Nicknames. We've all had one. Some are quickly discarded but some stay with us for life. The history of sport is littered with nicknames - many obvious and banal, but some absolutely inspired. Sports editor Hayden Meikle lists his favourite sports nicknames.
THE SIMPLE
No, I don't mean ''DC'' (Dan Carter), Woody (Tony Woodcock), Fitzy (Sean Fitzpatrick), Ridgey (Mathew Ridge) or Deano (Dean Barker).
I mean nicknames like these:
''Buck''
All Black great Wayne Shelford was not into rodeo, and he was not much of a deer hunter. But he did have good-sized chompers as a kid. ''My teeth came first and the body second,'' he said a few years ago.
''Kamo''
As a commentator, Ian Jones was a heck of a lock. The towering All Black was named for the suburb of Whangarei from which he hailed.
''SBW''
Sonny. Bill. Williams.
''Paddles''
Richard Hadlee had rather large feet.
''Whopper''
Southland rugby stalwart Jamie Mackintosh has always been big.
''Goldie''
Not just the hair. Everything Jeff Wilson touched turned to gold.
''Hogan''
New Zealand cricket great Martin Crowe was a big fan of Hogan's Heroes.
''Bazz''
New Zealand cricket captain Brendon McCullum's middle name is Barrie.
''Pole''
Both All Black lock Peter Whiting and Silver Ferns defender Katrina Grant are/were on the tall side.
''Tiny''
Irony ruled for All Blacks Tiny (Stanley Frank) Hill and Tiny (Richard Alexander) White.
''Tiger''
Well, it's better than Eldrick Woods.
''Magic''
Earvin Johnson could do it all with the basketball in his hand.
''Fatty''
They reckoned William Henry Foulke, an English goalkeeper, weighed as much as 152kg by the end of his career.
''The Flying Housewife''
Fanny Blankers-Koen won four gold medals in running events at the 1948 Olympics.
''Butterbean''
Eric Esch was a boxer. A big, round one.
''The Flying Tomato''
Snowboarding great Shaun White's red hair stood out against the slopes.
THE WEIRD
''Dog Roll''
Even Otago rugby midfielder Jayden Spence doesn't seem to know how he got the name.
''Quasi''
Team-mate Hayden Parker does not have a hunchback and, as far as we know, does not loiter around Notre Dame.
''Sassy''
Yet another Otago rugby player with an odd nickname. This is what Tom Donnelly told the Dominion Post a few years ago: ''It just came from looking like a big sasquatch. I went through a bit of a phase where I had long hair and a beard.''
''Black Mamba''
Basketball great Kobe Bryant coined this for himself.
''Skip To My Lou''
Rafer Alston, an NBA journeyman, picked up the name as a playground legend on the streets of New York for the way he dribbled the ball.
''The Big Aristotle''
Another hoopster with an odd moniker. Shaquille O'Neal also called himself ''The Big Diesel''.
''Mr Irrelevant''
A rather cruel name bestowed each year on the very last player picked in the NFL draft.
''Oil Can''
Baseballer Dennis Boyd, a bit of an oddball, supposedly picked up this name during his beer drinking days in his hometown of Meridian, Mississippi.
THE GOLDEN ERA
Browse through the Encyclopedia of New Zealand Rugby and you will discover a feast of forgotten nicknames.
I've broken these down into three tiers:
Good
''Opai'' Asher.
''Wampy'' Bell.
''Moke'' Belliss.
''Phonse'' Carroll.
''Tuppy'' Diack.
''Bolla'' Francis.
''Monty'' McClymont.
''Buff'' Milner.
''Jazz'' Muller.
''Curly'' Page.
''Rusty'' Page.
''Nugget'' Pringle.
''Bunk'' Pollock.
''Ranji'' Wilson.
''Tabby'' Wynyard
Better
''Brushy'' Mitchell.
''Jum'' Turtill.
''Tuna'' Swain.
