00:00:00
I just see like just blackness. I was the laziest kid. My coach tell me, "You're the laziest kid I've seen at
00:00:05
this club in 15 years." Used to be the hardest thing I ever uh had a crack at.
00:00:09
My nickname at the Crusaders early on was credit card. >> Oh, that story is [ __ ] That's not
00:00:14
true. There's no way Marty ever lifted 90 kilos. >> In 180 was my best lift and my squat was
00:00:20
205. That's an ass to the grass squat, too. That's not a 90° one. Now I'm in my
00:00:25
world of the stuff on the line. All this sort of stuff. my last test I'm 36 so
00:00:30
I'm preparing and I was like in a zone and it's embarrassing to say but it's
00:00:35
out there here the one thing about making mistakes is you know hopefully you learn from them so
00:00:41
>> how was your anxiety during that time >> I shed a tear in them >> if they were here your kids yeah what
00:00:46
three words would you like them to use to describe you >> get out of my face with that I don't
00:00:50
want to know about you know >> did you feel bad about it later or Ah, no. >> Oh, good. You're here. Come on. This is
00:01:02
the center of performance. Whenever there's a top performance in New Zealand, it all comes from here. That's
00:01:06
Lisa Carrington. She's been doing that for days. That's the boys who got the
00:01:10
Holland one in Tour. He did it again. Hey Finn, how's the performance going?
00:01:17
>> Top tier. >> Nice. This is our generate room. In here you'll find our top performers helping
00:01:21
Kiwis maximize their Kiwi Saver investments. Get in here in maximize generate. >> Putting performance first.
00:01:28
>> Brad Thorne, welcome to my podcast. >> Thank you for having me, Dom. Very
00:01:32
pleased to be here, mate. And happy birthday for the 3rd of February to both of us.
00:01:38
>> We're birthday twins. And I'm I'm pretty sure that is all we have in common.
00:01:41
>> Well, mate, we're a couple of good-looking blondeheaded, you know, you're like a a leaner version of me, I
00:01:48
reckon. So >> yeah, when I um started doing my research for this podcast and um I
00:01:53
realized we've got the same birthday, although I'm I was born a couple of
00:01:56
years before you, I I thought our childhoods were probably quite similar. I'm from um Palmer North. You're from
00:02:01
Mosgill. >> Um there's probably a lot of a lot of parallels and a lot that we've got in
00:02:05
common. >> Yeah. Yeah. Well, what do they call us? Generation X, I think it is. And um you
00:02:11
know, from what I read about Generation X, you know, we we we get it, you know, we we get amongst it. And um you know
00:02:20
we're characters I guess and uh you know it's good seeing guys like yourself and
00:02:25
>> and others doing so well in in this sort of stuff. So good on >> you. I I reckon generation X is probably
00:02:31
the luckiest generation ever. Like we remember life um before the internet. We remember life before phones. Um we got
00:02:39
to experience the these this new technology coming in, >> but we remember what life was like
00:02:43
beforehand, which the the the generations now don't. 70s like I was I was um you might I was five years old by
00:02:53
1980. So for me it's more the 80s than the 90s far out. It's just the best
00:02:58
time. The best time. I used to I loved all the uh I loved all that era like um I used to like as a teenager I'd go into
00:03:06
books you know shops and there'd be the muscle magazines bodybuilding and Arnold
00:03:11
Schwarz I think it was like you know was movies Predator and um you'd have all
00:03:15
these movies Stallone you'd have these movies blood sport um always the same
00:03:20
thing where a guy has a training montage and then he has to fight the the bad guy
00:03:25
at the end and he used to eat that up and just all the music you know Metallic Okay. Guns and Roses. Um you know um
00:03:32
just the and you know that thing where probably possibly the same for you but you didn't uh you just went out and you
00:03:39
just made sure you're home by dark or you know and mom and dad weren't really
00:03:44
worried about it and you go down to the creek or you'd be on your bikes. So feel
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blessed to be in that uh time and um yeah the last uh 10 15 years with the I guess with the um social media and all
00:04:01
that sort of stuff. >> Um yeah it's I guess it's a pretty hectic thing for for the young people
00:04:07
today. Um it was a bit simpler would you say simpler times mate? >> Oh 100%. Yeah. Um kids these days will
00:04:13
never know what it's like to to be bored like properly bored. We used to say if
00:04:17
if we ever said to mom or dad like, "Oh, I'm bored." That mom would just be like,
00:04:20
"Well, go outside and play and lock the door. We just have to go and you do
00:04:26
stuff in the culdeac with other kids." >> Yeah. I I was for me I I had real big
00:04:30
imagination and I loved my toys and stuff and and I um you know I had Star Wars man and I'd have before that I had
00:04:38
army man and different I used to like I go into uh you know a couple hours of just you know playing with all my stuff
00:04:46
and then like you said um you know your mom dad send you outside and you catch up with your mates or you know you you
00:04:54
just find something to do you know so make you cut make swords and you know you know you be doing all sorts of crazy
00:05:02
stuff. It was it was cool. Yeah. >> I'm pleased I grew up in that. >> Hey, I'm really pleased that you are
00:05:09
here in person for the podcast. This is really really cool. >> I'm so excited to have you here.
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>> Um I outsourced um a bit of information for the podcast. I I reached around some
00:05:20
previous podcast guests. Um I thought this would be a good icebreaker, good way to get into the podcast. So, I've
00:05:24
got some um messages here from people that you'll know very well um teammates
00:05:28
and others. Uh Kevin Mamu, >> great man. >> Um yes, some of these are are questions
00:05:35
that people have given me to ask you and others are just um statements. So, Kevin's got a statement.
00:05:39
>> Uh what a great man to learn how to be a professional from a role model for
00:05:42
everyone in the abs. >> Work ethic, preparation, leading by example. I remember always seeing Thorny
00:05:48
always taking care of his body, stretching in hotel hallways or in a team room after training, always with
00:05:54
his shirt off. >> He had a huge rig. >> Yeah, he's nailed it. Yeah. Yeah.
00:06:01
>> 2011, I remember getting ready for the Rugby World Cup quarters, he shared with
00:06:05
us his mentality around playing many finals in the NRL. Uh in his raspy voice, he'd say, "We only have one game
00:06:12
ahead of us. Be in the now. Focus on today. Take care of today. tomorrow was not promised. It set us up well for our
00:06:18
2011 Rugby World Cup journey. >> Yeah, that was uh I've always felt big
00:06:23
on that. And for me, when I set a goal, I'm guess I'm fortunate, but I don't see
00:06:28
anything past it. Like, I actually can't. It's not just, oh, I try not to.
00:06:33
It's just the way I'm wired. I just see like um just blackness, you know, and
00:06:39
until that last minute, until I've earned the right to go further. And that's the mentality we needed. And that
00:06:44
was a realistic mentality because, you know, four years earlier we had plan B for the semi. Guess what? You're not
00:06:50
there. You're on a plane >> uh back to New Zealand because you've been knocked down the quarters, you
00:06:56
know. And um that is the mindset. Uh World Cups are different to, you know, the other tests in the four years
00:07:05
leading in. It's everything's on the line and you just need a turn a team to
00:07:10
turn up on the day. um uh and you know the pressure comes on and you know you can end up with you know a pretty
00:07:19
disappointing World Cup. So yeah, that's a ruthless mindset. Um just playing
00:07:25
every moment and um that's probably the other thing is not seeing the I see the game personally
00:07:33
in many moments. I don't I'm not I'm not uh dominated or I don't feel pressure
00:07:39
around the end result. I know if individually and collectively we do our jobs and we strive for excellence in it
00:07:47
and we stick together and care about each other enough that um with the talent we have we'll we'll get some
00:07:54
reward you know pretty you know usually we will sometimes you still might fall short but uh so yeah for me that's the
00:08:03
other thing is just that first action um you know for me going into a test match
00:08:11
I'm just hanging around the kickoff. Show my respect to the anthem. Show my,
00:08:16
you know, from New Zealand. It means a lot, the anthem. Show my respect to the haka. Such a great part of, you know,
00:08:23
the Maui culture and the um who the All Blacks have been. But for me, it's kickoff and uh whatever that is,
00:08:31
receiving or um um kicking off. Uh it doesn't have to be some big player whatever what whatever it might be just
00:08:40
supporting on the inside or bringing some lights whatever that's that you know I'm giving everything to that task
00:08:46
and then um again and again and again and um like I said if you do that as a as a team with the talent you know that
00:08:55
you have and um the abilities like I said that care you'll find you off and get a good result at the end. you'll be,
00:09:02
you know, and then that um and then that opens up that next week and you've earned the right to look at that next
00:09:10
week. You know what I mean? So, >> what about when it doesn't work? Like um
00:09:15
I know I don't know why you put this in your book, Champions Do Extra, but um
00:09:19
you you claim to have one of the worst um State of Origin records, like one win from 11 games.
00:09:25
>> One win, one draw. Yeah, I'll take I got the draw. But >> why did you why did you have why did you
00:09:30
bring that up in your own book? just to be real, just to um because when you um often I'll get introduced and they say,
00:09:38
"Oh, you know, they like say all these things that I've achieved and he went
00:09:41
from league to union, back to league, back to union." A big thing about my book is just saying
00:09:47
um you say, "Oh, that guy's just built different. He just wins and all this
00:09:51
stuff." Well, >> I was the laziest kid. Uh you know, as a 14year-old, I had my coach tell me,
00:09:58
"You're the laziest kid I've seen at this club." in 15 years, >> you know. Um, going guess what? Going
00:10:04
from league to union was hard as was brutal. It tested me. Used to be the hardest thing I ever uh had a crack at
00:10:12
until I did head coaching. Um, you know, State of Origin, you know, I'm a winner.
00:10:19
I was a loser. Probably one of the biggest losers, you know, in the history of origin. Um, did it mean I wasn't
00:10:24
putting in and and I was, you know, committed and all these sort of things? Um uh yeah. No, but um I I just want to
00:10:34
be real and otherwise I feel like um if you just talk about all good things then
00:10:42
the guy person who's reading it number one it's reality >> doesn't all just go smoothly there. So a
00:10:49
a lot of it the whole book's around mindset and challenges and stuff but um just saying to whoever reads it yeah um
00:10:58
you know we all go through the same doubts and the same uh you know um you know challenges and and the ups and
00:11:05
downs and you know um you I was fortunate to have some great good experiences and uh it wasn't all just
00:11:15
rosy and easy it was a hard road And um um anything that's worth achieving usually takes um some commitment and
00:11:24
some um you know perseverance and and just and just keeping in it, keeping in the in the challenge of it. So yeah,
00:11:35
that's why I brought it up. I brought up other things. I brought up how I um you
00:11:39
I felt like I really cost the Crusaders in in the 211, you know, final. Um, like
00:11:45
I said, I talked I think I talked about my my coach who he said I was the laziest kid, you know, so it's just
00:11:51
real. A number one, it's real. I don't want to be just a guy who's blowing wind
00:11:56
out on my backside. And second to that, like I said, um, >> I just think that's part of the thing
00:12:02
where you I remember Richie Mccor, he's a guy who really loves the coast to coast, I think. Yeah, you probably are a
00:12:10
fan of that, I imagine, with your running. I've done the the run league. Um, but I haven't done the whole thing
00:12:15
like he's done. >> Yeah. Well, he's telling me he was talking maybe to me or the team or a
00:12:20
group of us one time. He's just having a chat >> about um there's there's a guy who was a
00:12:26
gun at that who won heaps of them maybe uh 20 10 15 20 years ago. >> Steve Genny.
00:12:32
>> Yeah, I think that's the name. And Steve must have been speaking at something.
00:12:37
Maybe Richie heard it or he watched him, but basically he was against a real tough competitor and he was in front of
00:12:44
him and he was just um this might have been his first win or I'm not sure but
00:12:49
he was just had nothing left and he was thinking about just um you know uh slowing down or submitting or something
00:12:59
and um he just went that little bit further and I think the guy behind him sort of um I guess had a hard time and
00:13:10
you know he he ended up winning that race. But I think the lesson Steve learned from that was you know just that
00:13:16
mindset of um that key little moment of just pushing a bit more and a bit more um was uh you know what I'm saying is
00:13:27
that guy's like a bit of a legend Rich is saying but you know everyone >> uh uh has their battle and um the
00:13:37
battles that are in front of him and there's times you know Michael Jordan Um
00:13:42
he had that advert where he said I you know I missed 30 final shots. Um that's
00:13:47
why I win. That's why I'm a competitor. So yeah, it's uh yeah, it's good to just
00:13:53
uh uh um be able to talk about those different things and you get a more real look at it and um and hopefully people
00:14:02
feel encouraged and go, "Hey, everyone's uh you know um has to gets tested and um
00:14:10
um you know hopefully it's a little bit encouraging." Yeah. >> Well, adversely is part of the human
00:14:15
experience, isn't it? You you can't have sun without the rain as the saying goes.
00:14:19
Um I've got another message here. Um Kieran Reed, >> can I say one thing on
00:14:24
>> um just a great man. Yeah. So I I don't Did you ask him did he say that or did
00:14:29
you find that from somewhere else? >> Yeah, I messaged him. >> Yeah. So he he um he was a guy that I
00:14:36
loved. Um he was a guy I used to do extras with uh in the All Blacks and the guy I used to do them with uh the
00:14:43
Crusaders was White Crockett. Yeah. I always have a guy I like to do some stuff with after training and and um
00:14:51
Crocky was a great man is a great man and um and Kevy and me um used to do some extra tackles and and some
00:14:59
breakdown and it was like on a we'd always do it on a Thursday after training and it was uh it was around our
00:15:05
mentality. So, we've done the training week, but me and him um we're like uh
00:15:12
it's like a marker for Saturday night. This is the physicality we're we're
00:15:17
bringing. So, um just a heart of gold, beautiful family man. Um he shares a Christian faith uh with me. Um and um
00:15:30
you know, everyone there's you don't ever hear a bad bad word about him. He's
00:15:35
the Australian version is Petro Simba of uh of Kirby. So yeah, >> you don't hear a bad bad word about you
00:15:41
either. I put you in the same camp. >> Oh, thanks. I'm not sure. >> Also, what is it about you Christian
00:15:48
dudes just tearing people's heads off? >> The Iceman, Michael Jones. >> Quite funny, is it? Yeah. Yeah.
00:15:54
>> Do you feel bad afterwards? Like when when you completely demolish someone and
00:15:58
and in and play, do you feel a little bit bad afterwards? >> Uh no. No. That's the enjoyment. And I
00:16:06
always, >> you know what they're getting from something for? >> Yeah. Yeah. I always feel like you sign
00:16:09
up. The thing I always felt felt, Dom, was um after a game, you usually when you go to shake hands, you usually
00:16:19
looking for that toughest opponent on the other team to shake hands with first. If you watch boxers,
00:16:26
I remember I had a mate who was a fighter, a boxer, and uh I said to him, I see these boxers and they're just
00:16:33
bashing each other and at the end they're hugging and stuff. and he said, "You know, when you're in the ring for
00:16:38
12 rounds and you're just throwing at each other, obviously you're trying to
00:16:43
knock out and get a win or whatever, but the respect you have for your opponent and um it's personal in there and
00:16:51
>> um yeah, it's so yeah, it's it's funny how like you said um the Christians and
00:16:57
George Foreman was a a Christian like prolific like heavy-handed guy. Vander Holiffield. Yeah, it's good. Don't mess
00:17:07
with you guys. Um Kieran Reed, uh he was he was a guest on the podcast really early on when it started like four years
00:17:14
ago. Great guy. >> So I reached out to Reedo. I have so much respect for Thorny. What stands out
00:17:19
to me was just his ability to take people under his wing and help them grow. The likes of Samuel Whitlock and
00:17:24
the Frank brothers. I learned heaps in the way he he conducted himself, fully committed to the game, but also a top
00:17:29
family man at the same time. At the end of the final of the Rugby World Cup 2011, I called the line out to him uh at
00:17:36
the front of the line out. I backed him 100% that he would nail it and of course
00:17:40
he did. >> Yeah. Yeah. I I write about that actually in the book and um I remember when he first said it to
00:17:48
me um it was one minute to go. I'm like, you know, putting it on me because uh
00:17:56
it's a big moment. If we win that line out, we win the game. >> So it's 8-7 at that point. Yeah.
