Former All Blacks star Marc Ellis says South Africa’s 1995 World Cup final victory was the “perfect” result - despite food poisoning claims that still tarnish the tournament to this day.
Ellis, who replaced a dry-retching and clearly unwell Jeff Wilson in the final, says he wouldn’t change the controversial result because of what it meant for the South African people.
But he remains in no doubt that the All Blacks’ food was poisoned, with 26 of the 32-man squad unwell on the day of the final in Johannesburg on June 24 1995.
The Springboks won 15-12. Joel Stransky scored all of South Africa's points, including the winning drop goal, in a match remembered for Nelson Mandela wearing a Springbok jersey and uniting the country.
Ellis told the What A Lad podcast that he wouldn’t change the result.
“With the benefit of hindsight it was the right result, it was perfect - I wouldn’t change if it I could,” he told host James Marshall.
“If we could go back and win the game by a dropkick I’d prefer South Africa to win it because it made such a massive difference to the people of South Africa.”
Ellis recalled that as an 11-year-old he had joined protests involving the 1981 Springbok Tour of New Zealand, denouncing racism with a sign that read: “God created all men equal.”
The 1995 match remains the most controversial Rugby World Cup final, with claims the All Blacks squad was poisoned, allegedly by a waitress named Suzie.
Ellis said he was the first squad member to feel sick.
“We were all crook. I was the first to go down,” he told the podcast.
“So I got blamed for poisoning the entire team, I got ostracised to the far end of the hotel.
“You can speculate on it … the only people who didn’t get crook went to McDonald’s, so there was something in the food we ate in the team room.”
Suspect fruit
Ellis suspected the culprit was fruit provided to the team after a training session.
Asked by Marshall if it was done deliberately, Ellis said: “It would be a bit of a statistical anomaly that in the five weeks of the tournament only five people got crook with anything, then 48 hours before the final 26 of 32 went down.
“Read into it as you will.”
Ellis said the food poisoning left the All Blacks “depleted completely”.
“It certainly took a bit of a shine off, but as I say - great result.”
Ellis played 20 matches, including eight Tests, for the All Blacks from 1992-95. He scored 11 tries, including six in one match against Japan at the World Cup.
He later played league for the Warriors and Kiwis and then went on to co-found the Charlie’s juice brand and appeared on several TV shows including SportsCafe and Game of Two Halves.
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