Pollard, now 80, swapped the cap with former England wicketkeeper Alan Knott following New Zealand’s 1973 tour of England – the last time he played test cricket.
It has now found its way back to him, meaning he holds two caps from his playing days – the one he exchanged with Knott, and another from an earlier tour.
The 1973 tour proved the highlight of Pollard’s career as a Black Cap.
He scored two centuries in five innings in a 2-0 series loss, with New Zealand falling just 38 runs short of a first-ever win on English soil in the opening test before drawing the second and losing the third by an innings.
“I don’t know why I gave it to him, he might have asked me,” said Pollard.
He does not know what became of Knott’s cap, which is not among his own memorabilia.
Pollard’s cap remained with Knott for 30 years before being gifted to close friend Ian Thacker.
Thacker, a first-class wicketkeeping coach now based in Perth, held onto it as a treasured keepsake before deciding it should be returned.
“The cap has lived its life carefully stored in a bedroom drawer and was brought out for interested guests or taken to special cricket events,” he said.
“I have never worn this cap in a match situation, it has been a precious memento of my friendship with Knotty which I have treasured over the years. Later I felt the cap should be returned to the Pollard family, its rightful home.”
Instead, he left the cap with family friend Ian Budd, who lives in Waikato, to arrange its return.
Budd contacted Pollard and handed it over last month.
“I went to see Vic and met him, we had a cup of tea and a talk,” Budd said.
“I presented the hat to him as best I could and shook hands with him.”
Pollard was surprised to be contacted about the cap’s return.
“I didn’t want it back, of course. I’m not one that really stores and puts a lot of emphasis on memorabilia.
“That’s not to take away from the kindness of these people – it was lovely to send it back.”
An aggressive batter and handy off-spin bowler, Pollard played 32 tests for New Zealand between 1965 and 1973, along with three ODIs in 1973-74.
He retired at 27 for religious reasons – as a devout Christian, he did not want to play on Sundays.
“I was surprised they took me on my third tour, because there was one or two Sunday games in ‘73, but they allowed me to have those off,” he said.
He stepped away at the peak of his powers, scoring two centuries in five innings on that 1973 tour – 116 in the fourth innings at Nottingham and an unbeaten 105 at Lord’s to help secure a draw.
The New Zealand side at the time featured players such as Sir Richard Hadlee, Bevan Congdon and Glenn Turner.
Pollard finished his eight-year test career with more than 1200 runs and 40 wickets, averaging more than 100 with the bat in his final series.
“I could have played until 35, 40. I looked after my body, and I was extremely fit,” Pollard said.
“I just didn’t wish to play on Sunday. It hurt that I had to finish cricket at that age.”
At the same time, he also ended his football career.
A dual international, Pollard played seven matches for New Zealand and represented Christchurch United in the inaugural National League from 1970 to 1972.
“I have fond memories of football, I loved it,” he said.
“The first three years of the National League was something tremendous for New Zealand soccer when rugby’s our number one, but we got on TV – they actually broadcast it.
He also recalls meeting Queen Elizabeth II during the 1965 tour of England – although his time at the crease delayed the moment.
“She would come to Lord’s, and you’d line up at afternoon tea. She would come round with the Duke of Windsor at the time, and they would shake your hand, watch the game for probably an hour, and then go back.
“I actually held the Queen up, because the ruling in cricket is, if you’re nine down and it’s afternoon tea, they’ll postpone the tea for about half an hour, expecting that number 11 will get out soon to save a bit of time.
“She’d come to meet us at afternoon tea, and I was batting with a guy, Frank Cameron, who was our number 11. I batted about 5 or 6, and I was still in on about 50. We didn’t get out, so she had to wait half an hour, rather than coming out at 3.40pm, she had to wait until 4.10pm.”
Outside of sport, Pollard began teaching in his early 20s and retired from full-time work 14 years ago, continuing as a relief teacher until he was 78.
These days, he remains active with Grace Baptist Church, which he helped found 30 years ago, and spends much of his time travelling.
“We haven’t booked yet, but I avoid the Christchurch winters now and tend to go over to the Gold Coast for three months – we’ve got a unit over there. I love that, I swim and walk on the beach.
“Between helping the family out, seeing the grandchildren, church involvement, my life is very blessed.”
Pollard plans to store the cap alongside other keepsakes, including his previous tour cap and his Canterbury cap.
“I won’t be looking at it for a while. It’ll sit there, I know where it is, but I don’t put things on display for people around my home.”
