A 100-year-old story of inspiration

‘‘The Son White story is a great example that if you get the culture right and the environment right, you can really transform peoples lives.’’

Owen Eastwood believes anyone who comes across the life story of Andrew ‘‘Son’’ White is better for it. It’s a 100-year-old tale that Eastwood – a world-renowned performance coach – says should never be forgotten. It provides hope for those struggling with mental illness.

White came home from World War I suffering from shell shock and could have been written off and sent to a mental institution following the slaughter he witnessed during war. Instead, he became an All Black captain and an inspiration for overcoming adversity.

Born in Invercargill in 1894 he went by the nickname ‘‘Son’’ from an early age. He was the sole boy amongst his siblings.

It was during his first term at Southland Boys’ High School in 1907 that his father died – the first of the emotional setbacks that White had to wrangle with during his life.

In his first year of high school, a 13-year-old White had to leave to earn a living for his family.

He was a farmhand on the outskirts of Invercargill for seven years before Great Britain declared war on Germany in 1914.

White, as a 20-year-old, joined the Otago Mounted Rifles Regiment for military training and took a Southland horse he was gifted all the way with him to Alexandria, Egypt. From there they travelled by train to a training base on the outskirts of Cairo.

On May 20, 1915, White set off for the beaches of Gallipoli.

He endured all the horror of war and the ugliest point came on August 28, 1915, when his Otago Mounted Rifles Regiment was ordered to attack Hill 60 during the Gallipoli campaign.

Sixty-five of his friends were killed by Turkish machine guns in 15 minutes.

The surviving men of White’s regiment, including himself were redeployed to other army units. Son would fight in the battles of the Somme, Passchendaele and Messines.

In 1918 White came home.

Eastwood says that in itself ensures White’s story is littered with lessons.

But it is what happened next which Eastwood says makes White’s story an ‘‘epic’’ one; one that more than 100 years on provides a positive example for anyone struggling with their mental health.

White was diagnosed with shellshock, a post-traumatic stress disorder that can afflict soldiers, by French medics before being sent home.

White’s symptoms included uncontrollable nervous shaking, shortness of breath, impaired hearing and a resting pulse rate of 92. He was put on a disability pension, but

Sixty-five of his friends were killed by Turkish machine guns in 15 minutes.

instead of being committed to a psychiatric hospital, it was decided he could live with his family in Invercargill.

Eastwood says in 1919 family friends of White’s, the Carswell’s, provided him with work. He swept the floors of a warehouse at the end of the day, increasing his self-esteem and helping ease him back into society.

That year White was also invited to join in with some training at the Waikiwi Rugby Club.

The then 25-year-old had never played rugby competitively prior to that. At that point it wasn’t about the rugby though, it was about camaraderie and getting better mentally.

‘‘We don’t know what they said around the table with a beer, they may have talked about their [war] experience which would have been very collegial.

‘‘But even if they didn’t, just being around people who had also been through the slaughter and understood what he had been through, that in itself would have provided some healing for him,’’ Eastwood says.

While White was a late starter when it came to rugby it quickly became evident he was good at it.

By the end of 1919, his first season playing rugby, he was selected for Southland.

In 1920 the wing forward – or flanker in modern-day terminology – helped Southland become the first South Island province to lift the Ranfurly Shield when it beat Wellington.

A year later he was an All Black; making his international debut as a 27-year-old in the All Blacks’ first test match against South Africa in Dunedin on August 13, 1921.

One hundred years on, the All Blacks and South Africa will on Saturday night meet in Townsville in the 100th rugby test between the two nations.

In the space of a couple of years, White went from the disability pension to making his All Blacks debut in front of 25,000 people at Carisbrook.

He went on to play 38 matches for the All Blacks. The last of them was a test match against France in Toulouse in 1925.

Included in those 38 All Black matches were three as captain.

‘‘The Son White story is a great example that if you get the culture right and the environment right, you can really transform people’s lives. It’s probably the most dramatic example of it,’’ Eastwood says.

