- Date of Birth23 / 05 / 1934
- Lions Tours1959, 1962, 1968
- International CapsIreland / Lions
- Lions Origin SchoolsBallymena Academy
- Lions Origin ClubsUlster, Barbarians, Ballymena
Not even the great Willie John McBride can match his Ballymena clubmate Syd Millar's record of involvement with The British & Irish Lions – three Tours as a player, one as a series winning coach and another as a manager.
On top of that he was also a member of the Lions committee in 1993 and 1997, a selector in 1977 and chairman at the time of the 2001 Tour to Australia.
It all adds up to an amazing nine Tours over six decades.
His Ireland career ran from 1958 to 1970 and, at 33, he showed the determination to come back from three years out of the selectors' favour to win the final 14 of his 37 Ireland caps and make his third Tour as a Lion.
The 16-stone front rower started out as a stand-off and maintained those handling skills as a dangerous force in the loose.
A tight-head prop by preference, he was also sufficiently versatile to pack down at loose-head in Tests on both the 1959 and 1962 Tours. Millar was the most-used Lions prop on that latter Tour, playing in 16 of the 24 matches. He made 39 Lions appearances in all, scoring three tries.
Being a member of four successive Lions Tours to South Africa made Millar the expert on the place, as he proved as coach in 1974 and manager in 1980.
From 2003 to 2007 he served as the chairman of the IRB and he was inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame in 2003.