Plenty of cracking yarns expected at Long Lunch

Paul Allison expects to hear plenty of tall tales on Friday.

The veteran broadcaster is hosting the ODT and Rugby News Long Lunch at the Glenroy Auditorium.

All Blacks fans can warm up for the test against England by hearing from former All Blacks centre Frank Bunce along with Otago’s beloved Ben Smith and test referee Nika Amashukeli.

Allison is never short of a word himself but he will just be asking the questions, and he expects plenty of entertaining answers.

"Frank is such an interesting character.

"He’s been everything from a dustman to a Fight For Life boxer to a Dancing With The Stars performer, and he was an outstanding All Black who roomed with Jonah Lomu during the 1995 Wold Cup.

"There is plenty to talk to him about. He’ll be a fantastic guest.

"Ben will be good as well.

"He’s such a humble, modest guy. Everyone knows of him, but they don’t know a lot about him, so hopefully we can uncover some stories that he hasn’t shared before."

Allison is also eager to coax some yarns out of Amashukeli, the 29-year-old Georgian whose stunning rise up the refereeing ranks has included an All Blacks test, three games at the Rugby World Cup, and the crunch Six Nations game between England and Ireland.

"He’s got a story to tell," Allison said.

"I don’t think he’d seen a rugby game in his life until his father made him watch a World Cup when he was 11 or 12.

"He was a player but he had concussions and broken bones, so he gave up and became a referee.

"The whole officiating team are coming with him to the lunch."

Allison has seen plenty of All Blacks tests and expects the clash with England at Forsyth Barr Stadium to be a boomer.

"I think it’ll be close.

"England have got a good side, they have been here for two weeks and they’ve got a good coaching staff.

"I think 21-19 to the All Blacks.

"It’s a 50-50 bet, really."