About Grant Batty
Grant Bernard Batty (31 August 1951 – 16 January 2026) was a New Zealand rugby union footballer. A diminutive but effective wing for the All Blacks, Batty played domestically for Wellington and Bay of Plenty. A crowd favourite, he was usually the smallest man on the field. Nicknamed "Batts", he was also known as "Twinkle Toes" or "Pocket Rocket" for his small size, explosive acceleration, and fearless combative approach. His rugby career was cut short by a knee injury, leading to his retirement in 1977 at age 25. == Early life == Batty was born in Greytown on 31 August 1951, and educated at Kuranui College. == Rugby career == In his career, Batty played 102 first class matches and scored 109 tries. He stated his three favourite tries out of the 45 he scored for New Zealand to be: his second try against the Barbarians at Cardiff on 27 January 1973. The All Blacks lost that game 11-23 but Batty said he had previously tried and failed twice to beat J. P. R. Williams so he tried a kick and won the chase. his second try against New South Wales on 18 May 1974 when the All Blacks won 20–0 at Sydney.
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