00:18:00
>> All blacks front. >> Yeah. And but that's my job. It's my job
00:18:03
at the front to win what you call must win ball. You know what I mean? Where um doesn't matter if they're lined up
00:18:10
against me. Uh if you have a good throw and you know you're the one who's
00:18:16
jumping first um you should win that you know 10 out of 10 times. So it's cool to
00:18:23
hear that he that he backed me and um you know that was a that was a cool moment. I always laugh about how uh I
00:18:31
never did a line out until I was 26 years old. And um my nickname at the Crusaders early on was uh credit card
00:18:40
because they could just fit they used to think they can just fit a credit card under my shoes when I jumped which is
00:18:46
like that that hurt. That hurt. And do you know what else hurt Dom? Do you know how
00:18:52
else hurt? No one wanted to uh you know when it's um maybe it's like a school dance or
00:18:58
something you know where you end up um no one yeah or who wants to dance a girl doesn't you know you're battling away
00:19:05
but um yeah no no one it's okay get into uh pods you know three and practice your
00:19:12
warm-up jumping no one would have left me but uh I used to cuz I could uh I could
00:19:17
dunk I could dunk a basketball when I was 14 I me and my brother my brother was a good basketball. He's 6'. He's a
00:19:24
tall guy, 6'8. Um um but the timing of line outs, you know, it wasn't I could jump, but um you
00:19:34
I was wooden, you know. So to think that I took the the last line out to win a World Cup um is is crazy. And I always
00:19:44
take my hat off to to Woody and Ali who lifted me. Um, and most of all, I reckon
00:19:51
the guy gets the biggest credit is Andrew Hall, who just like uh he he was I took a bit of a time to to do that
00:19:59
jump and he was like thorny, what are you doing get, you know, but um um absolutely nailed it and uh he had the
00:20:09
hardest job, you know. So yeah, it was good. That must have been um just think about that like you know starting to
00:20:16
play rugby in your mid20s and having nicknames like credit card. Um yeah that must been I don't know like humbling or
00:20:22
demoralizing like here you were you sucked league star in the 90s playing for the Broncos in the dynasty era and
00:20:29
then suddenly you're back to ground zero. >> Yeah. Uh three grand finals 97 98 2000 in four
00:20:37
years. um you know uh Origin playing for Australia you know on a big contract you
00:20:45
know threeyear million dollar contract and you come over and yeah you get you got humbled you know because end of the
00:20:51
day a 14year-old could do a better line out than I could and um you know I basically started from
00:21:00
square one I could run and I could um I could tackle but um there's just so much
00:21:07
more to forward play and >> just culturally everything about coming across um was such a challenge and I'm
00:21:16
so pleased I did it. Dom obviously now we can all say that but uh such I thank God for that uh the
00:21:24
character of development that I got from that the humility that I I pretty much you know felt um and and um you know
00:21:36
just just having to persevere and um and you know getting to a good space with it
00:21:43
was you know there was a reward there uh so important important in my life that year.
00:21:49
>> And by the time you ended, you were like a great all black, which is what every
00:21:52
every new All Black strives to be, right? A great all black. >> Yeah. Well, I never I was never like,
00:21:59
um, oh, you're an all black. Oh, yeah. Like I I always wanted to be a great,
00:22:04
you know, in my mind, you know, the guys would laugh about this because, uh, I always wanted to be a number six. I used
00:22:12
to like Jamie Joseph, AJ Whitten, these sort of guys. I saw myself as a big six compared to a shorter lock. And um one
00:22:21
time I snuck myself in there at training um where I did a scrum because I was used to being in the that lock uh the
00:22:29
number eight or someone ran down the short side which is the number six you supposed to peel off and make the
00:22:35
tackle. I was just s sat on the scrum watching him run fast. So they used to have a bit of fun about me um you know
00:22:42
wanting to be a six. But um um yeah it was it was uh such a great challenge to come across and try and
00:22:52
master that ro roll ro you know as as a lock. So yeah. >> Um Dr. Nick Gill Gilly is the All Blacks
00:23:00
long-term strength and conditioning coach. He's a previous podcast guest. Um
00:23:03
I reached out to him and he just gave me two questions to ask you. Number one, um, ask him what he called his biceps.
00:23:11
>> Uh, I'm trying I I don't know if he means I used to call This is This is
00:23:16
embarrassing. This You got to You have a lot of banter. I love banter. Okay, you
00:23:20
should see my house. I got three sons. The testosterone everywhere. all all you know but yeah I used to call my packs
00:23:28
big and bigger AND BE I'D BE I USED to flex them and carry on and um um so that's probably what he's talking
00:23:37
about but yeah a lot of you got to you got to have you know you can't be all
00:23:42
serious >> bigger um he had another question and I've got a I've got a visual gag for
00:23:47
this >> um >> what's the significance of this meal that I'm holding here
00:23:51
>> is it got banana in it >> that's pretty That's what I'd eat all
00:23:54
the time. Yeah. >> A banana sandwich. >> All the time. Yeah. Yeah. >> You're really into processes, eh? And um
00:24:00
just keeping things as as as on track and as as the same as what you can. >> I just love uh I I love bananas to this
00:24:10
day. And I love I loved uh you know, I guess I loved eating. And the thing that that you know what cuz Nick's you know,
00:24:17
having a bit of fun with me. Um that that paid off when I went to Japan because um
00:24:25
um I was in the south of Japan, Kushu Island. It's the bottom island, real traditional, not like Hong Kong with
00:24:31
lots of Western stuff. And uh I was sort of battling with the food, getting used
00:24:36
to Japanese food. But what I did have was bananas. They did have bananas, they had bread, which meant that I survived.
00:24:44
So, so, so that the banana and bread for weeks on end I just go and buy bananas and bread and then um over time I
00:24:53
started to learn about Japanese food and then uh you know I came through. So >> So net Gill Net Gill just so you know.
00:24:59
Yeah, that paid off. >> So this this is your like your pregame snack like an hour before kickoff, two
00:25:04
hours before kickoff. >> Uh I used my pre my pregame was different to that. I I had a a same meal
00:25:11
that I liked, but that was more like um uh avocado and um you know, some salad and
00:25:19
uh some chicken or you know, some ham or whatever on a toasted uh I used to love
00:25:25
having an egg on it, too. So, I' I'd have two of those. Always trying to have
00:25:29
that 4 hours before and you know, have a bit of a smoothie or something. And yeah, you get really meticulous. You get
00:25:36
really a routine. Routines are important because um when you're younger, you
00:25:42
don't really have a routine. Your performance, it's important to performance. You're sort of letting your
00:25:48
mind, number one, your mind and your body know it's it's performance time.
00:25:52
>> It gets used to a routine. Do you know what I mean? >> Sometimes um things happen and it puts
00:25:58
your routine out. You got to be able to handle that as well. Just go too bad, you know, next, you know, uh next job or
00:26:07
whatever. But routine is uh good for consistency of performance. And um you know from after I'd have that that meal
00:26:16
that I talked about, I'd always go back to my room. Whether I slept or not, I
00:26:20
wouldn't care, but I'd have a lie down for an hour. Then I'd um um uh some some
00:26:27
point in that day might have been uh I'd have a full body stretch and I have a
00:26:33
hot cold shower and I used to feel a million dollars and you get on the bus and and um you know that's that's how I
00:26:41
believe you get a good consistent sort of performance. So yeah, >> control the controllables.
00:26:46
>> Yeah. >> Yeah. >> Um Darren Shand who who gets quite a few mentions in your book. Um, I reached out
00:26:52
to Shandandy. He said, um, ask him why he always he was always left arm over top of right arm for team photos, the
00:26:59
opposite to everyone else. >> May left arm over right arm. Maybe um maybe that was I was unaware of it, but
00:27:08
I do know that my right arms bigger. So So maybe maybe it was just me trying to get my big forearms out there. I'm not
00:27:16
sure. >> Oh, so it was something that you weren't aware you were doing? No.
00:27:19
>> Okay. Um, and he said ask him if he remembers the first time I gave him a
00:27:23
tour of the Crusaders facilities. >> He told he told me the backtory to this
00:27:26
if you can't remember. >> I can't I can't remember. Um, but he was
00:27:32
uh someone that um like he's your team manager. He used to work down at um Bungie. Did you know that? He used to
00:27:39
work down at AJ Hackett >> and do the all that sort of stuff down there. Yeah.
00:27:44
>> Um he's a really good guy. Um what did what happened? So he was he crusaders manager when you
00:27:50
first arrived. Okay. So he said he gave you a tour of the facilities. Um and he said okay this is the the physio room
00:27:56
the rehab room and and you you said something like we won't be needing that.
00:27:59
Just show me where the gym is. >> Yeah. Yeah. >> Yeah. I I prided myself on not getting
00:28:05
injured. You know not that end of the day someone hits you from the wrong angle you're going to get injured. But
00:28:11
um uh yeah I was pretty detailed. I was I was into a lot of probably stuff before it sort of became more, you know,
00:28:20
I was into ice baths in the mid '9s, you know. Um I'm not whether people think
00:28:26
they uh affect you or not, I always felt better for it. Um always big into my stretching. Um all these different
00:28:34
things. So yeah, I remember it was Steve Mure was our uh physio. I said, "You
00:28:39
won't see me." And I I don't I don't think they did see me. Um, but when I
00:28:45
came back when I was in my 30s, they probably saw me a little bit more. So, yeah.
00:28:50
>> And the, um, the last message I got was from, um, Justin Marshall. Um, so your
00:28:54
career's sort of over overlapped, I guess. He was probably finishing just when you were
00:28:58
>> He's only He's only a year older than me, >> is he? >> Marshall. Yeah. Yeah. It's just that I
00:29:03
didn't actually get to play much against guys of my own sort of time because for
00:29:08
the from the age of 18, I played West Rugby League in the Brisbane Rugby League comp, first grade as an 18-y old.
00:29:15
Then I had seven years at the Broncos. I was playing first grade at 19. >> So there was eight years there and then
00:29:22
I came over to Union uh at 26. >> But it used to be guys used to leave quite early. It was almost like if you
00:29:30
hadn't sort of made the All Blacks or something by your mid20s, you know, guys
00:29:35
would go overseas and that and um so but yeah, Marie had done a whole bit of stuff in rugby and done well. He I think
00:29:42
he's he might he's either your age or a year older than me. >> He's a great guy. Um his his his um
00:29:49
memory of Brad Thorne in essence was um >> he talked about your commitment to work
00:29:53
and how you'd go to the gym before anyone else. So he said like the forwards would have a time to go to the
00:29:57
gym, then the backs would come a bit later. He said you'd always go an hour before everyone else
00:30:01
>> and then by the time the backs got in, you'd just be wandering around like
00:30:04
>> that's ber time. That's >> time. And he said he remembers once um
00:30:09
he remembers once uh he was doing bench and he had like 90 kilos or something on
00:30:12
the bench and you just came up and looked at it and then laughed and walked away.
00:30:16
>> Yeah. It's that's um Yeah. Classic. Yeah. Yeah. I was full of it. I was full
00:30:22
of it, mate. And is that a true story? >> We had Yeah, that would definitely that
00:30:26
would definitely be true. I' like backs and try and walk through the bench press
00:30:30
area say you're not welcome here like keep moving or you know I'd be uh standing you know guys that you know
00:30:36
maybe they're in the mirror I'd be you know standing behind them just you know
00:30:41
cuz I'm quite broad and I' I'd be saying you know don't blame yourself it's your
00:30:46
parents you do you know you don't have the you know all sorts of banter. So,
00:30:51
um, yeah, it it's just good fun because like I said, it's a lot of seriousness.
00:30:57
In my house growing up, my dad was uh we we used to like uh um wrestle and um and
00:31:05
we'd open hand spar as well and it'd always be chirp and when I went to Broncos, there's a heap of banter and um
00:31:13
it's just it's it's just the fun that helps it all go along, mate, you know.
00:31:19
Um when I told um Dr. Nick Gill that story about Justin Marshall, he said, "Oh, that story is [ __ ] That's not
00:31:24
true. There's no way Marshie ever lifted 90 kilos." >> Oh yeah. >> What What about you? What's your your
00:31:30
bench PB and your squat PB? >> My bench was 180 was my best lift and my squat was 205. Um so that Yeah. So
00:31:39
that's they were my two >> um lifts. I I thought my squat was pretty good. That's an ass to the grass
00:31:45
squat, too. It's not a 90° one, but um just just for the viewing public, okay?
00:31:51
There's a big difference, I'm telling you, between an assass. But >> um Shane Webbkkey was um we used to lift
00:31:59
the guy Dan Baker was our guy at the Broncos and uh two-time doctor. U he's president Australian strength
00:32:06
conditioning, just a gun. And um he put all the heavy the big dogs together and we'd be competitive or whatever. And
00:32:14
Shane used to Shane Webkkey remember him? His big quads and that used to say give me banter about my skinny pin. You
00:32:21
got skinny pins and I felt like I was doing all right. But he was he was a powerhouse. But but we used to be uh so
00:32:29
competitive um around the gym and pretty much everything and the amount of banter
00:32:35
at the Broncos. So when I came over to the Crusaders, um they probably a little bit more
00:32:40
reserved, but um you know, once I got comfortable there and uh you know, you know, it's then I'd have some fun and
00:32:50
it's all part of it. just with Justin Marshall. Um he was uh he was a fantastic player to play with and um um
00:33:00
tough a tough soldier and yeah a great a great player and uh you you knew when you played with him he's he's fully on
00:33:10
he'd have your back even as half back. He's he's a big half back but um he was
00:33:15
cool to play with. M >> he's a great guy too. If if if he gets a lot of a lot of flack for his media
00:33:21
commitment and his commentary, but I say to anyone that doesn't like him, if you
00:33:25
met him, you would like him. He's impossible to dislike. >> Yeah, he's great.
00:33:28
>> He's a great dude. >> This m we've been going for 32 minutes
00:33:31
and that was just with the icebreaker just with those messages from your old teammates. We haven't even gotten to the
00:33:36
crux of the podcast. This is great stuff. >> Yeah. >> Are you comfortable chatting about
00:33:40
yourself these days and reflecting on these things? Does it is it okay with you?
