Sean Fitzpatrick is an outstanding motivational and team building speaker, he is also an excellent and humourous after dinner speaker recounting anecdotal stories from his life as a rugby player and now in the media.
The All Blacks, winning the World Cup and Captaining New Zealand
Sean Fitzpatrick’s extraordinary international career began with his debut for the All Blacks in 1986 against France. He was appointed captain of the All Blacks in 1992 and played in 121 international matches, including 92 Test matches, a New Zealand record. Sean also holds the record for most Test matches as an All Black captain (51) and has played in more Test match victories (74) than any other player.
One of the most durable Rugby Union players of all time, Sean Fitzpatrick was also one of the very best. Possessing excellent handling skills, he made a habit of popping up in the right place at the right time. He ended his career with an overall tally 55 points in Test matches, including 12 tries and he was phenomenally accurate with his lineout throws.
After making his international debut for New Zealand on June 28, 1986, he took part in the inaugural World Cup in 1987 when he enjoyed one of his best-ever rugby moments as the All Blacks went on to win the tournament final in Auckland against France. Thereafter, he missed only two Test matches over the next decade. He took over the All Black captaincy in 1992 and went on to become the second-most capped New Zealand player of all time. He played his 92nd and last international on November 29, 1997.
Awards
He was awarded the New Zealand Order of Merit by the Governor General in 1997. At the end of 1999, Fitzpatrick was named as hooker in Rugby World magazine’s Team of the Century. In March 1999 Sean was appointed as ‘Rugby Consultant’ to the NZRFU responsible for player development and liaison. Sean is now based in the United Kingdom.
Punditry
He travelled on the Lions Tour as a pundit for Sky and is a regular columnist for the Sunday Times and as well as appearing regulalry on television and radio.
Sean is an outstanding motivational speaker on teambuilding. His speech entitled ‘Be as successful as you can be’ encourages organizations to “benchmark themselves against the world’s best” and encourages continuous learning at both organizational and individual level. Sean is also available and recommended as an after dinner speaker.
"We were absolutely delighted with Sean Fitzpatrick former All Black. Seans after dinner speech went down really well and he got a spontaneous standing ovation from the audience which is no mean achievement at this annual dinner. While clearly those with an interest in Rugby thought he was brilliant I know from talking to other guests he went down equally well as his message was true to sport or business.His popularity was evident by the number who went to talk to him afterwards to sign autographs , take photographs with him etc , something that I have never seen before at any of our Dinners. Sean was an absolute Gentleman and was totally courteous to everyone and very easy to please" - Aeneas Lane, President of the Cork Institute of Bankers
"Sean draws parallels between sport and business. He mixes well with all levels of the organisation and puts the time in before and after his session to understand the business challenges and relate this to his rugby experiences" - Nestlé UK
"For a big man who ate other men for breakfast on the playing field, he is surprisingly a very good speaker. He speaks from the head and the heart. As with his game, what you see is what you get and for big organisations this is great to listen to" - Heinz
"A fantastic day, delivered by a real professional !! Thanks for all your efforts on Monday, really appreciate it. It must be a great feeling to be still winning new fans even though the boots are hung up ! Best of luck this year and I will certainly be recommending you to some of my business contacts."- John Russell, P& G Professional Care UK and Ireland
"...thanks for a fantastic presentation in Wella Ireland yesterday. You delivered exactly what was asked of you and we achieved what we set out to achieve; for our Elite customers to leave feeling positive, enthused and motivated. Feedback from our top customers has been extremely positive. You were a pleasure to work with" - Lisa Corrigan, Senior Marketing Executive, Wella Ireland