L & R Dear Museum

L & R Dear Museum L & R Dear Museum is the official page of the Southland Boys' High School Museum.

The greatest rugby rivalry and our Southland Boys' pride ...🏉 SBHS All Blacks versus the Springboks 🖤Southland Boys’ Hig...
05/09/2026

The greatest rugby rivalry and our Southland Boys' pride ...🏉 SBHS All Blacks versus the Springboks 🖤

Southland Boys’ High School has proudly produced 22 All Blacks, our research shows that nine Old Boys took the field against the Springboks in an official Test match so far:

Andrew “Son” White: played in the first-ever All Blacks–Springboks Test at Carisbrook in 1921.
Lance Johnson: played in all four Tests during the 1928 tour of South Africa.
Neville “Brushy” Mitchell: faced the Springboks in 1937.
Ray Moreton: played two Tests against them in 1965.
Brian McKechnie: entered as an injury replacement during the first Test of the controversial 1981 tour.
Steven Pokere: started the famous “flour-bomb Test” at Eden Park in 1981.
Mils Muliaina: faced South Africa numerous times between 2003 and 2011.
Corey Flynn: appeared against the Springboks in 2010 and 2011
Ethan de Groot: has faced South Africa several times since 2022, including the 2023 Rugby World Cup final.

* An interesting historical detail concerns Frank Kilby, whose name is closely connected with Lance Johnson and the 1928 tour (see a previous post). Kilby played five provincial tour matches in South Africa, but an injury prevented him from appearing in a Test against the Springboks themselves.

From Andrew White in the inaugural encounter of 1921 to Ethan de Groot more than a century later, these Old Boys form a remarkable part of the long and fiercely contested All Blacks–Springboks rivalry.

Do you remember watching any of these men play South Africa?

Tomorrow the All Blacks face South Africa again. We're thinking about two Old Boys who made the same journey nearly a ce...
29/08/2026

Tomorrow the All Blacks face South Africa again. We're thinking about two Old Boys who made the same journey nearly a century ago!

Lance Johnson (AB #307, OB #1137) and Frank Kilby (AB #337, OB #1664) both attended SBHS and toured South Africa with the All Blacks in 1928.

Here's where it gets interesting: We have a 'mystery' All Blacks jersey in the L & R Dear Museum from this era (1920s), and it might belong to one of them.

Lance Johnson is our strongest lead if it's a 1928 jersey. He was a powerhouse on that tour and played 16 matches and appeared in all four Tests.

Frank Kilby was also on the 1928 tour, though an ankle injury limited his appearances. Still, he would've been issued kit.

Do you have any clues? 🕵️ Drop them in the comments or DM us!



Photos:
1920s All Black Jersey (SBHS2022_353),
Lance Johnson and Frank Kilby.

🏉 As the All Blacks prepare to face the Springboks again this weekend, we look back at one of the most contentious chapt...
26/08/2026

🏉 As the All Blacks prepare to face the Springboks again this weekend, we look back at one of the most contentious chapters in New Zealand rugby history: the 1981 Springbok Tour.

On 8 August 1981, Southland faced South Africa at Rugby Park in Invercargill. The Springboks won the match 22–6, while police and barbed-wire barricades surrounded the field amid fears that demonstrators might disrupt the game.

Did you know the Springboks also presented Southland Boys’ High School with a signed rugby ball during the tour? This special piece of rugby history is now part of the L & R Dear Museum collection.

View the ball on our digital museum catalogue:
[https://ehive.com/collections/207092/objects/2511511/1981-springbok-signed-rugby-ball](https://ehive.com/collections/207092/objects/2511511/1981-springbok-signed-rugby-ball)

đź“· Photo 1: Police guarding the barbed-wire barricade at Rugby Park during the match. Photographed by Stuart Menzies on 8 August 1981 and published in the *Evening Post* on 10 August 1981.

đź“· Photo 2: Southland v South Africa, Rugby Park, Invercargill, 8 August 1981. Photograph: *The Southland Times*.

🏉 Photo 3 and 4: Signed 1981 Springbok rugby ball, artefact SBHS2022_383.

Can you spot any familiar names on the ball?