00:33:44
>> Yeah. Um, it's been solid. You know, it was more um putting it down in a book
00:33:50
was uh I felt like last year I reckon just in the background I felt like I think stressed cuz I'm you you're
00:33:59
showing if I'm going to do a book I'm going to do it properly. I'm going to be
00:34:02
vulnerable. You know, I'm going to um I talk about anxiety, talk about all sorts
00:34:06
of stuff. So >> um and you're thinking, gee, anyone want to hear this anyway? you know, but um
00:34:13
>> like I said, I got to the end of my career, I thought 30 years of stuff,
00:34:16
surely I've learned something and um you know, I prayed about it and door was
00:34:20
open and you know, I did it with Harper Collins. You know, thank him for being involved. So, but uh yeah, talking about
00:34:29
um yourself, uh yeah, can feel a bit awkward. um >> like just self-indulgent or
00:34:37
>> I I feel more um I just just doing it just being more uh I guess uh you you
00:34:43
probably notice over all that time I wasn't out there in front of the camera
00:34:47
all the time was I you know I was bit more reserved probably an introvert as you know my I get I need energy by being
00:34:55
all on my own and you know I like doing gym on my own I like walking taking my dog out to the beach or you know my
00:35:02
house are pretty noisy um you with my four kids. Um so yeah, to come out and just talk about uh stuff uh probably
00:35:13
isn't natural, but I sort of feel like um I had something to say. Uh I've
00:35:19
learned some things, you know, um and uh you know, if I'm going to say some stuff and need to um you know, just be
00:35:29
open and that. And I think that helps too because I feel like someone like me, I probably come across pretty staunch,
00:35:36
you know, like a physical guy in the All Blacks or at the, you know, coaching the
00:35:41
Reds. You're pretty serious, you know, face and you're a head coach and you're
00:35:46
just showing you're just saying, "Hey, you're human, too, and you got your
00:35:50
faults. You have you feel the downs and the ups as well." And um you hope that
00:35:56
people, you know, will feel encouraged by that, you know. So, >> um, yeah, I love the, um, the backstory
00:36:02
of the title, Champions Do Extra. It's a quote from your your dad who, um, passed
00:36:06
away when you were 19. I only got to see seven of your 500 games. >> Yeah.
00:36:10
>> Um, >> you the the funny thing, and I suppose the good thing is you're in a position of
00:36:16
life now, which is the same position as what most readers are, like you're just
00:36:19
like a normal civilian. >> So, what does excellence look like to you now on a day-to-day basis?
00:36:25
Well, like um >> what's what's extra for Brad? I >> I like like this will sound funny. I
00:36:31
like making my bed really well. >> I I do gym three days a week. I know it
00:36:36
sounds funny. I just love a real well-made bed. Like I have to I don't My wife will just, you know, put the sheets
00:36:43
over. I like to strip it and, you know, make the under sheet flat, you know. >> Why? It's so
00:36:51
>> I just like it done well. Yeah. Yeah. It's funny. Um >> when when you were away on on tour, did
00:36:56
you make your own beard or did you >> No, you've got people usually you're out
00:37:00
you're training and that. I'm just talking about it at home, you know. Um
00:37:03
I'm just giving example like I mow the lawn. I like my edges done not you know
00:37:09
I do whippers. I used to be able to claim that I could cut your hair with a whippers snipper, you know. But um when
00:37:14
I do my gym, I do three days a week I I have a gym at home. like I um I do all my movements or lifting or whatever, I
00:37:25
do it try and do it excellent. You know, >> the way I feel is um why do it mediocre?
00:37:33
That's how I sort of feel. Now, the argument is, you know, sometimes there's
00:37:36
things where you just got to get it done and move on. And I get all that, but um
00:37:41
and sometimes you do have to just get stuff done. But yeah, if I do the kitchen, if I you know, I like having it
00:37:49
um you know, spotless clean and that I don't think I'm like is it OCD or
00:37:54
something? >> Obsessive compulsive >> dis. I'm not like but I just uh if I'm
00:38:01
going to do stuff, I just like doing them well and I I just you just feel good purpose doing stuff well and um
00:38:09
>> I know that's Yeah. So even though I'm not like a professional athlete now and
00:38:14
all this sort of stuff. Yeah. I it's that's what I like. And dad my father
00:38:19
was the same. He's a watch maker by trade. >> I have you ever seen watch makers? But
00:38:24
the um dad used to do some work from home and he'd have these all these um magnifying cuz you you're dealing with
00:38:31
>> That's so intricate. >> Yeah. So, um and um he like he could build a house, he could build a car. Um
00:38:42
uh he he did fixing watches that need to be perfect. You don't want a watch that's dodgy, do you? And when he was a
00:38:51
watch maker, it was before they had all the cheap watch where you just throw them away. It was, you know, people had
00:38:56
their watches and it was a well- paid job. So, he he liked doing stuff well as well. I guess that's a trait that uh
00:39:03
I've taken from him him as well. >> Yeah, it's it's funny something that
00:39:08
sprung to mind a second ago when you were talking about you the um the bed and just doing everything right. I had
00:39:13
um one of your coaches, Sir Steve Hansen, on the podcast last year and then he used an analogy about a dirty
00:39:18
window and you clean the window but not the corners. >> The corners. Yeah.
00:39:21
>> Yeah. Have you heard that one from him before? >> Uh yeah. Yeah, I've heard that uh from
00:39:24
him. I've heard that. You know, that's >> but that's um >> that's that's
00:39:32
there's like 85% a lot of people do up around that. There's people are low like
00:39:39
what would they be? It'd be like um you know down to 15% or up to 85%. There's a bulk of people doing sort of
00:39:48
in the middle of that at that that really high level is that top 15%. this guy uh an old mate of mine Cameron Louis
00:39:58
crap he's an exwalabby said that's that top 15% thorny and I agree with him um
00:40:03
of of doing things really well >> you know and just you know trying to uh when I say really well the the word for
00:40:12
that is striving to do it in an excellent way >> and the thing that I loved about that
00:40:18
with the things I wanted to achieve was um you never fully um attain ain't it.
00:40:25
And it's each time you do something, you got to retry and do it well again. So,
00:40:30
it's a never- ending uh for someone who has a bit of a fire in them and loves
00:40:34
challenges, it's like this never ending um um thing that I'm trying to achieve,
00:40:41
>> like a game that you can never clock. >> Yeah. Yeah. And it's so I I just love
00:40:44
it. And it doesn't rely on uh me being better than someone else even though I
00:40:50
am highly competitive. Very competitive. um even if I've you know uh competed and
00:40:58
and I'm better you know doing it better than say others uh you can always do
00:41:04
something better or whatever. So, I always love that as a as a mindset. Uh, Dad was right um around, you know,
00:41:13
champions don't do mediocre, you know, they don't do less. Um it's a pretty b
00:41:19
obvious one that they would do extra. You know um what everyone else is prepared to do they all will do. Yeah,
00:41:26
I've seen that with great players, you know, um uh um throughout my career on
00:41:31
both codes and you know, watching, you know, you hear about I think it's Kobe
00:41:36
Bryant, the amount of effort he put in, Michael Jordan, these sort of guys, the the great cricketers,
00:41:42
business people. Um yeah, like I said once again, uh for me, what's the I don't get anything out of
00:41:52
doing things halfass or media, you know, mediocre. So I even if it's a small
00:41:58
thing, I like to do it well if I can. Um like I said before, sometimes there things you just go through and you move
00:42:06
on. But yeah, as general sort of mindset that sort of that was that was a strength for me, I think in my career. M
00:42:14
and the um you don't just have one. You definitely do extra. You you you even
00:42:18
have extra four words in your book. Most people just have one. You've got three
00:42:22
forwards from Robbie Dan, Joe Schmidt, and um Wayne Bennett. And Wayne Bennett calls you um
00:42:28
>> principled. That's that's the word he used. >> Yeah. >> What did he mean?
00:42:34
>> Yeah. I'm not sure. Yeah. Um >> it's a huge compliment. >> Yeah. I guess um
00:42:40
um you probably have to ask Wayne, but uh I I you know felt strongly about representing the Broncos. It meant a lot
00:42:50
to me. Um you know, moving over there when I was a a 9year-old, um you know, I I guess I I I tried to play in a certain
00:43:02
manner um and show respect and all this sort of stuff. Maybe that's what he means. I'm not really sure. But to have
00:43:10
those guys, uh Wayne to this, you know, to this day, I'm 50 years 51 years old.
00:43:18
He had me for, you know, 10 years at the Broncos. Um you know, a fifth of my life
00:43:23
even now, you know. Um >> so he had a big impact being around him and uh the great coach that he is. And
00:43:31
>> it won't surprise me if he goes into his 80s. um um with his coaching as long as
00:43:37
he has the passion and the desire. Um, and then to have Robbie there who was, uh, massive for me. Um,
00:43:46
uh, and such a competitor himself and and and a good guy. And Joe Schmidt, um, who I got the pleasure of playing with
00:43:54
at the back end of my career. And if you look at his um, regime, you know, he's
00:44:01
uh, he's a guy who's achieved a lot. And then, you know, they're all men of, you
00:44:07
know, character. So >> to have those guys talk about you is uh crazy. Yeah.
00:44:14
>> Yes. Some of the coaches that you've played for, there's um Ted who um who um
00:44:19
thought you were too old initially. We might get into that later. Agism. >> Uh there's um the professor Sir Wayne
00:44:25
Smith, Sir Steve Hansen, Robbie Deans, Joe Schmidt, uh Razer. Did Razer coach you at the Crusaders?
00:44:32
>> No. No. I played next to Razer. >> Yeah. but also um yeah, Wayne Bellamy
00:44:36
and um also Craig Bellamy and Wayne Bennett. >> What? Yeah. What traits do all great
00:44:42
coaches have in common? >> I guess they have the love for the the what they're doing, the sport. Um highly
00:44:51
competitive. Uh you know, they um you know, they've got their their vision. um you know they're they're very driven
00:45:03
and they uh managed they can you know connect with the to get the best out of your
00:45:11
players they're the best coaches so um yeah there's the our environment at
00:45:19
the Broncos was a competitive environment when I think of adversaries you know not
00:45:26
necessarily other teams it was you know um some of my teammates you know and um many time I come off the training pad at
00:45:33
cranky cuz you know you lost some sort of you know you know bold skill game or whatever. Um so Dean was the same like
00:45:43
Dean was just highly competitive uh guy. They demand high standards. You don't
00:45:50
get stuff with low standards or mediocre standards. >> It's always the same. It's, you know,
00:45:55
high standards and the fabric that brings it all together is the care, the care and the care is the real words is
00:46:05
love, but it's if you know care is a probably a more comfortable word for the
00:46:09
lads, but caring for each other and for what you're trying to achieve, the cause
00:46:14
>> and who you represent. And that's the at those under Joe Schmidt, Wayne Bennett, Graeme Henry, um all
00:46:23
those guys, Dean, that you know, they're big on that, big on uh uh keeping a
00:46:30
humility that the great teams you go to, um sometimes you expect them to have the
00:46:37
big ego, but there's a humility. They know they're they know they're good, um
00:46:41
but there's a humility to continue to strive to get better and learn and whatever.
00:46:45
Sometimes it's the the teams where you they're not so good you expect would be
00:46:49
humble, but they >> sometimes there's a bit of a uh attitude there. You know, it's quite interesting
00:46:55
that you know, you'd expect the the big time team to be if anything arrogant.
00:47:01
But obviously, you know, but that's why that's the thing I learned um throughout my 22 years playing is
00:47:09
there's a reason why teams are good. It's not just by chance and it starts
00:47:14
with these coaches you're talking about and the players and the culture of the
00:47:17
club and all that sort of stuff. And there's a reason why places aren't good.
00:47:21
It's not just by chance either. Do you know what I mean? And uh having a a full
00:47:26
experience over that 22 years is was good, you know, to to just get a feel for different things. The last four
00:47:36
years of my career, I um I was a 30 I finished the World Cup. I was 36 years old. I still felt good. I thought I'm
00:47:42
going to keep playing, but now I'm going to have some fun. You know, I've had um
00:47:46
10 years at the Broncos, seven with the Crusaders, 17 years of going hard, you know, all these things that I'm now I'm
00:47:52
going to have some fun. So, you know, I got played in Japan. We came last. Um I got the wooden spoon. I've won a wooden
00:47:58
spoon. So, um yeah, at the Highlanders, we we sort of came out of uh we had a tough year, won three and then, you
00:48:04
know, into the top six. Um yeah, over to Leicester. Lster. Um it was good to experience these
00:48:11
different uh places and teams in different spaces, clubs at different spaces. So yeah.
00:48:18
>> Um from what you've said previously, um Wayne Bennett is um your favorite league
00:48:23
coach. Who would be your favorite rugby coach? >> He's my only league coach.
00:48:26
>> Oh, is he? Yeah. >> Oh, yeah. All my life. >> Oh, Craig Bellamy. He was he was your
00:48:30
like strength and conditioning coach at the Broncos. Okay. He's gone on to do
00:48:34
Right. >> Yeah. and we knew he would and we loved Craig and um uh yeah he he played like
00:48:40
200 games for the Camber Raiders back in the 80s and this is when yeah it was tough they they they when they first
00:48:47
came in I think 1982 or something they did they were >> they were tough years so he played all
00:48:52
those games uh I think he did strength and conditioning um he did a bit of assisting coaching
00:49:00
um he's pretty much you know done it all and then he went into Melbourne and look
00:49:06
what he's done over 20 years. Isn't it Isn't it fantastic what he's done, you
00:49:10
know? So, um you you're just pleased for those guys and you just have massive respect
00:49:15
and you're thankful for what they invested into you, >> you know what I mean?
00:49:21
>> Who would be your top rugby coach? One that you if if you could play for the
00:49:25
rest of your life and only have one coach, who would it be? >> That's just like a brutal question, Dom,
00:49:29
because um >> you don't want to play favorites. picking your favorite son.
00:49:33
>> That's a tough one. Yeah. Yeah, it's a tough one, man. >> Do you want me to answer it?
00:49:41
>> Not if you don't feel comfortable. >> If you look at Graeme and you look at um
00:49:48
Smithy and Shag. I think of those guys together. Uh even though I did have Shag and Canterbury, but then you got like
00:49:56
Dean and you've got um Joe Schmidt. They're all just qu high quality. So,
00:50:03
um, you know, it's just too it's not a it's not an easy one to answer that.
00:50:09
Yeah. Sorry, can I just sidestep that? >> You didn't take a knee on that one.
00:50:13
>> Yeah. >> Um, and you played with some That's the coaches. The um you played with some
00:50:19
amazing players, eh, in in both um in both sports. Who would be the um like the best athlete that you've ever been a
00:50:25
teammate with? when when I had um Sir Steve Hansen on the podcast last year, he said Rich is probably the best rugby
00:50:31
player. Sunny Bill is the best athlete >> that he's ever coached. >> Yes. Yeah. And from a coaching point of
00:50:36
view, you know, um some of the athletes I like are in the front row, you know, or the, you know, the locks. Um but, um
00:50:45
you know, Wendell Sailor was a powerhouse. Um there was some there was some good uh
00:50:53
specimens. Tony Carol was uh you know a specimen. I if you remember Tony um so there's all these different guys. You
00:51:02
got Sunny obviously, you know, Rolls-Royce, you know, like a really good physical shape and athlete and
00:51:10
um there's there's just so many guys, you know, it's hard to for me, you know,
00:51:18
does there's does a front row mention in there because he's 120 kilo and, you
00:51:23
know, he's you don't see his abs, but um you know, if you don't have him in the,
00:51:29
you know, doing his job, you can't win games of rugby, you know. >> Um, so there's different, you know, type
00:51:38
of physiques that you need for different positions. >> And, um, so yeah. Yeah, that's all I got
00:51:45
on that one. >> That almost sounds like another diplomatic answer. >> It's just hard. It's just because
00:51:53
there's the, like I said, there's the athletes that are the easy stand out
00:51:59
ones, but you got to remember, uh, I almost got like a loyalty to the type five and the
00:52:06
middle. And the and in in rugby league, we call it like the the we used to call it the ruck. I think they call middles
00:52:12
now. So that would be like at the Broncos that would be Pro, Shane Webbby, Webkkey, uh Sean Baragan or Luke Pritis
00:52:20
and myself. Um and then you have your right side and your left side. And there's good athletic guys in that,
00:52:27
>> but they have different roles that they do. We have roles that we do. We have to
00:52:33
have an onslaught of making hard meters and um you know, building momentum and getting us the right ends. uh when it
00:52:41
comes to uh Roby Union um you know you got Tony Woodcock uh who's just a beast
00:52:50
uh does he look you know if you put him in speedos and that is he going to look uh you know compared to Israel or
00:52:59
someone or uh Dan yeah uh no he look different but that that ain't going to work up front so um you need Tony Tony
00:53:10
Woodcock, you know, and you need uh, you know, uh, Franks and all the guys that I
00:53:16
play with. So, um, like I said, I've got a bias probably being a type five guy to to the guys
00:53:25
that um, I stood next to, you know, who were um, who are very as good at their job as anyone else, you know. So, yeah.
