To the strains of Frank Sinatra's My Way, All Blacks coaching great Sir Frederick Richard Allen was farewelled in appropriate style yesterday afternoon.
At Eden Park, his "second home" according to his nephew Alex Carpenter, about 300 mourners paid their respects to Allen, who died in Auckland at the age of 92 on Saturday.
All Black greats Sir Wilson Whineray, Sir Brian Lochore and Sir Colin Meads spoke during the two-hour service, in a large room in the stadium's North Stand, about Allen's qualities as a man and a coach.
"In the end we just wanted to play for him because we believed in what he was telling us," said Lochore of Allen, who coached the All Blacks 37 times for 37 wins, including 14 tests, from 1966-68. "We believed in him as a coach."
Allen, who served in the New Zealand Army in the Solomon Islands and Middle East during World War 2, and was wounded twice during action, was known as a hard taskmaster who also had a softer side.
The tributes painted a picture of a man who believed in discipline and hard work but also someone who danced to his own tune.
That was perhaps why Sinatra's song, which followed a rousing haka by King's College pupils, struck such a chord.
Allen, who captained the All Blacks in all of his 21 matches, including six tests, as a player from 1946-49, had humble beginnings in Oamaru, the birthplace of another standout All Blacks skipper, Richie McCaw.
He served with distinction as a lieutenant during his time in the military, although during his first tour in the Solomons he was lucky to escape censure for breaking ranks and going on a daring mission to rescue a group of soldiers trapped in dense jungle.
Allen was also lucky to survive a shelling in the Middle East which left him with shrapnel wounds.
Meads spoke of a man capable of giving fierce "barrages" to his senior players, but also someone who was generous.
He told a story about feeling like a "fish out of water" after being ordered by Allen to accompany him to a women's fashion parade in Paris. Allen, whose background in the sewing industry and straight-to-the-point nature earned him the nickname "The Needle", later bought Meads a dress to give to his wife Verna.
"He must go down as the best coach that world rugby ever had," Meads, a pallbearer, said.
Among the mourners were New Zealand rugby boss Steve Tew and former All Blacks Bryan Williams, Waka Nathan, Ian Kirkpatrick and Wayne Shelford. Also there were Labour MP Phil Twyford and his National counterpart, Chris Tremain, son of late former All Black great Kel.
Lochore, who was named by Allen as All Blacks captain during his tenure, said afterwards the service was highly appropriate.
"It was respectful," said Lochore, another pallbearer.
"Everyone was there for a reason. They knew what he had done for New Zealand as a soldier, as a captain of the All Blacks, as a coach of Auckland and the All Blacks, and he was just a generally good man.
"He was absolutely passionate about rugby and in his last few days he was still sharp as in terms of his ability to judge what teams were doing right or wrong."
Meads added: "It's a sad occasion but we're celebrating the life of one of New Zealand's greatest."
Allen was made a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the Queen's Birthday honours in 2010, for services to rugby.
Allen will be buried alongside his late wife Norma, at the Auckland Memorial Cemetery in Silverdale, near his former home at Whangaparaoa, north of Auckland.
