At last, Slattery gets the title his amazing skill deserved

Brendan Gallagher delves into some of rugby’s most enduring images, their story and why they are still so impactful

- Brendan Gallagher

What’s happening here?

It’s February 6, 1982 and veteran Irish warhorse Fergus Slattery is taking it to England at Twickenham in Ireland’s second match of that season’s Five Nations Championship. The flanker has a firm grip of the slippery-looking leather ball in two hands and is scanning upfield looking either for space or contact. He was equally comfortable with both.

The story behind the picture?

For 12 years, since his Ireland debut against South Africa in 1970, Slattery had been one of the best openside flankers in the world. A tireless tearaway, he combined physicality, skill, attitude and extreme pace.

As a young UCD student he made the 1971 Lions tour party and proved a big success although he could not dislodge John Taylor from the Test team. But three years later, on the mainly hard grounds of South Africa, he reigned supreme, a member of one of the greatest ever back rows alongside Mervyn Davies and Roger Uttley.