00:53:34
>> Is is Rich McCall the greatest rugby player of all time? Well, that's a big call. Once again, it
00:53:40
goes Well, it goes back to >> Are you just mad cuz he broke your nose that time?
00:53:44
>> Oh, yeah. >> Yeah. What I was saying before, yeah, we we >> accidental hit.
00:53:49
>> Yeah, we we met at a 20 20 seconds and do a a test at twiging him. My face hit
00:53:57
his skull. But um um Richie uh uh is great player, great guy. Um, so there's many great guys and players
00:54:11
though. Um, and I'll keep I'm sort of saying what I just said before. It just depends on, you know, uh, a
00:54:20
number 10, he's running the show. So, a number good numbers, great number 10's
00:54:25
always going to stand out. He's getting the ball. He's making the plays. Um, the
00:54:31
seven, he's all around the ball. Uh, which is awesome. you see these sevens and they're dominant and they do their
00:54:37
role and Richie's uh a legendary player >> once again there's if they there's a
00:54:46
saying who's um yeah you know who's the most important player in a in a rugby team
00:54:53
it's and it's tied prop who's the second most important the the reserve tie prop
00:54:59
>> because you don't have a scrum you know rugy's played off you know set piece
00:55:05
you don't have a um you don't have front football for anyone to play or for you
00:55:09
know guys to do so so um talking uh he'd definitely be up there um and there's
00:55:16
all these you know other guys um you know there's great players right now um
00:55:23
there's been great players in the past uh and um yeah I I I find those those
00:55:30
sort of questions sort of hard to answer just because you know I just just the value of it all. So, yeah.
00:55:36
>> Yeah. Oh, you're so diplomatic. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. No one's going to be offended.
00:55:40
>> Yeah. Well, you know, for me, you know, you look at I even establish he played now, big specimen, won a
00:55:48
couple World Cups. Um, you know, you look at different guys, you know, you know, Pine Tree Maids. um you know all
00:55:57
these Brian L'ore there's been a lot of that we're that you you can't com it's
00:56:04
hard to compare um errors because there's you know there's strength and conditioning and all this stuff now or
00:56:11
back then there was this or that. >> It's just sort of hard you know to to
00:56:16
put your sort of um definitely a legendary all black and um became a great leader. So yeah,
00:56:26
>> your hard work, Bradthorn. >> Oh, no. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
00:56:30
>> Hey, um let's go um all all the way back. So you're born in Mosgill. Uh then
00:56:34
you spend some time in Banickburn. >> Yeah. >> Yeah, I know that that's red wine
00:56:38
territory near >> used to be um farmers uh orchards, >> apricots and cherries and stuff. I think
00:56:46
there's still cherries and stuff there now. Battling away. Uh and and maybe Marino um sheep farming. Uh you know, it
00:56:57
was guys are you know uh that they were trying the best and but with the vineyards and that came along. Um you
00:57:08
know it was perfect. They thrive the grapes thrive in those that altitude and those conditions and
00:57:16
>> um it's come a long way. When I go back there, we've got the speedway there, you
00:57:20
know, the speedways park. >> Yeah, it's incredible. >> Yeah. Um,
00:57:25
it's uh, you know, it's really grown in Queenstown and all, you know, all that.
00:57:29
So, yeah, it's cool. A great place to grow up. Played my first rugby there as
00:57:33
a six-year-old um for my primary school, Cromwell Primary, played under eights and then that was it. You know, I I've
00:57:42
heard people in the past, oh, he played uh rugby up until, you know, first 15. No, no, no. Underage was the last time
00:57:49
until I played um with the Crusaders as a 26-y old, you know, >> cuz then Yeah. Then we went across to
00:57:56
Australia and I learned New Game. So, yeah. >> So, back then um you were called Boo.
00:58:01
That was the family nickname. >> That's hard to hear that way. >> Is it? Does Does anyone still call you
00:58:06
Boo now? Does your older brother call you Boo? Does your >> Sometimes he does and I let him get away
00:58:11
with it because um it's my big bro. You know, he's 50. He's a couple years. He's
00:58:16
your age. Um couple years older. So >> he's bigger than you as well, right?
00:58:20
>> He's the big dog. Yeah. Six uh 68. He is 3 in bigger. So um and he's the older
00:58:27
brother. So I have to cop a bit of that. But yeah, you it got to a point when I said 14, 15, start to think you're
00:58:34
pretty cool and stuff. And I got my mom or my dad yelling out, "Go Boo. Go Boo."
00:58:40
And I'm like, "H we're going to lose that nickname. It's time to It was good
00:58:44
as a kid, little guy, but that didn't that didn't cut it down as a 15y old
00:58:49
trying to, you know, be cool and whatever. So, yeah. >> [ __ ] That's That's wonderful, though.
00:58:54
That's a great a great nickname. The um the man the middle-aged man sitting in
00:58:58
front of me now. Um how is he the same and how is he different to Boo at Silverream Primary School in Mos?
00:59:05
>> Yeah. Uh Love, Rough, and Tumble. >> Yeah. you know, um I'd like to think I'm pretty friendly,
00:59:14
you know. I'm a softy inside, you know. I'm um uh um yeah, I'm a I'm a softy. I remember
00:59:23
my dad saying um there was a uh there was a the good guys or something. It was a business in
00:59:31
Australia and they had an advert, bunch of softies. He said, "That's us, mate.
00:59:34
We're you know." So, um, but yeah, uh, yeah, I like I'm cheeky. Uh,
00:59:43
usually you get like a bigger guy, he can be, um, a certain way, but because I was like the little guy, I actually had
00:59:51
a foster brother who lived with us for four years. He was a year older than my brother. Um, so I had him, my brother,
01:00:00
and and I was the cheeky guy. You know, I get I annoy older kids. I remember getting beat up out the front of church,
01:00:08
beat up on Christmas day by other kids cuz, you know, there's a cheeky bit of a
01:00:13
rascal guy, I guess. You know, when we were talking before about in the gym, you I'm walking around.
01:00:19
>> Yeah. Yeah. Pandering away. So, yeah, there's a there's a probably a good
01:00:23
amount of cheekiness to me as well. Did you get in much trouble? What was the most trouble you got in as as a kid?
01:00:30
>> Um, yeah, we we were um we respected our parents and we didn't really get in too
01:00:39
much trouble. Um, like I said, you know, um, so you might be silly little things,
01:00:46
you know, whatever. Probably that if I thought about trouble would be my mother, um, when we moved to Australia,
01:00:52
she's a nurse. 40 years a nurse she was. and um she um used to do night duty when
01:00:58
we first rocked up because you know you've come and you and uh night duty is
01:01:04
pretty hard. She do six days a week night duty. What that meant was on the weekends um dad was working but we had
01:01:13
to be quiet during the day and because mom would have to sleep you know what I mean
01:01:18
>> and if we made if we sometimes we forget and be making a lot of noise or having
01:01:23
the TV up >> and if mom got woken up that's when you knew when dad come home you know we uh
01:01:31
you know he'd line us up military style and you get you know smack smack. Um, so
01:01:37
yeah, that's not big time in trouble, you know. Um, we we were just, you know,
01:01:43
mom and dad said goes and um >> you know that we're pretty respectful.
01:01:49
I'll just say um just I mentioned my that we had a foster brother. Um that was uh my dad that was big on that and
01:01:58
uh just his own upbringing. He sort of um guess had a bit of a you his dad was an
01:02:05
alcoholic and it was he lived in state housing in Moscow and uh yeah he didn't
01:02:10
have that connection with his dad that he felt I guess he wished he had and he poured that into us but I think dad
01:02:17
wanted to give he got to we got to a good space and dad wanted to give back and we had a foster brother who lived
01:02:22
with us for 4 years. He'd been like 33 different homes or something and um and
01:02:29
we're actually looking to adopt him. Um he's living in Australia with us. Uh I
01:02:34
he was like a brother to me and and we treat him like a brother. That's what I
01:02:38
mean. And um but yeah, his mother um um wanted him not to do that and to come back to New Zealand. And unfortunately a
01:02:48
month after going back, he was in um a boarding in a boarding school. like a boy's home.
01:02:55
>> Uh just boarding school like a school. >> Oh, okay. >> But >> you know,
01:03:00
>> he was around he had a strong role model with my dad and all that sort of stuff.
01:03:04
But I took my hat off to my dad around that because um um >> you know uh yeah, it was cool that he
01:03:13
really wanted to he had his two sons, but he he wanted to give you know someone um I guess a chance to have that
01:03:21
opportunity. >> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So, um, Lindseay Thorne. >> Yeah. Yeah. Let's talk about him. He he
01:03:29
passed he was huge influence on you as we've talked about. Um, champions do extra. That was a quote from um him.
01:03:36
>> Um, he gave you a boot up the ass when you need it. Sounds like he gave you
01:03:39
love when you needed it. Um, you lost him when when you were 19, like seven games into your into your into your
01:03:46
league career. So there's so much that he missed, but um also so much that he
01:03:50
got to saw got to see, which is sort of how you frame it. Like he had done it done all he needed to do as a parent to
01:03:55
send you and your brother on your way. >> Job done. Um it sucked that that he
01:04:01
passed and he's not at weddings. He's not with the grand being a granddad and
01:04:05
all this sort of stuff. But job done, Lindsay, because me and Aaron, you know, I was just about
01:04:12
to turn 20. Aaron was 22, my brother. and 20 years of goodness he poured into you know for me and 22 for my brother
01:04:19
and so the challenges of life and that we we were you know walked forward and and you thank God for my for my dad and
01:04:30
my brother would say the same thing um if he'd gone uh you know as a 15year-old
01:04:36
or something or 13y old it would have been I think a way more massive thing you know but I'm just saying but for
01:04:43
half of me and my brother. Um he he done uh he did a great job there and it's an
01:04:51
it's cool to honor him in this book because um I talk about uh in the World Cup final after the siren goes, you
01:05:01
know, I was so pent up and energy. I was balling on my knees balling and all black physio Pete Gallagghous you know
01:05:09
who's a friend of mine said you know Lindsay be proud of you which is um it was my dad and uh it was really cool in
01:05:17
that moment but um you know to have all those sort of moments uh those experiences and all that you know you're
01:05:26
just so grateful you got set up how he treated my mother um you can talk about it but you see you got of dad actioning
01:05:35
it, you know, that, you know, meeting my wife and um and how I've raised my own
01:05:41
kids, you know, it's it's just cool to uh to honor him a bit, you know, in the
01:05:49
book um and my mother as well. >> I mean, he's been um out of your life
01:05:55
longer than what he was in it. Is it still is it still painful now to think about him, to talk about him? You know
01:06:00
what, Dom, what I've liked is I've, you know, I just talked about him. I can
01:06:06
talk about it. There's many years where I'd choke up and, you know, so um
01:06:13
I had to talk at my brother's wedding and you got married, you know, got to I'm basically,
01:06:20
you know, dad would have been saying something. So, >> it was hard to talk about him and
01:06:26
different times like that. You know, there's a couple of times um some of my
01:06:31
players um lost their dads and uh I I really understood how they feeling like they are young guys. Um we
01:06:42
had a young guy called Jordan Paya. Um I don't know if you heard of him. He was
01:06:46
in the Queensland Reds and Oz actually got on well with his dad uh Tu who's a
01:06:52
um good guy and uh he passed suddenly and um some of the guys were going to uh it was
01:07:01
Luke Khan who's a lock that I had and Chris Ortier was a center I had they were going to his house and they rang me
01:07:09
to let me know cuz it just happened suddenly to to support him and Um, it caught me unaware. This is a guy
01:07:17
I got on pretty well with. And, um, I actually halfway through the phone call basically fell down my knees in my
01:07:26
bedroom balling and my wife was just hugging me, you know. But I felt um because I knew what Jordan was
01:07:37
the pain and how hard that is. And um I think uh you know just over the years you know
01:07:46
you process it a bit. And um when my dad passed he died on the um on the Sunday morning.
01:07:57
I actually got to see him only because um I came home at like daylight. I've
01:08:02
been out at pubs with my mates and and then he's gone. He's on a table and he's
01:08:07
not there. And um my mom's just balling and uh whatever. So, >> but on the Sunday, so on the Tuesday
01:08:18
afternoon, I went and trained at the Broncos cuz I just there's so much grief
01:08:22
you can take. I just need to do get away from that. But we were just remembering
01:08:27
we had the wedding uh the funeral on the Wednesday. It's pretty quick, eh? Turn
01:08:32
around. And I don't know if that's looking back, you know, maybe over time,
01:08:40
you know, there's different things where they have a body at a house for a while
01:08:44
to let people, >> you know, cross >> he said. >> Yeah. All that sort of stuff. There was
01:08:49
a a massive king hit, you know, and um you know, he's the hardest thing that
01:08:58
I've had to deal with in my life. and I hadn't really had anything bad happen
01:09:04
till then. And then he's like my best friend. He's my uh he's my guy, you
01:09:08
know. Um and uh so so yeah, like um Pete Gallagher mentioning him, yeah, when we won that World Cup, that's why I
01:09:22
wrote the book. It's pretty nice. Um I used to uh in the Broncos uh sorry in
01:09:29
the All Blacks after test matches often the parents would be around the families
01:09:34
and sometimes the some of the fathers and then some of the coaching staff would be in the team room and I would go
01:09:42
there as well cuz after a big energy game you'd be lying there at 3:00 a.m. with your eyes wide open. It's hard to
01:09:49
sleep. So, but I'm not a guy who's going out, you know, I'm a family man,
01:09:53
whatever. What I used to love was just hanging out with those fathers, >> cuz mom wasn't there. So I would um talk
01:10:02
to Richie's dad and to Hory's dad and they wouldn't have realized it, but yeah, I
01:10:09
was I I just when I see fathers with their sons and stuff, the Franks is there, all these guys. Uh, I just really
01:10:19
appreciate it cuz he wasn't when it's a it's a tough one when um they don't uh
01:10:27
they're not there the next day or the next one >> or the next year, you know. And um
01:10:33
so yeah, I believe I'll see my father again. Um, but yeah, he's been missed.