''Circus'' Hayward.
''Doolan'' Downing.
Best
''Nut'' Hasell.
THE PREFIXES
The nicknames that fit in beautifully with surnames. Such as: South African cricketer Monde ''All Hands'' Zondeki.
Australian rugby player Nick ''Kick-Too'' Farr-Jones. British rugby league player Martin ''Chariots'' Offiah. Former Newtown Jets league player Phil ''Whatsapacketa'' Sigsworth.
Australian cricketer Steve ''Tugga'' Waugh. Dutch footballer Kiki ''Chris'' Musampa. British cyclist Chris ''The Real Mc'' Hoy.
Everton footballer Neil ''Dissa'' Pointon. And two examples where the nickname comes before the first name: English footballer ''One Size'' Fitz Hall. Australian league player ''Waltzing'' Matt Hilder.
THE BABE
Baseball legend George Herman Ruth had every name under the sun: ''The Babe'' ''The Great Bambino'' ''The Big Bam'' ''The Sultan of Swat'' ''The King of Crash'' ''The Maharajah of Mash'' ''The Colossus of Clout'' ''The Behemoth of Bust'' ''The Terrible Titan''
THE BEST
''Pearl''
English cricketer Gladstone Small did not have the longest neck. Pearl neckless, get it?
''The Brick With Eyes''
No explanation needed for Australian league player Glenn Lazarus.
''Pinetree''
Colin Meads (tall, tough, rural) has New Zealand sport's greatest nickname.
''Iceman''
Michael Jones was a very cool customer.
''Shag''
Hardly anyone calls All Black coach Steve Hansen ''Steve''.
''Spooky''
All Black winger Ian Smith was also known as the ''Gimmerburn Ghost''.
''Carbine''
All Black great Billy Wallace shared his name with a racehorse.
''The Say Hey Kid''
Baseballer Willie Mays had a boyish exuberance for the game.
''Afghanistan''
Australian cricketer Mark Waugh was in the shadow of brother Steve for a while. He was the forgotten Waugh.
''Whispering Death''
West Indian cricket Michael Holding was lethal with the ball in hand.
''The Glove''
Gary Payton was a magnificent defender in the NBA.
''Air''
Michael Jordan, plus a shoe.
''The Big Dipper''
Wilt Chamberlain had the best nickname in basketball.
''Dr J''
Or was Julius Erving's better?
''Yogi''
A friend said baseballer Lawrence Peter Berra looked like a holy man.
''The Golden Bear''
Golfing great Jack Nicklaus was big with a head of blond hair.
''Der Kaiser''
German footballer Franz Beckenbauer was called ''The Emperor'' because of his elegant style.
''The Naenae Express''
New Zealand cricketer Ewen Chatfield was from Naenae but he was hardly express pace.
''Broadway Joe''
NFl quarterback Joe Namath embodied the spirit of New York.
''Sweetness''
NFL running back Walter Payton earned his nickname in college because of his personality.
''Mr. October''
Yankees baseballer Reggie Jackson became a star in the 1977 World Series, held in the month of . . . well, you can guess.
''The Galloping Major''
Hungarian football great Ferenc Puskas was a military man.
''The Boot''
All Black fullback Don Clarke could kick goals from everywhere.
''Charlie Hustle''
Baseballer Pete Rose gave his all on every play.
''The Great One''
Ice hockey legend Wayne Gretzky earned this nickname at a very young age.
''The Needle''
You did not want to get on the wrong side of All Black coach Fred Allen.
''Big Country'
'Basketballer Bryant Reeves was just a hick from the sticks.
''The Georgia Peach''
Baseballer Ty Cobb was from Georgia, but his snarling personality was anything but peachy.
''The Fridge''
NFL player William Perry was huuuuge.
''Two Metre''
Thank you for being tall, Peter Fulton.
''Snapper''
All Black and Highlanders first five Nick Evans just loved to go fishing.