Elizabeth Sullivan, granddaughter of Bartholomew 'Bat' Tangney generously shared her family research and photographs wit...
23/08/2026

Elizabeth Sullivan, granddaughter of Bartholomew 'Bat' Tangney generously shared her family research and photographs with the L & R Dear Museum this week.

We are deeply grateful for her contribution, which has enriched Bat’s story and our WWI Bay. Her book is available in the Invercargill Library for further reading.

Bartholomew “Bat” Tangney (1891–1957) attended Southland Boys’ High School around 1905–1907. A keen rugby player, athlete and cadet marksman, he was clearly a memorable character. When the new tower-bell rope broke through vigorous use in 1907, The Southlandian joked: “Who rang? Was it Tangney?”

Bat later worked for New Zealand Railways. During the First World War, he served in Samoa, France, Egypt and Palestine, rising through the ranks to become a lieutenant.

See photographs here from Elizabeth's book:

Photo 1: Batholomew is on the left as 2nd Lieutenant
Photo 2: The large Rarotongan Contingent, Batholomew at front as leader of the Contingent.
Photo 3: To the far right, welcomed to Rarotonga.

Artificial intelligence can help us look back into the past using tomorrow's technology. Referencing this old photo from...
20/08/2026

Artificial intelligence can help us look back into the past using tomorrow's technology. Referencing this old photo from the Southlandian of 1903 we can recreate the gymnasium in the old school on the corner of Forth and Conon Street.

William Cahill (Year 10), Mac Walker (Year 8) and Ethan Cameron (Year 11) supported our Museum Mahi with great focus and...
08/08/2026

William Cahill (Year 10), Mac Walker (Year 8) and Ethan Cameron (Year 11) supported our Museum Mahi with great focus and commitment today.

Willam transferred precious photos from a collection USB drives to the safety of our Museum OneDrive to be catalogued.

Ethan meticulously ensured our high resolution scans of sports team photos were named in a way that we can search for it with ease.

Mac carefully photographed and catalogued artefacts made and donated by Old Boy Robert Grainger Smart (at achool in 1930s).

Ma tini ma mano ka rapa te whai - Many hands make light work!

Southland Boys' students have gone duck shooting for decades. Did you know that, in 1926, New Zealand duck shooting was ...
07/05/2026

Southland Boys' students have gone duck shooting for decades.

Did you know that, in 1926, New Zealand duck shooting was strictly regulated by the government too? Hunters required a twenty-shilling license and had a daily limit of 25 head of grey duck, spoonbill, or black swan. That is approximately $2.30 in today's currency.

Regulations prohibited automatic guns unless modified, restricted bore sizes to 12 gauge, and specified shooting hours between sunrise and sunset, with fines for breaches.

https://gazette.howison.co.nz/nzg/1926/issue/20/page/881

Today you still need a permit to go duck shooting, and will set you back from as little as $6 for a youth permit to $116 for an adult permit. Read more here:
Duck Shooting Season NZ 2025 - Fish & Game https://share.google/wKM1nXZqtPaW9s49a

Many things have changed, but some things, like the excited restlessness in the classroom around this time, remains exactly the same.

Share your duck shooting story with us!

Note: An AI image of two 17 year old boys, duck culling in 1926.

We are grateful to ex SBHS Librarian Glenice Miller who pointed and supplied us with this photo of Thomas Alfred Lambert...
27/04/2026

We are grateful to ex SBHS Librarian Glenice Miller who pointed and supplied us with this photo of Thomas Alfred Lambert.

We posted earlier at the weekend that we were looking for a photograph of this fallen Old Boy who attended school in 1907. Glenice came to the resue!

This photograph is from the book by Bryce Horrell's, "Southland's Sacrifice", page 184.

Lovely Lynley and Russell Dear, and Old Boys Association President Jim Watson, stopped by the Museum today. It was truly...
25/04/2026

Lovely Lynley and Russell Dear, and Old Boys Association President Jim Watson, stopped by the Museum today. It was truly special to acknowledge our fallen with those who have dedicated decades to help us remember them, lest we forget.

It was great to see old and new friends of the Museum through our doors.

Visit us on Monday from 10am to 1pm, if you would still pay tribute to the fallen SBHS Old Boys of SBHS.

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181 Herbert Street Invercargill 9501
Invercargill
9810

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