01:10:38
And uh um you know, like I said, it's cool to to uh in a way with this book,
01:10:47
you know, just just honor my dad and the impact he had on me and and also my mother who was a real rock and they were
01:10:54
a great team together. They were took mom two years to get over. Uh dad, she told me. Um so yeah, it's a tough old
01:11:00
time. Plenty of people go through it though, don't they? So yeah. Well, it's the price of great love,
01:11:06
isn't it? And I I'd even sit two years to get over it. I I don't know if you
01:11:10
ever fully get over it. I think it always sits close to the surface. Eh, >> I just think for mom, she got to a space
01:11:16
where she can go for she's never remarried. She has Alzheimer's now. You
01:11:20
I'm going to go down and see her now that I'm back in New Zealand and she's probably not going to know
01:11:27
know me, but um yeah, it's um >> Brad, that's terrible. >> Yeah, it's not.
01:11:33
>> It's heartbreaking. Yeah, it's it's just a journey of life. And
01:11:38
um when dad passed, one thing I sort of understood with my brother is time to, you know, mom and dad raised us and
01:11:47
they're always there, but time to look after mom, you know. So >> we made sure, me and my brother, that
01:11:54
one of us was at home cuz I bought a house and I moved out. My brother was home, then he he came to New Zealand. I
01:12:02
was back at home when I came to do that rugby challenge as a 26 year old. That was the first time mom was going to be
01:12:09
on her own. So I'd been 19 when dad passed. So it been like five six years. But I got to take it's time to I got to
01:12:17
take on this I got to live my live life and take on this challenge. And uh I talked to mom about it and she was
01:12:24
obviously supportive in that. I think from memory she went over and did some nursing in England that year just to be
01:12:31
you know >> change of scenery. >> Yeah. But what you realize is, you know,
01:12:35
with the Alzheimer's and stuff, um, you know, you're looking, uh, she's in
01:12:41
Christ Church, my brother's there, and but for the last 10 years or so, she'd
01:12:45
been in Brisbane, you know, I brought her back home, and I brought her back, but um,
01:12:50
>> yeah, it's, uh, me and my brother, our job to look after mom. So um and she's the 30 odd years
01:13:01
since dad passed as I said she's never remarried but she's um gone about her
01:13:06
life and um what a wonderful woman so much respect for her. >> So when you see your mom um like now or
01:13:17
this week with Alzheimer's I'm I'm fortunate enough to be in a position where I I haven't had a family
01:13:24
member that's had Alzheimer's or dementia. How how do you handle it? What do you
01:13:28
talk about? What do you do? >> I I'm not one of the guys that goes um keeps testing her memory like does she
01:13:35
know me not or not know me. I sense that she's um happy when she sees me. I sense that sometimes she probably does
01:13:44
know me. You know, she probably still does know me, but um >> yeah, like she seems real happy and warm
01:13:51
and I you know, I don't bother asking her questions. do you remember this? Or
01:13:57
I just tell her I love her. And um I like her being free. I like to get her when she was
01:14:05
I have no relations uh in Australia. They're all in New Zealand. So it was part of bringing her back. My brother,
01:14:13
her sister, uh cousins, whatever. So, but when I was in Australia, I'd take I'd always take my dog. I'm a big dog. I
01:14:21
love my lab. Uh Maisie, I'm a big dog person and um always found that mom loved having the dog around. I'd always
01:14:30
take her out and uh to a park. I just want to like being free because you you get locked. You're in a place and you
01:14:39
know they're around people. They're not >> It's a tough old gig around people.
01:14:45
>> You know that's your new home now, you know. And she lived with us for about a
01:14:49
year and a half and it got real tough there. Yeah, this is while you were coaching the Reeds as well.
01:14:53
>> It was tough. Like sometimes um I get a phone call or um my mom had been
01:15:00
walking, you know, didn't know where she was and some people had found her and
01:15:05
all this sort of stuff. So, but I used to like taking her out to we have like these mud flats when the tide goes out
01:15:11
and Sandate and Nudgy Beach. I don't know if you know anything about Brisbane. And I I like taking the dog
01:15:17
out there, you know, and um I just like taking my mom out there cuz she's just
01:15:22
for that hour I say she's free. Just walk wherever you want to walk. Um and um you just uh you just this are just a
01:15:32
holy love. this is a woman that brought you into the world and um you know uh you just want her to feel safe and good
01:15:42
and um you know you are just grateful to God for her and um uh you know you just you're bringing
01:15:51
that just that connection you know like I said I don't spend time saying oh mom
01:15:56
do you remember this or you know what she doesn't know who I am no I just be
01:16:00
there >> and uh I I don't really ask questions. I just say, "Oh, isn't this nice? Isn't
01:16:06
that nice?" You know. So, you know. So, >> is is there a manual for this? Like for
01:16:11
kids that have got parents or, you know, loved ones with Alzheimer's? Like, I
01:16:16
feel like testing them. I don't know. I feel like that would that could be like
01:16:18
embarrassing. >> Yeah. >> If it was me, I'd probably has to have
01:16:22
my pride. So, I'd have a moment where I'd maybe lie and say I do remember
01:16:26
something even if I didn't. >> Yeah. Yeah. I'm not sure. Um Yeah. It's
01:16:31
just like I said, that's sort of how I go. I just want my mom to feel it's our
01:16:36
time. It's our job to look out for mom. You know, dad's not here. If dad was
01:16:40
around and he was say didn't have Alzheimer's, he'd be looking after mom
01:16:44
and whatever. the the time that's tough with Alzheimer's and dementia and that
01:16:48
I'll tell you when the time's tough is so earlier on when all of a sudden
01:16:53
you're saying to them um yeah you can't ride your bike because um you know if they just cycle out in front
01:17:02
of someone in a car or something or you know the you got to take the license you
01:17:07
know yeah there's these things where the person that has the the alz you know the
01:17:13
dementia or whatever they're saying oh Why can't I drive? Cuz they're not
01:17:17
really aware. Do you know what I mean? >> Yeah. >> So, and in a way, the people who are
01:17:22
caring for them can become the bad guy. And it' be this, if I started saying to
01:17:26
you, Dom, you can't, sorry, mate, you can't do this, you can't do that. You'd
01:17:30
be going, why why can't I, you know, why are you telling me what to do, you know?
01:17:34
So, >> there can be a little bit of um that's not much fun because you almost become
01:17:39
like the bad guy. That's where probably the um when they in a a place uh like a a
01:17:46
place where they um go um I guess the nurses can be a bit of the bad guy and you get back to being the good guy, you
01:17:54
know, you can you um spend time with them. So >> So she's in a a care facility now.
01:18:00
>> Yeah. And it's a really good one. Um, in Christ Church, we're very grateful to
01:18:05
the effort, all the people they put in for all those people, all those uh people that are in there.
01:18:11
>> How how often do you get back? >> This will be I brought her back about uh a year and
01:18:19
uh just over a year ago. So, this will be the second time that I'll be back since then
01:18:26
>> because yeah, I'm just got all these other stuff going on as well. So, it
01:18:31
sort of sucks because for, you know, all that time, um, I've been there, you
01:18:38
know, it's been me and mom. Um, like I said, all the relations, everyone's over
01:18:43
here. So, it was sort of tough. Uh, taking her back. Um, >> and I can't when you go and visit, I
01:18:50
can't imagine how hard leaving will be again. >> It's Yeah, you're just you're just
01:18:55
saying you're just saying to her, you're just saying that you love him. Yeah, I
01:19:00
love you, Mom. And it probably sounds like if you said it normally, it would sound over the top, but you just want to
01:19:08
enjoy saying it. >> Mhm. >> So, you just Well, you got the opportunity.
01:19:11
>> I just have my arm around her and um you know, it gets to a point where um maybe
01:19:16
you sit down and she's sort of walks around the lounge room they have there and looks back at you and it's like she
01:19:24
doesn't recognize you. It's just part of what that is. And um you know it's uh we're finite and
01:19:32
>> like I said I have a faith I believe you know my mother mother you know will join
01:19:38
my father I you know in a better place to come. So yeah >> how how awesome would it be if there
01:19:44
happens to be a moment of clarity where she calls you boo. >> Ah yeah well there you go. Um um
01:19:51
probably unlikely now though. >> Yeah. Really? >> Yeah. she she's still functioning um and
01:19:56
stuff, but yeah, I'm just I'm not just not like I said, I'm not sure and I
01:20:01
don't really ask um um you know I I feel like when she see me her face lights up
01:20:09
and that you know >> something something clicks, something registers. >> Yeah. Yeah. I would Who would know what
01:20:14
she would know? Maybe I'm familiar and it's a I'd say I'm a real familiar face.
01:20:20
maybe she does know I'm her son and uh you know it's Brad and you know this
01:20:24
sort of stuff but I just I'm I'm less focused on that and more on just uh I
01:20:30
just want her to feel good and I want to value my mother you know and um with dad
01:20:38
gone like I said me and Aaron is our time to sort of we look out for mom so yeah
01:20:47
>> yeah I I suppose due to the the different ways is um your Yeah. Your mom's got Alzheimer's. Um your dad died
01:20:54
on a had a heart incident on a bike crash. Yes. So the story goes in your book which you share about so openly. Um
01:21:01
you you'd been on a night out. You come home like 4:00 or 5 in the morning. Your
01:21:04
dad's in his Lyra just going out for a bike ride. So you pass each other. Um so
01:21:08
I'm guessing in that sort of circumstance, in that environment at that age, you didn't say I love you as
01:21:13
the last words. >> No, I was just happy for him. It's funny that night out like it was just weird
01:21:19
because um we got puppy here having a good scratching the floor. >> Good on him.
01:21:25
>> Um but he um um Oh, when I was out I my best mate, his brother was with us and
01:21:34
we just wanted to get a taxi. Brisbane's a big city head out our way. Um and he
01:21:41
was just wanting to hang on. when he I think he he he was trying to um chat to this nice girl or whatever and um he's
01:21:50
like just give me 20 minutes 30 minutes he just you know he's a nice guy he wasn't a bad intention guy but um and we
01:21:57
gave him that time okay time to go just I need a bit more you know it's like he
01:22:01
said it like three times I just my head and man let's go you know it's going to
01:22:06
be sun's going to come up soon comes up around you know 4:35 in Brisbane and uh
01:22:11
finally it comes I get home it's by daylight. I'm just like far out. Dad's
01:22:17
um there getting ready to cycle. He'd cycle with mates and then uh they'd have
01:22:23
a coffee and then uh at the end of it do a good cycle and then like a lot of people do and then he'd come home.
01:22:30
>> And um so yeah, I saw him. He was looking so good, so fresh. And um he'd
01:22:36
had angina about 6 months earlier and I think they done put a stent in or something and he'd been going you know
01:22:44
it really affected him and then he's a really fit healthy guy. Seemed like a
01:22:48
healthy guy and then yeah he um seemed like he's in you know really good neck
01:22:54
and doing well he's pumped and then Boo Booya came up they found him three houses down from our house. three houses
01:23:02
down. Uh and um don't know if he you know he he was riding and then fell you know fell
01:23:10
off or if he don't know he's just on a guy's lawn and you know that was uh you
01:23:16
know brutal for my brother. He was the guy that went down there and they were doing all the you know the stuff on the
01:23:21
ambulance all this sort of stuff. Yeah. And then >> like I said you know >> Yeah. Well, you you weren't you were
01:23:28
sort of um you hadn't rediscovered um your Christianity at that point and um
01:23:32
you were out out drinking. Why didn't you go off the rails at that point? What
01:23:36
kept you from going off the rails? >> Uh well, I was pretty loose >> for you know for the next um uh 19 20 21
01:23:46
22. I've got a nick name for that period. It's the mush years cuz they all
01:23:51
just immersed into it, you know. I just, you know, um, train hard, play hard, body hard, you know, and I was did all
01:23:59
three, you know, hard, you know. So that was the league way. >> I saw like a news headline um about you
01:24:05
from um 2009 and it said Brad Thorne from Hellraiser to family man. >> You were never a hellraiser. I wouldn't
01:24:12
say it was a hell raiser to me. Yeah, it might be, you know, you editor editors are trying to get um, you know,
01:24:19
attention to it. Yeah, >> I wasn't I was just another guy, >> you know, binge drinker and um,
01:24:26
>> in that, you know, that sort of time, that environment, you know, >> there's it's pretty loose. It's pretty
01:24:34
loose living by me. So, um that that's how I was rolling and uh I guess had a
01:24:40
profile and you know um I guess got some attention and yeah I I took advantage of that I guess
01:24:49
and um >> I've heard you refer to yourself as a womanizer. >> Yeah.
01:24:53
>> Yeah. >> Is that what you mean? You're a hit with the ladies? Uh, I wouldn't say
01:24:56
necessarily a hit with the ladies, but um that was that was just, you know, what was where was that? And um I was a
01:25:08
a love my grog and um yeah there was uh that that came with yeah like I said that was the you know we trained hard we
01:25:20
played hard we partied hard you know and um the thing about that was that there was an emptiness there and a and a
01:25:29
sadness really and I say in the book the worst part was just nothing. Feeling like the word cardboard or I'm trying to
01:25:38
think of something that just transactional. It It's sort of like I write this sort of book. I got a wife.
01:25:45
I got a daughter. Got my sons. >> Yeah. I don't I don't go under great
01:25:50
depths around stuff. I don't want to, you know, I'm um respectful, you know,
01:25:59
>> but yeah, as a loose unit and um um >> yeah, it got me to a point where yeah, I
01:26:08
was I basically had all this stuff. I'd achieved all these things as a 22 year
01:26:14
old and you know with all that all my ego and all my you know the life I was living the thing that I didn't
01:26:24
understand was I'm living the life why am I not happy you know and that's when
01:26:29
I why do I not f feel fulfilled fulfilled why am I you know I've got all this these things but I still feel lack
01:26:39
of real purpose and >> it It was like an equation for me and I I was like it doesn't add up. I'm
01:26:47
supposed to be happy. I've done all the stuff. I've got everything. I'm at the
01:26:50
top of the mountain playing for Australia. I got a house, car, all this sort of stuff. So, that's what made me think um
01:26:59
start think more about God. And uh we're we were family that were involved in the
01:27:06
church and that growing up in New Zealand. when we came across to Australia, um I used to love Sunday school and all
01:27:13
that sort of stuff and um learning about Jesus as a little kid, but um all the stories and the songs and that, but uh
01:27:20
when we came to Australia, we didn't um we went to a church and we didn't really
01:27:25
feel comfortable there and uh we just stopped going. And then um it was six or seven years before mom and dad had a
01:27:33
neighbor that moved in who was a Christian and invited them to a church and mom and dad ended up getting back
01:27:38
you know back and my brother uh um had a friend who invited you know at school. Um
01:27:46
and uh you know he he he came to faith and and I was sort of like the last one and um I I had stuff I was going to
01:27:58
achieve and um like I said I got that space where I I had it all and uh and like yeah like I said I it felt there's
01:28:08
an emptiness to it and it really confused me and that's when because of those memories of when I was young how
01:28:14
good I used to feel uh and getting along to a church with my mom and dad and just seeing the impact
01:28:21
it had on my brother, the people, you know, Christians and stuff, the peace they had, I just knew I
01:28:27
didn't have it. >> And uh that's where Yeah. So, I don't know if you want me to keep talking
01:28:34
about it or >> Yeah. One one thing I'm really intrigued about um by the way, thanks for being so
01:28:38
open about everything, you know, your parents and um the faith stuff as well. One thing um I'm super intrigued about
01:28:44
is so so you're this rock star in Brisbane in the 1990s. You're playing in
01:28:48
the Broncos during the Dynasty years. You're this um State of Origin player.