‘‘I just think it’s amazing. To be written off – he could have easily been sent to a mental hospital and be labelled

‘‘Son was a brilliant Southland storyteller. People would have a beer with him, and he would just be able to tell a brilliant yarn and be able to absolutely captivate people, and he had a great laugh and big smile.’’ Owen Eastwood

disabled and mentally ill – to become that person. It is beautiful really.’’

Eastwood went to the same school, played for the same rugby club, and grew up in the same neighbourhood in Invercargill, as White.

But Eastwood never got to meet him. White died in 1968, three weeks before Eastwood was born.

It was in 2014, the 100th anniversary of the start of World War I, when Eastwood discovered White.

Eastwood is fascinated by history. He was keen to learn about the Southland Boys’ High School pupils who went to World War 1.

The more he dug, the more he discovered how remarkable White’s story was.

Eastwood spent time with one of White’s nephews, Father Maurice White, to find out more about Son White as a person.

White started to lift from the pages of history and become a person Eastwood felt that in some ways he knew.

‘‘Son was a brilliant Southland storyteller. People would have a beer with him, and he would just be able to tell a brilliant yarn and be able to absolutely captivate people, and he had a great laugh and big smile. I just think that’s great from where he came from.’’

Eastwood’s story in his own right is a captivating one.

The United Kingdom-based former lawyer is a performance coach that specialises in team culture.

He has worked with a raft of highprofile organisations. The English football team, British Olympic team, the South African cricket team, the Royal Ballet School, Manchester City, the Command Group of NATO, Scotland Rugby, just to name a few.

In May, he released a book called Belonging: The Ancient Code to Togetherness.

He dedicated a chapter of the book to White.

‘‘Even when you are struggling with your mental health, through belonging, through being around good people and having connections, it can actually transform you. Son is an example of that.’’ Eastwood says.

Eastwood often turns to White’s story when working with the various organisations on the topic of culture and environment.

It included a one-on-one chat with then All Blacks captain Richie McCaw when the All Blacks were touring the UK.

‘‘I got to sit down with [McCaw] and tell him the story of Son White because they obviously wore the same playing shirt.

‘‘Richie was really, really interested. That was nice to be able to share the whakapapa story of an All Black captain [of the past] with the All Black captain.’’

Since the release of the book Eastwood has had film production companies tell him they are interested in turning White’s story into a film. Eastwood isn’t surprised.

He feels one of the most poignant moments in White’s journey through life came when he toured England and France as part of the famous Invincibles team in 1924 and 1925.

By that stage, White had become a leader within the All Blacks. Remarkably his Waikiwi clubmate, Jock Richardson, also held vice-captaincy duties within the team.

At a function in England during the tour White came face-to-face with the British generals who ordered the Otago Mounted Rifles to attack in Gallipoli on August 28, 1915.

It was described as a suicide mission. It’s well documented that the surviving soldiers hated the British generals for it.

‘‘[White] lost most of his mates in that one evening [in Gallipoli]. He then got to meet those British generals wearing his All Blacks blazer,’’ Eastwood says.

‘‘Not only that, when they went to France he was introduced to the complete architect of Gallipoli, Winston Churchill. It would be hard to come up with a [movie] idea more epic than that.’’

As the story goes, White simply shook those generals hands and moved on.

‘‘Despite all the violence he experienced in the first World War, I read a comment from one of the top sports journalists of the day from when [White] retired. He said Son was a very fair rugby player and never once recalled him getting violent on a rugby pitch. For someone of his background, I think it says a lot.’’

Soon after returning to Invercargill following the 1924-25 All Blacks tour White shifted to Christchurch to live.

He squeezed in another handful of first-class games with his adopted province Canterbury. For good measure, he managed to include another Ranfurly Shield victory in 1927 to his success with Southland.

White remained in Christchurch until his death in 1968. He was 74-years-old and was buried at the Waimairi Cemetery.

Fifty-three years on from White’s death his legacy lives on, thanks in a large part to Eastwood’s intrigue and eagerness to use White’s tale to inspire others.