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Fred Allen will mark his 90th birthday today and the grand master of Auckland and New Zealand rugby will be honoured with a civic reception hosted by the Mayor of Auckland and attended by many rugby personalities.

Dubbed “The Needle” by his players from his stint coaching at provincial and international level, Allen remains the All Blacks Coach with the best record having coached the All Blacks during an unbeaten 14-Test run.

NZRU Chairman Jock Hobbs said that his unblemished record as an All Blacks Coach would be hard to surpass.

“Fred remains an icon in our game so it’s great that his birthday is being recognised by so many people in Auckland today. We will be sending our best wishes on behalf of the rugby community.”

As Patron of the Auckland Rugby Union, Allen still regularly attends Auckland and Blues rugby matches at Eden Park and is held in the highest esteem within the union and beyond, said Auckland Rugby CEO, Andy Dalton.

“We are extremely proud to have Fred as our patron. His service to rugby in Auckland and New Zealand is extraordinary and we are thrilled to see this amazing man reach another wonderful milestone in his life,” said Dalton.

Although he has enjoyed a long association with Auckland, Allen was born in Oamaru and first played provincial rugby for Canterbury, going on to captain the red and blacks, and appeared for Marlborough and Waikato in 1944. During the Second World War he served in the 27th and 30th Battalions, playing for Services teams and then for the famous 2nd NZEF “Kiwis” Army team which toured Europe after the War.

He returned to New Zealand a star, representing Auckland and going on to captain the All Blacks. After the 1949 Tour of South Africa and 21 matches, including six Tests, in All Blacks colours, he retired from senior rugby and turned his attention to coaching.

Allen was selector-coach of Auckland from 1957 to 1963 when the province established a new Ranfurly Shield record tenure of 25 matches. An All Blacks selector during 1964 and 1965, he was coach from 1966 to 1968 when the team won all 14 Tests played. Naturally, teams coached by Allen were not only successful, they played very attractive rugby.

At the 2002 Steinlager Rugby Awards Fred Allen was awarded the Steinlager Salver for his outstanding contribution to New Zealand rugby. He was made a Life Member of the NZRU in 2006.