01:28:53
You're playing for the Kangaroos. >> Um what was it like coming out to your
01:28:57
teammates at that point that you're religious? It must have been so isolating.
01:29:01
>> It wasn't um popular, you know, but you know, when I look >> like a lot of judgment.
01:29:07
>> Yeah, at the time. Yeah, it was. Yeah, because you're a Christian. You're
01:29:10
supposed to be a goody, you know, um, >> god bother. >> What's the Simpsons? You know, Ned
01:29:17
Flanders, you know, it's not cool. It's not strong, you know. So, yeah, it it
01:29:25
put you a bit on the outer, you know, but I look back on that and I thank God for it because if it had been just
01:29:32
cruisy, maybe I it made me make a decision. Okay, I'm going to get a bit of heat around this.
01:29:39
So, am I going to follow the Lord or not? You know, if it had just been easier than that, maybe I would have
01:29:46
been fluffy about my faith. But it made me that made me go, "Yeah, I believe
01:29:51
there's a God that loves me. Jesus died for my sins. He, you know, I believe
01:29:55
he's raised again, you know, and I submit my life to him and and uh I'm going to cop and um so be it. Uh he my
01:30:07
life has changed. I have peace. Um you know I feel fulfillment. I have purpose and I there's a God that loves me and
01:30:17
there's you know a life in front of me to to live walking with him. So um when you look at it talking here Dom end
01:30:28
of the day you know I think Christians are the most persecuted uh people on the planet. I think it's like 350 million. I
01:30:36
saw some stat like uh there's some you look at Nigeria, you look at these places around the world, North Korea,
01:30:44
um all around the world, they're getting their lives taken, you know. Um I got a
01:30:49
bit of you know, coldness or you know some you know Alfie used to sing Kumbaya and
01:30:57
>> Alfie Langanger really like just taking the piss out of you. They're taking a
01:31:00
piss cuz I guess they got to >> Did they Did it You can laugh about it now. Did it Did it piss you off at the
01:31:06
time? >> It I just like being part of the crew and uh I play my number one thing with
01:31:12
footy is camaraderie. M >> um and I love the physicality and stuff but so being a Christian sort of you know put
01:31:24
me on the outer where I just like being with the uh you know I don't naturally you don't want
01:31:31
that do you ideally so >> um it yeah I didn't like it but like I said over time I felt like respect
01:31:44
was earned because um I felt like it made me a better player cuz I actually cared more about
01:31:51
my teammates instead of just it all up you being about me and I bit and scratched and fought my way through and
01:32:00
um and then that was a massive thing that changed but other people were down there
01:32:07
God was hardly thought about and it just went and I started what you know the Lord
01:32:13
submitting each day, you know, um what he wanted in my life, uh and other people became really important to me,
01:32:22
how they were going, you know, how could I help and then myself. So that just flipped
01:32:28
um the biggest test that, you know, one of the biggest tests that happened around that for me
01:32:34
>> when I uh my uncle came over when I was 16, 17, he's like, "You got to rep
01:32:40
games." My dad got him to chat me. You got to um get the ball look after number
01:32:44
one. You know, when I had like this mindset change, I'd started doing my run
01:32:50
and it was on my own and it was just like I'm nothing's going to get in my
01:32:56
way. I'm getting these things done and uh look after number one. You know what
01:33:01
I mean? And um when I become a Christian, I was 23 and I had a couple years at the Broncos and
01:33:10
we achievement. I felt like my footy got even better. I had more you I was playing for more purpose and and I cared
01:33:17
about my mates and all this sort of stuff. But then I went to rugby and um um I try to learn the game and stuff.
01:33:27
That was tough. But I came had a year off, but I came back in 2003 and I played for the All Blacks in the three
01:33:33
2003 World Cup and all that sort of stuff. When I came back, um, at the club there was Chris Jack
01:33:40
who's an outstanding all, you know, all black. I think he played close to 70
01:33:44
test. I think he got New Zealand player of the year. Norm Maxwell was just a warrior. Um, you know, for, you know,
01:33:51
just a good tough guy. He'd been an all black. And then there was me and um um
01:33:58
there was a guy Bryce Williams and uh he's a younger guy and it all been you know a lot of it been
01:34:05
fine being a Christian you know I'm doing my thing but then I got to a space
01:34:10
where I'm trying to um come up through ranks again I knew coming to the crusaders I needed to be you in that
01:34:19
team each week getting as many games as I could because I moved from number eight to uh block cuz my aspiration was
01:34:26
to be an all black and to be a good great All black. Um but to play in the World Cup that year, I need to put in
01:34:33
performances. >> So um I remember at the trainings I'm just looking uh I had a training session
01:34:42
one day and um I talk about this in the book as well. Uh Bryce, the young guy was working on I
01:34:49
think it was kickoff. It might have been something else. But I just looked at him. And I thinking
01:34:55
I know what gets this done. And it's not looking after some younger guy. It's
01:35:01
biting and scratching. Fought my way to the top. I've done it before. I know. I
01:35:05
got I climbed to the top of the mountain. >> I know what works. It's not looking
01:35:09
after or caring about these guys. And uh but then then I it was just me standing at the end of training watching
01:35:18
guys these guys do extras. And then I had this thought, hang on, like you're doing this God's way, you
01:35:25
know. >> Um, you know, uh, that's that's not that's that's I guess how I made my way.
01:35:38
And when I I told you I got to the top of the mountain, there's nothing there.
01:35:41
There's there's an emptiness and, you know, um there was a lack of fulfillment. And
01:35:48
I remember looking back at the uh Bryce thinking uh on going to, you know, maybe I should go over and work with him
01:35:58
and maybe both we can both improve or whatever. And it was real hard. I had this like minute moment when I'm going
01:36:05
no like an old me going that's not how we get it done. Look after number one. And
01:36:13
cuz there's a ruthless side to me of just, you know, and I'm trying to take
01:36:18
out, you know, I'm trying to come through with the other two guys. You I knew I had to try and um to be a
01:36:24
starter, I had to play better than um Maxi and uh Chris Jack. >> Anyway, get to a point where I go, "No,
01:36:33
you're doing this. You're doing it. Um I'm doing it your way, Lord." I walked
01:36:37
over and uh I worked with uh Bryce, whatever it was. Um I didn't do some great helping or anything just just
01:36:45
doing some extras with him and uh that was a game changer for me because um before that I'd sort of been like a
01:36:54
slave to just looking after number one >> and it was like I said I'd become a
01:37:00
Christian. It was all fine for a couple years. I'm I was the top of my game in
01:37:03
league but when I got tested when it rubber hit the road hey I know what I need to do to get there. Um but from
01:37:10
that time it really uh drove me to work with guys you know Sam Wilox I think you
01:37:17
mentioned him before had an impact on them or different guys >> and the fulfillment like to to to get to
01:37:25
a space where like you almost get more joy out of seeing someone else do well you know than than they actually do. you
01:37:33
know, the the fulfillment of that, the the the joy, the um the connection, uh just so much more fulfilling. And um
01:37:44
and what I learned was that um you know, you can you can achieve things too. And
01:37:50
um you know, I I got to represent the All Blacks that year and um you know, I was very proud to do that. So yeah.
01:37:59
>> Yeah. Thanks for sharing that stuff. Um, yeah. What What did uh You must have
01:38:04
seen some wild stuff at Mad Monday celebrations as a sober sober. >> Question. I was doing it originally, but
01:38:10
yeah. Yeah, I I I mainly would just um I you just not be around for that because
01:38:17
>> you just call it early. When it starts to get messy, you're gone. >> It was hard because um I'd almost be out
01:38:23
of my house and it was like uh almost hear the city calling to me, you know. I'm like going, "This is hard, you know.
01:38:31
Um, I guess I had some pillars that helped like I went to church on a Sunday >> which was good, you know, but then you
01:38:40
got the week trying to, you know, keep it on the straight and narrow, you know, you got bad old habits. Took me three
01:38:46
years to get to come to terms with how I was going to handle my alcohol. That was
01:38:50
to give up >> for six years. I gave up for six years because I I actually wasn't man enough
01:38:55
to handle it to treat it properly. >> So, Oh, most people aren't. >> Yeah. Well, I'm just only talking about
01:39:01
myself. I'm just being direct on myself. I wasn't. So, >> um, you know, that that took me 3 years.
01:39:09
There'd be many times in those three years people looking, you know, oh, is that a Christian? That guy, you know,
01:39:15
um, I was I was, you know, on my walking my walk, you know. Um, but I had church
01:39:22
on Sunday. Um, I used to meet with a guy on a Thursday uh, and and do a Bible study and whatever. And I ended up um on
01:39:30
a Tuesday I actually fasted for the for the day up until dinner. So pretty much from the Monday evening through to the
01:39:38
Tuesday evening and I just it was a time when I' i'd say prayers just for you
01:39:44
know people were sick or whatever. I reckon that was I've done that to this day. I do that to this day on a Tuesday.
01:39:50
And uh those those three sort of days in the week of that uh the Bible study and
01:39:56
the Sunday was they were pillars in the week to that were really good for me to have structures in the week and I felt
01:40:04
like in that time of you know of transitioning I guess um become you know coming into my faith uh that that was a
01:40:12
strength for me. How how do you think um how do you think your life would have looked in your 20s, 30s, or even 40s if
01:40:18
you hadn't reconnected with your religion? >> Don't know if I would have, you know, I
01:40:26
when I I remember thinking, how am I ever going to marry someone, you know? M yeah it's sort of hard to sort of talk
01:40:36
about it but um yeah pretty much I didn't know how I'd ever be faithful to
01:40:42
a woman or um >> yeah I used to go pretty hard so um how would that have worked you know don't
01:40:51
know if it would have worked great you know you're away a lot you know up to
01:40:55
four months a year um with the all blacks and all that sort of stuff and >> when there's temptation and opportunity
01:41:01
like it, you know, >> and just ego, you know. Um maybe just a massive [ __ ] you know.
01:41:09
I don't know. Um I uh yeah, I I'm just grateful that uh you know, that God uh
01:41:19
you know, in his mercy, you know, um got me to that space and um you know, and and that's been the walk I've had. And
01:41:28
it hasn't been all rosy. It's been a a hard, you know, you have your ups and
01:41:33
downs like everyone and but I know there's purpose to to to my life and and uh and and he's my strength.
01:41:42
>> Where did you meet Maryanne? You've been married for like 25 years now or
01:41:45
something. E >> 23. Yeah. >> 23 years. >> Yeah. 24 this year. So
01:41:49
>> I suppose she came into your life when when the the timing is everything with
01:41:52
these things, isn't it? >> Massive. >> Yeah. >> Because if she'd come early, I would
01:41:55
have ruined it. >> Yeah. >> So she wasn't a Broncos groupy. No, she
01:41:59
was a she's a like a from her brothers played rugby in Sydney. >> Yeah,
01:42:04
>> it's pretty crazy. You know, you think how do how do how do we get together?
01:42:08
Her mom came from Malta after World War II. She's born in Malta, just under Italy there. You know that that over
01:42:15
there. Um and my family's in New Zealand. You know, she grows up in Sydney. I grow up in Brisbane. she moves
01:42:24
up um because it's warmer and as a young adult and you know we just so happen to
01:42:30
meet in a pub and uh I'm sober cuz I'm I'm a different you know uh in a
01:42:35
different space and she she wasn't a big drink or anything and over a period of
01:42:40
time it wasn't like mobile phones and stuff back then I'd bump into her and um
01:42:45
we I just talked to her whatever and got to six months or so was like hey um I like this girl she you know and
01:42:53
uh you know and it it was uh yeah um it was it's crazy how that plays out though
01:43:01
you know and um uh four kids later and uh 23 years she she's my I say this to
01:43:08
anyone but she's my best friend you know we uh we love um we're just great mates
01:43:15
and uh yeah >> awesome >> I'm so happy for you mate. >> Yeah. Yeah.
01:43:20
>> It's really cool. >> I appreciate that. Yeah, >> this is Well, we've been going for an
01:43:25
hour 40. We'll get back to some more black stuff, eh? >> Yeah, I can shorten my answers. I
01:43:29
probably on too long, >> mate. I'm I'm hanging off every word you're saying. It's It's really cool.
01:43:33
It's like getting getting um an interview on some different stuff. And >> do you do you know what's good? Uh Tom,
01:43:39
that you're asking a lot of um you haven't been asked a lot of these questions. So, it's it's been really
01:43:45
cool um talking. Well, there I mean there's a lot that we could we could talk about, but I feel like um I mean
01:43:51
it's almost the stuff of legends now how how lazy you were as a kid. I heard a few other podcasts you've been
01:43:57
on, so I thought I want to go in a bit of a different direction. >> Yeah, it's cool, mate.
01:44:00
>> Um Oh, thanks heaps. Uh so, um yeah, we talked before about you coming playing
01:44:05
rugby and just feeling like a like a like a a 14 15 year old kid like you had no idea what you were doing. You the
01:44:11
nickname credit card. Um but then that first season with the Crusaders went well and at the end of year you were
01:44:17
selected for the All Blacks. I remember I remember this happening at the time. So this was 2001.
01:44:23
>> Yeah. >> And I remember it being a big I was in commercial radio at the time and I
01:44:27
remember it being a big thing and people were like, you know, what's this guy
01:44:31
doing disrespecting the jersey? And you sort of elaborate on this in the book. >> Yeah.
01:44:35
>> So for anyone that has no idea what we're talking about or can't remember or
01:44:38
wasn't born at that time, what happened? >> Yeah. Well, I um um got selected. I'd
01:44:46
come over to rugby to um to try and play rugby union. It had gone professional. You could do that. You didn't used to be
01:44:55
able to do it. And >> yeah, I um signed a one-year contract with an option of two more. Do you know
01:45:04
what I mean? So, it wasn't like a three-year contract. It's one year contract with an option of two more.
01:45:09
basically um um when I gone over to New Zealand that first the super rugby season I they put me at number eight and
01:45:19
all these challenges are just culturally it was different trying to learn rugby um with set piece all the stuff was
01:45:26
completely different to league and but at the end of that I um you know I wasn't enjoying it I had sort of you I
01:45:36
had three questions when I went there do I like rugby am I any good at it and do
01:45:39
I like living in New Zealand? You know, all three were big no. And had a bit of a rev up chat with my brother when I
01:45:46
went back to Australia. Just basically said, give it your with what's remaining
01:45:51
of the year. Give it your best and then you can walk away. You had a crack and maybe it just wasn't meant to be, you
01:45:58
know. And uh I went back in NBC. They moved me to lock and um I started to you know uh
01:46:07
I started to become just in a small way instinctive in the game and started to be able to play it
01:46:14
you know and um my game improved and um um I was starting to like it a bit more. I was uh um you know I felt like I
01:46:28
was getting a little bit better and I was getting a bit more used to New Zealand but
01:46:33
the same time I Maryanne uh lived in Brisbane you know as well and at the same time like I said it took me 3 years
01:46:42
to get to come to terms how I was going to handle alcohol. I was it was like a period I became a Christian I was 23 but
01:46:50
like getting my house in order as well. Do you know what I mean? Um, so basically, uh, I I pretty much the word
01:47:01
was I was going to be selected. I sort of put it out there that, um, you know, I'd like to
01:47:08
go home. Yeah. It been a big solid year. Um, and just, you know, think about things, what what I was going to do,
01:47:15
whatever. And, yeah, I got selected and >> by John Mitchell and Robbie Deans.
