Ah, the All Blacks story. It all stemmed from Mrs H's absolute trust in her lad, and the fact that he used to play on that, and play her up, sometimes mercilessly.
It's one of my favourite memories of Stuart, from a period when Chris and I would often drive down to Foxearth from Cosby for Sunday lunch, which of course Mrs H would cook ("there's more gravy in the kitchen"; there alwasy was; ans often a raspberry pavlova, too). It was definitely before any of our boys were born, as usually we'd try to get there by coffee time and then go out with Stu & Sal for a pint at the Pinkuah's or some other local. I can clearly recall trying on one occasion trying to keep up with Stuart in my Herald (on the way back from the pub!) and losing the back end as he took his Seven round a bend he knew very much better than I did; fortunately those roads were quiet. I can't remember Chris's reaction.
So, the day that Stuart played for the All Blacks: I think it must have been either 25 November 1978 (England 6 - New Zealand 16), or 24 November 1979 (England 9 - New Zealand 10, that was close!). Stuart had gone down to the game with a crowd from the club, and I think probably didn't get back home until late, and didn't surface until after Mrs H had come up the road to do lunch. So I'm guessing we met him and Sal at one of the pubs and, when we got home for lunch, Mrs H asked him if he'd had a good day down at Twickenham. In those days Sudbury & Halstead were still at the coarse end of the rugby spectrum (though I think by then they'd already got the new clubhouse that Stuart designed, project-managed and site-managed, so they were no longer changing in the Gents at The Bear) and often the Extra B's didn't get a game, or didn't have a full side, or didn't have a referee, or had to lend the other team a player. Proper rugby; "friendlies"; for the fun of it. So Stuart answered casually "Well, I hadn't really expected to get a game; but turns out the All Blacks was one short; I don't know if it was an injury or whatever; so it comes over the tannoy as to whether anybody's got their kit, and I said well mine's in the motor, so they said well we can lend you a shirt, so what with the after-match dinner and everything, that turned into a late night", to which the response was "Well, I'm glad you had a good day, dear".
And then of course there was his story of leaving the pub one evening and seeing a police car (sitting in a lay-by on the other side of the road) turn round to follow him; so he boots it for half a mile, pulls into another lay-by, gets out and lies down beside the Seven; as the policeman comes round the corner he jumps up and flags him down; stands over the copper as he winds down his window and asks if he can borrow a torch. The flustered copper rummages around and hands him one, so Stuart gets under the Seven again and then comes back saying "That exhaust was rattling a bit but I think that'll hold; I'll get it fixed in the morning; thanks for that" jumps back into his car and is gone!