is a NSW Statutory Authority established under the ''Lord Howe Island Act, 1953'', to administer Lord Howe Island, an unincorporated island territory within the jurisdiction of the State of New South Wales, Australia, ...
, having been appointed by the NSW Minister for the Environment as the representative of business and tourism on the board, a specified position on the board. He was appointed on 27 November 2018 and served until 26 November 2021.


References


External links


David Kirk
profile at New Zealand Rugby Museum

— ''Sydney Morning Herald'' biography published 27 August 2005 * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kirk, David 1960 births New Zealand international rugby union players Alumni of Worcester College, Oxford Living people World Rugby Hall of Fame inductees New Zealand rugby union players Oxford University RFC players New Zealand Rhodes Scholars Rugby union scrum-halves University of Otago alumni People educated at Whanganui Collegiate School New Zealand republicans New Zealand National Party politicians New Zealand sportsperson-politicians New Zealand Members of the Order of the British Empire Rugby union players from Wellington City 1987 Rugby World Cup players Otago rugby union players Auckland rugby union players