01:47:20
>> Yeah. which I I understand I had potential in 2003 build up all that sort
01:47:25
of stuff but just made a little bit awkward you could say. And um >> did you did you not think he belonged
01:47:32
there? Was it imposter syndrome? >> No. Um you know players get picked on potential for for representative footy
01:47:40
and teams. So that's good thinking if you think about it two years out from a
01:47:45
World Cup and I was a you know I was starting to show something you know so >> I suppose they knew you had big game
01:47:52
experience and >> Yeah. Yeah. And you know that was my like I said Wes and then um the Broncos
01:47:59
that's eight years so it's my ninth year as a pro. um some guys that's their
01:48:02
career. So, you know, I'm experienced all that sort of stuff, but um if I had
01:48:09
um you know, I wasn't sure about my future, you know, and taking all those things to account like I I said before
01:48:17
around the rugby around, you know, Marian, around just me, you know, I sort of felt if I go on that tour, um take
01:48:26
the black jersey and then then I say, "Yeah, I'm not thanks. I've got my three
01:48:32
souvenir. >> Yeah. Yeah. That that's not going down well. So, um that that's pretty much basically
01:48:42
where it's at. And I went home I actually had a ended up having a full year off from all sport, like a half
01:48:47
time break in my career out of 22 years. That's like my 10th year. It's almost
01:48:52
like perfectly put in the middle where I had a year. >> And um you know, me and Marian got
01:48:58
married later that year. We traveled, did all these things. Um, you know, with with Maryanne being
01:49:06
marrying her, you know, I felt my house was, you know, in order um to where I want it to be under God. And uh um and
01:49:17
then it was about uh I put in this effort. I got to a space where you there's opportunity to to get reward for
01:49:24
the effort um that had been put in. Uh I could have just gone back to league, but I wanted to to see to
01:49:32
realize that uh reward. Um and that's when I went back to uh the Crusaders in
01:49:40
2003 and yeah, played on through to winning uh sorry, not being part of a World Cup. So yeah.
01:49:48
>> What was the backlash like at the time? Was that intense? >> Heavy duty.
01:49:52
>> Yeah. Was it? >> Yeah. We did Did it Who did you hear from in the Was was Darren Shand the All
01:49:56
Black manager at the time? >> No, it was um I think >> Andrew the Colonel Colonel. Yeah.
01:50:02
>> Yeah. The old um SES guy. Cuddles. Captain Cuddles. They called him cuz he
01:50:06
gave the players a cuddle when they came off the field. >> He was really good, mate. I g I gave him
01:50:11
a call and just said, "Look, >> you know, I'm not sure about my future
01:50:15
in the game, so I'm going to stand down." And it's not easy to do this but
01:50:21
um that's what I feel I should do and uh he was really good around it and um you know
01:50:30
>> yeah it was >> you say it's intense now and this is quarter of a century later. There's a
01:50:34
lot of hate that came just the feeling of >> um yeah that's not taken too well is it
01:50:42
at the time >> and you know people thinking you know oh who's this guy league guy coming here
01:50:50
you know and the black jersey and all that sort of stuff I guess for me yeah at that time people would have
01:50:57
questioned what it meant to me and and all this sort of stuff and the thing that felt good was by the time I'd
01:51:05
finished game number 16 and 21 to 11, everyone knew what it meant to me. Um, and to this day I, you know, um,
01:51:14
everyone I felt like I showed what it meant to me to to represent my country of birth, to represent the All Blacks.
01:51:22
And, >> um, you know, uh, yeah. Yeah, that was an interesting time. And, you know, I
01:51:31
think it was the right decision. M >> yeah. So your um All Black debut that
01:51:35
was um in Hamilton, same day as Dan Carter. >> Yeah. >> Um yeah. What were your big what were
01:51:40
the big insights that you got when you first made the All Blacks proper and got into that sort of squad environment um
01:51:45
between like what the Broncos were doing at the peak of their powers and the All
01:51:49
Blacks? >> Just uh just the the the culture of it all um the the winners and that's the
01:51:58
All Blacks. You got to understand that you put the jersey on, it's like a contract. Your job's to win.
01:52:05
And um and that's not a joke. >> Well, we've discovered that recently.
01:52:10
74% is not good enough. >> Yeah. So um so yeah, the competitiveness um the history of the All Blacks, the
01:52:20
most winning team in world sport, I think um um over a long period of time. So, um it was special to be in there and
01:52:30
you're amongst the best and you you have great coaches and you are um you know
01:52:38
it's that that excellence that you're trying to you know you don't have the
01:52:44
All Blacks don't have a name like that of just been mediocre. They do things
01:52:48
exceptionally well and um in the All Blacks we talk about just your time in the jersey. I'm I was late in the piece.
01:52:56
There been a hundred years of that guys showing me and all you know what what it
01:53:02
requires in that jersey. I was grateful for the what they had shown and now I'm
01:53:08
go I look to uh like as a custodian sort of thing my time I will add to this hopefully leave in a better place or at
01:53:17
least you know how I found it. So, >> same with the Broncos. We were very proud uh to represent uh we almost like
01:53:25
represented the state a bit the Broncos in the early days and um you know there was a I always felt there was a bit of a
01:53:32
weight to the jersey of um a responsibility really and the same with the All Blacks um um to
01:53:43
you know to give your best effort and um um you know appreciate your time uh in that
01:53:52
environment, in that jersey. Um it means so much to New New Zealand. >> Have you got Have you got like a a man
01:54:01
cave at home or a games room or some jerseys hung up? >> What have you got?
01:54:06
>> I don't. No. >> Yeah. What where is everything? The rings, the medals,
01:54:09
>> plastic bag somewhere. But the reason I do that sometimes I've thought about um
01:54:16
putting stuff up and that I don't have anything up. Not a single thing. And I've got all this stuff. I've got like
01:54:22
these big frame uh photos and all this sort of stuff. And um my mindset is sort of like if someone comes into my house
01:54:32
because I have had a profile and been that I sort of like um you know obviously there's people who know me and
01:54:41
whatever but say someone who doesn't know me coming to my house I like the chance of just getting to you know they
01:54:46
just >> no bread. >> Yeah. M >> not be forced. And this to the people
01:54:53
who put their stuff up, I reckon it's awesome. I'm just saying for me personally,
01:54:58
>> I just if someone comes in my house, I don't want to force, you know, the the
01:55:03
um all that stuff, you know. I just want them to you I'm uh you're just a do guy
01:55:09
and like you said, probably you said it best. It's just Brad, you know, and my
01:55:13
wife Maryanne and welcome to our home and you know, um, so yeah, not not have that sort of Yeah. there. That's why I
01:55:22
do that. It's crazy cuz there's like Hank Cup medal, there's World Cup
01:55:27
medals, there's and every now I got all these rings, you know, where you win a
01:55:31
premiership ring in league and like once in blue moon, it's fun to pull it out and um have a look at it. So
01:55:39
yeah, end of a day though, it's not going to keep me company. It's not it's
01:55:43
not like it's not um >> you know what I mean? Like it is it's awesome we achieve all those things, but
01:55:49
um uh we won in 211, 215, 219, 223. We're about to go into our fourth one. Bang,
01:55:58
bang, bang. Moves on, you know. Won my first grand final for the Bronx in 97. >> That's like what's that like?
01:56:06
>> It's almost 30 years ago. 29 years ago. >> Yeah. Bang. Um, the stuff that's more
01:56:12
important than just people I you know. Yeah. >> Who who are you still who would you say
01:56:18
you're still friends with in terms of players? Like people that you catch up
01:56:21
with on a regular basis? It gets harder when you get older. Your family and your
01:56:25
own sort of community >> all the time. Yeah. You're busy. Four kids and uh you're working and stuff.
01:56:31
I I just um a lot of them is you know when you catch up with people and it's
01:56:36
like you haven't seen them in ages but it's straight away it's really good you
01:56:42
know um >> so a lot of guys like that you know friends and um but all the footy guys um
01:56:51
>> yeah but I I don't get to see them too much because I'm in like with New
01:56:55
Zealand they have all black reunions and they have these things I'm in Brisbane
01:57:00
you know what I M >> um I'm lucky to go to Broncos things and I'm a life member there, you know. I
01:57:05
played 10 years and >> um because you are busy, you know, and >> and I've always had this part of me
01:57:15
where I don't like asking for anything either and I um I feel like I have my
01:57:20
time, you know, at the Broncos that's nearby me. I don't I'm not that guy that
01:57:24
sort of goes down and, you know, I I'm very supportive though. I'm supportive,
01:57:29
you know. So yeah, >> well, next time there's an All Blacks reunion here, you're going to be in big
01:57:33
trouble tr trouble. They're going to be like, "Well, you came over to New
01:57:35
Zealand to do Dom's podcast." >> There you go. >> What was um what was some of the coolest
01:57:42
uh nonrugby related experiences of um being an All Black? Like I I know you got to meet the queen.
01:57:48
>> That was cool. Yeah. >> Yeah. Was it? >> Yeah. I learned how to say um they they
01:57:53
sort of said to us um the queen will walk around and um her you say mom not ma'am
01:58:03
>> and not mom as in your mom but mom it's like it's funny it's so funny doing it
01:58:10
and uh but she is a sweet uh old old lady and she was she was tiny next to me and um but uh yeah I b down and to mom.
01:58:20
Nice. You basically It was nice to have a little chat to her. But um um yeah, all those things are cool.
01:58:28
>> That's it's wild. Hey, like this uh this this kid from Mosgirl meeting meeting
01:58:32
the queen at the palace. It's crazy. >> Yeah. But um the cool things Dolman's
01:58:38
playing at those stadiums, the stadiums are awesome. >> That was my It was always my favorite
01:58:42
time of year was the November series playing at Croak Park. That was a place that was really pretty sacred to the
01:58:49
Irish. That's they don't actually play. It's only Irish sport they play there,
01:58:53
but they were rebuilding. I think they called Aviva now or something. And so they use Croak Park 78 75 or 80,000
01:59:02
people. Um and uh you know Twickingham you know Millennium it was so noisy they singing you know
01:59:10
they do all their singing Wales. I remember being in a scrum and I couldn't hear the saying to the referee, I need
01:59:15
you to shout cuz I'd say set and bang, you know. Um, but you know, you got tape, you're in you're in there like
01:59:22
this and uh those are Yeah, that they're pretty cool. the uh you sort of pinch
01:59:30
yourself there where you um I was at Suetto Stadium uh sorry Nelson Medalis Stadium in Suetto 94,000 uh South
01:59:40
Africans singing their national anthem which is an awesome one. You like their anthem? Have you heard their Yeah, it's
01:59:46
a really cool anthem. Uh >> and I remember it was to win a third test in a row and it was John Schmidt's
01:59:54
100th game. I remember standing there when before a test like I don't really
02:00:00
want people touching me like my job is to be physical, you know, send physical messages and uh I've got real I guess
02:00:08
bad intentions, you know what I mean? Like I talk about boxing, you know, I'm
02:00:12
there to uh be physical. So, you're minutes away from getting amongst it and
02:00:17
there's preggain stuff. But I mean, you know, like I said, respect the anthem,
02:00:21
respect the hucker. But, um, they're singing their anthem and I'm like standing there like I'm
02:00:27
just thinking, you know, it's a heavyweight title fight. >> Crush them.
02:00:32
>> I'm here to hit bodies, you know? I'm here to that's my job at the whole team
02:00:38
as a tight head lock as a my job is to I felt my job is to assert authority, you
02:00:44
know. So, so I'm standing there um on, you know, on edge and uh I didn't really
02:00:51
I always stand on the end. I liked being down there cuz I um during their one I wasn't stuck in between guys. I don't
02:00:59
really want people all over me. I'm in a in a mood and a zone. And um but anyway,
02:01:05
they sing their anthem 94,000. Awesome anthem. I remember just I had to smile. And um I know that probably doesn't
02:01:12
sound like much, but I don't smile. when I'm in that sort of mood. And um it was
02:01:18
just like I remember standing just going, "How good is this?" 94,000. I'm a terrible singer, but um um they it
02:01:31
was just so cool to to experience um them everyone just loving that uh moment and then and then we got into bashing
02:01:39
each other. Does after after h having this um long playing career with all these like
02:01:46
exhilarating highs, does does life seem like like bor boring now or it's it's
02:01:53
like you know Robbie Dean said uh um coaching is the next best thing after playing. So um now I'm not coaching
02:02:02
super rugby, I'm coaching first 15 and doing a few consultant things here and
02:02:06
there, you know, Malta and different things. They're fun in their own way, you know, but um
02:02:13
nothing beats, you know, um you know, playing Twickingham or, you know, spring box test at Loftus or, you know, all
02:02:21
that sort of stuff. So you you just enjoy those memories and you had your time and uh you contributed and you got
02:02:29
amongst it that you know added hopefully to the legacy and and you're happy for
02:02:34
the guys doing their stuff now you know but it's just a different time in your
02:02:38
life and um far out um you know being able to have four kids um seeing them you know I've got a son
02:02:49
that's married uh you know you got different things that in your life and different purposes, you know, that that
02:02:57
um that's are so rewarding. >> Oh, that's awesome. What What about
02:03:03
masculinity? What what does masculinity mean to you now? Suppose when you were playing it was um what you what was the
02:03:08
phrase you used before? Like crushing bodies or something. >> Sending physical messages or Yeah,
02:03:13
that's the polite way. >> But um basically being a thug. But um yeah um I I you know I there's
02:03:22
plenty of masculinity in my house mate. Yeah. Three sons. Um one's in the military now. I think I said that
02:03:28
before. >> Um >> does he make his beard better than you? >> Yeah, he probably does. I imagine. But
02:03:34
um um we have a lot of banter. There's a lot of testosterone. And uh um >> does that sort of scratch the itch? like
02:03:44
it feels like you've got this own sort of team. >> It's just the bond that we have with
02:03:49
Thorns and that's how we roll. Like I said, my dad and me wrestled. I never wrestled with my brother because um uh
02:03:56
and my dad didn't either cuz um he the old glazed eyes would come over the redness.
02:04:03
>> Yeah. Me and my dad could always keep it, you know, it would be kept good. But
02:04:07
with the big guy, he couldn't be trusted. He'll probably uh hate me for saying
02:04:13
that, but yeah, he's he he would slitch this which would uh so but yeah, no,
02:04:20
there's plenty of uh we got our gym and I brought the boys back uh a year or so
02:04:25
ago. We went on a hunting trip uh down where I grew up and around Benner Burn and my uh my cousin is a professional.
02:04:34
Um >> we have great time, the boys and and my daughter and my wife. Uh there's another
02:04:41
couple of yarns in the book um that I really love. Um again, it's like I don't know why you
02:04:47
put this one in there. The one about you um snapping at uh the professor Sir Wayne Smith.
02:04:52
>> Yeah. Yeah. >> So he asked you this was during the um 2011 Rugby World Cup. He asked you to do
02:04:57
some extra training. You told him to. >> That that wasn't during the World Cup.
02:05:00
That was grand that was final week. >> Yeah. So that's the grand final grand
02:05:04
finals. So yeah. So he wanted me to do some new drill thing that helped the backs and like are you crazy mate?
02:05:13
>> Did you swear? Do you ever swear? >> Did you swear? >> Yeah. Heck yeah. Yeah. The swearing's
02:05:18
something I battle with. You know, I prefer not to use >> one part of the house that's not in
02:05:23
order. >> Yeah. My wife is say, "Come on." But um yeah, you've always got work on. But
02:05:28
yeah, I was like, you know, I talked about before routine. So I got a routine. Me and Kevy do this on a
02:05:34
Thursday. We sign off on our physicality that we we're going to bring on um Saturday. So we me and Kevy um we do
02:05:44
tackles and we're hitting each other hard with a pad and then we do uh four breakdown hits flying in, you know, and
02:05:52
try and throw each other off. And Kevy um is really I liked cuz he's a great
02:05:58
guy being a shorter guy too forced me to get low and all that sort of stuff. Yeah, Smithy is like trying to call me
02:06:06
over for some new thing he wants to do. It's like Thursday. I'm like, "What are
02:06:11
you freaking What are you thinking, mate?" Yeah. So, I was I was uh I was like, "Yeah, my language wasn't good.
02:06:21
I'm there to get a job done. Like, this is business time." Like 3 weeks out when
02:06:25
we got the quarterfinals, this the round rob I didn't wasn't interested to be
02:06:30
honest, apart from the build. That's when you see guys have big highlights packages and you beat Japan, you know,
02:06:36
you beat these lower teams and there's all these great tries and it's all it's
02:06:40
fantasy world, you know, it's not the real stuff's coming quarter semi and
02:06:45
final three grand finals you got to w you got to earn the right to make the semi, earn the right to make the the
02:06:51
final. So yeah, you get uh so shutters come down for me once it comes to the quarterfinal start of that week almost
02:07:00
like it's relief because now there's something on the line and that's what
02:07:04
makes me tick. I don't suit the no you know the the round robin there's no sort
02:07:10
of um nothing to be lost or won. Now I'm in my world of with the stuff on the
02:07:18
line. So I'm preparing and I was like in a zone and so yeah you can imagine having told you all that you know coming
02:07:26
to like the Thursday before or Friday whatever it was before we playing the French in a World Cup final after not
02:07:34
you know we hadn't won it in 24 years all this sort of stuff my last test on
02:07:37
36 I didn't take that well yeah >> I'm thinking what mate you know we're
02:07:44
good enough mate what are you thinking Did you >> I'm not interested in your your footwork
02:07:51
thing for your backs or whatever. I'm not I don't I'm not interested. Get out
02:07:55
of my face with that. I don't want to know about you know that's how I felt.
02:08:00
>> Did you feel bad about it later or No, >> no, no. And that's why it says that Smithy
02:08:09
wrote in the book he he goes um you know he he gets it. I would still say to this
02:08:15
day what were you thinking? What you thinking? Come on, man. He's the He's
02:08:20
the professor. He should know better than that. >> Um, another great yarn in the book.
02:08:24
>> Get some other Get some other nonplaying 23 guy to do that. Why are you asking
02:08:30
me? >> You get Steven Donald. Maybe he can lose a couple of kilos before the final.
02:08:35
>> Steve was did a great job. Yeah. >> Yeah. Um, you the other great I really
02:08:39
like is um you It's such like an old man injury during co Crusaders playing a
02:08:44
game in Nelson. you you go for a wander around in jandles looking for a a rugby league magazine in a dairy and you
02:08:51
injure yourself just from what happens. >> I um I used to like getting when I was
02:08:56
in Australia I used to like getting rugby news when I get on a plane and we go down and play in Sydney cuz I I like
02:09:02
my rugby when I was in New Zealand I'd get the rugby league week. when I was in
02:09:06
Nelson another time there was a there was like a news agents. I sort of remembered I was there some place and I
02:09:13
went to go and get my it was on game day um rugby league week cuz I want to look
02:09:18
at it and I I thought it's not too many streets too far away. I just usually I
02:09:25
put shoes on like I you know and I was um what was I I was 36 years old so you got to get more and more diligent around
02:09:34
your body and I was you're always real professional around all my preparation
02:09:39
and that but I just wore a thong. It's not going to be too much of a walk going
02:09:43
and get it. But I went and wasn't there and then I started walking around Nelson. I end up walking for like 45 to
02:09:51
an hour, probably an hour in thongs and um um I reckon that it was on concrete and uh I think that that added up to me
02:10:02
pinging my calf and and uh it was a scrum and it was it was actually the best thing that happened to me because
02:10:10
it uh it gave me a break. I hadn't been injured. I've been playing a lot of
02:10:15
games each year and it gave me a freshener up that um helped me to um you know uh finish that Crusaders season you
02:10:27
know better and and then go into the World Cup year. So that was actually a blessing cuz um um I was off to uh
02:10:37
Africa. Uh the next day they went off to Africa and I didn't go >> and uh I'd just done a lot of footy over
02:10:45
a lot of the years and uh I'd wanted to have a bit more of a break that year,
02:10:50
but Richie had a his foot was been an issue the year before it was again >> and uh Sam Wallock got injured. I was
02:10:58
supposed to not go to Africa and all of a sudden I was now I'm going and all
02:11:01
this sort of stuff. It was a it was a blessing. >> It's just a crazy story to think this
02:11:06
this guy that's um out there on the field like trying to just crush people's
02:11:10
souls. Um gets owned by a footpath in Nelson while looking for a rugby rugby league
02:11:17
magazine in a dairy. >> I was 30 on myself. Um yeah, it just shows you. But yeah, I guess you're 36
02:11:23
years old and you don't get that many 36 year olds, you know, playing at that
02:11:28
level. >> Yeah, true. >> And you have to be diligent and, you know, cuz your end of the day, your
02:11:33
body's aging. >> Yeah. >> When do you feel um truly at peace or truly happy these days?
02:11:41
>> Um I feel pretty pretty good, you know. Um just fortunate. Uh my faith is number
02:11:49
one. So that that brings that gives me peace. And it's easy to say, oh, you know, at home on a nice Sunday, it
02:11:57
brings you peace. I mean, it brings me peace and good times and not so good times. You know what I mean?
02:12:04
uh having my wife and my kids. Um uh it's just an it's you just uh what a
02:12:12
privilege to be able to, you know, to have that and to to share life with them and
02:12:18
and to have some purpose around the work you do. I I coached First 15 at one of the elite private schools at BBC and um
02:12:27
just the enjoyment of those those kit lads. Um just a great game of rugby. Rugby is a character game. It's a self,
02:12:35
it's a, you know, you have to play, it's a team sport and you have to um uh the
02:12:42
team's over bigger than the individual >> for it to function well. You have to
02:12:47
put, you know, so all those good qualities you're pumping into those young guys and um you know, so there's
02:12:55
plenty to be thankful for and um you know, generally feel in a pretty good space, mate. Yeah. Do you still have any
02:13:03
coaching aspirations? >> Uh I when I finish with the Reds um >> it's sort of not like league where you
02:13:12
know if you finish with Manley you've got the Roosters, the Sharks, the Panthers.
02:13:18
>> Yeah you I mean West Tigers. >> You finish coaching the Queensland Reds,
02:13:23
you got to leave the state if you're going to >> coach or the C leave the country at that
02:13:28
level. Do you know what I mean? titles. >> I I league I haven't been involved in since
02:13:36
2007, but to to um I I wanted my kids to, you know, we brought them back for stability and to
02:13:46
have that Aussie upbringing and my daughter finishes her final year high school this year and then maybe I start
02:13:53
to think about, you know, perhaps overseas or doing some adventures. I don't know. We'll see what happens. Oh,
02:13:59
the All Blacks. Would you want that job? >> Um, that's uh way above uh where you know I
02:14:09
when I came into the Reds um I'd done two years of you know under 20s and they
02:14:15
had an NRC and I I pretty much had to uh sink or swim. I just had to learn on the
02:14:22
job. >> I always thought if I was to go that next level to do international I want to
02:14:26
be more than qualified. No, I it's it's you know I went from leave to union and
02:14:31
it it was I had to it was crazy. I had to learn all the stuff and tested me. I went into coaching with no real
02:14:40
experience and um it tested me and whatever which is all well and good but um if I was to go that next level I want
02:14:48
to be uh almost overqualified you know so that would be something I imagine years down the track if I got back into
02:14:56
top level coaching. M >> so yeah if if you're good enough or if if you wanted who who knows.
02:15:02
>> Mhm. What do you make of that whole recent all black thing with your old
02:15:05
teammate Razer? >> It's a tough one mate. Yeah it's >> brutal eh
02:15:08
>> yeah cuz you know if you think about it I just think of myself at the red you
02:15:12
know two years in. Um we ended up we were like the bottom sort of you know 9 million debt. um and one of the sort of
02:15:21
bottom Australian teams and you know by the fourth year we won Australian competition when it was you know the co
02:15:29
stuff two years in you know you could have looked at me and just gone oh you know um it ain't working
02:15:37
is um st what is it Ian Foster sorry um you know two years out >> it looked like might have been Razer
02:15:47
coming in Then if you remember, >> yeah, >> he went to a world cup with the guys in
02:15:53
the team um and led them in a world cup to was it 1312 then score one point. >> Yeah, it was very narrow loss in the
02:16:02
final >> and they didn't have their captain and seven important player in the team for
02:16:08
um 60 minutes of the game. he could have been, you know, you know, looked like he might have been
02:16:17
moved on then. So, it's a hard one, you know, if you you have that uh time that
02:16:24
you're trying to build and um get to a space. So, but it's happened and uh you
02:16:31
have compassion for um Razer cuz you know I know him. He's a good guy. He's a
02:16:36
friend. And uh and um but yeah, it's there's a there's a there's a
02:16:41
ruthlessness to that to that business, mate. And uh this the famous saying as a coach, as a head coach, you're either
02:16:48
sacked or you're going to be sacked. >> Do you have you heard that before?
02:16:52
>> You heard that saying? No, I haven't. >> That's what it is. Yeah. You're either
02:16:55
sacked or you're going to be sacked. >> So, how's that? >> See what I mean?
02:17:00
>> Why would you want to do that? >> That's That's what That's what I'm
02:17:02
saying. like uh you know um yeah like you can put as a exper you know I had six years of head coach at
02:17:10
red I can put in a massive week and we have a a loss >> you know we played a bad game I can put
02:17:19
in uh the same week and we win if we win you're the good guy if you lose you you
02:17:26
suck >> you know what I mean >> it's thin margins between hero and
02:17:30
>> yeah yeah and it's lonely out front, you know, and um so yeah, uh the thing I
02:17:36
learned from my coaching is yeah, once again, you know, you um compassion for other coaches because it's a tough old
02:17:45
gig, you know. Um it's like learning to be a tie prop. You cop a lot of beatups
02:17:51
on the way to getting to be a good space. Wayne Bennett got moved on. All the great, you know, everyone uh no
02:17:59
one's immune to it. Um, yeah. So, >> well, thanks for those insights. We got a few questions, then we'll go.
02:18:07
This is how how are you, how are you finding this? Are you okay? >> I've enjoyed talking to you, mate. I've
02:18:12
been looking forward to it. >> Oh, wonderful. Same here. >> Yeah. Born on the same day.
02:18:16
>> Unbelievable. Like twins. >> This is meant to happen. >> A brother from another mother.
02:18:21
>> Yeah. >> What are your best and worst habits? >> Uh, best best habits. Um,
02:18:31
I guess, uh, like I said, I like doing things reasonably well if I do them. >> Worst habits. Uh,
02:18:44
I'm trying to think of uh, I'm trying to think of what my wife would say. What
02:18:49
about >> I'm not good with like paperwork and stuff, you know. Um, >> oh my god. Maybe that's an Aquarius
02:18:55
thing. I'm the same. Hopeless. hopeless with >> um yeah and um sometimes I don't get
02:19:01
around to things you know so I get distracted >> champions don't always do
02:19:08
>> um when was the last time you cried >> cried like I said before secrets I'm a real
02:19:17
softy so sometimes I'll shed some do you know what's embarrassing I don't know
02:19:22
when the last time I cried but um um I like like lay miz, you know, >> the musical, do you?
02:19:29
>> Yeah. Yeah. >> I love uh Yeah, I love classical music. I love all sorts of things. Um but um
02:19:38
>> that wasn't your pre >> I shed tears in Liz and um the you know
02:19:45
uh you know where the the lady she can't um she's trying to find she get loses
02:19:49
her job and um is it Fontaine? I can't remember the lady's name. Um, and yeah,
02:19:57
it's Yeah, I sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh
02:19:59
sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh shed a tear in that movie, so it's embarrassing to say, but
02:20:03
it's out there. Yeah, >> that's that's probably the biggest surprise out of this whole podcast
02:20:08
today. I was not expecting that. >> Um, is there a mistake that you wish you
02:20:13
could go back and correct? >> Uh, it's probably probably heaps. Um, yeah. Uh I can't think on top of you
02:20:25
know I just think life sort of plays out and I just feel like yeah the the one thing about making mistakes is you know
02:20:35
hopefully you learn from them. So >> um I could say taking on the head coaching
02:20:43
>> but no I can't think of anything uh top of my head. >> That's good. What are you most afraid
02:20:50
of? Uh I um yeah we my anxiety sometimes I battle a bit with anxiety and you know
02:21:05
>> social sort of anxiety of you know being in front of a lot of people you know
02:21:09
with all the attention on you you know um speaking or whatever >> that's that's something that you know
02:21:15
I've battled with over time um which I talk about as well. Yeah, you do. That's
02:21:21
um that's something I had on my card, but we we didn't really talk about in
02:21:24
the podcast, but um yeah, anxiety like to the point where in your early days in the Broncos, you went for team meetings,
02:21:31
you'd sit closest to the door just in case you had to make um a hasty exit. >> It was more mental just a mental thing.
02:21:38
It it is a mental. Yeah, it's like >> But what I mean was being next to the
02:21:41
door having a jar was just mentally like it just worked for me, >> you know, instead of being stuck in a
02:21:50
corner where I felt like I sit there thinking I can't get out of here if I wanted to, which makes no sense. But,
02:21:56
uh, >> you know, that's in my family. And I think that's probably probably a big
02:22:01
part of my granddad's, you know, uh, with the alcohol probably, uh, trying to deal with that, you know,
02:22:08
PTSD from the war. Probably a coping mechanism. >> Yeah. I I I think he even had that
02:22:13
before the war. So, um, it's just in our family. >> I have cousins and stuff like that.
02:22:19
Battle away a bit. So, um, yeah. >> You you were in Christ Church in 2011,
02:22:26
uh, during the earthquakes. did. Um, yeah. How was your anxiety during that time?
02:22:31
>> That doesn't phase me. It's more like me getting up in front of a whole of
02:22:35
people, you know what I mean? Um, the earthquakes, like that first one rolled in, the 7.1,
02:22:42
it was 4 in the morning and I've jumped out of bed and, you know, it's crazy.
02:22:49
But I remember lying in bed, getting back in bed with my wife, you know, growing up in Australia. And I remember
02:22:57
when I was little, I was trying to say to my wife, there's some things you're
02:23:02
supposed to do when there's an earthquake. Get I was thinking, get down low. Go, go, go. There was a fire one in
02:23:07
Australia or something. I was thinking, I wonder what we're supposed to do. And
02:23:11
then we end up just falling back to sleep. That's after the 7.1. Two of my kids
02:23:17
slept through it. One slightly roused and then my four my cuz I little ones then. Um, so yeah, we we just try to
02:23:25
keep calm around all that and that help the kids um be in a good space with it too.
02:23:33
>> If they were here, your kids, um, yeah, what three words would you like them to
02:23:38
use to describe you? >> Uh, hopefully loving be number one. Um, fun. I like to think we have a lot of
02:23:51
fun. Uh what what would be the third one? Um yeah, loving's caring. Uh struggling for
02:24:05
the third one. Um hopefully uh that feel is protective. >> I feel like I'm pretty protective guy. I
02:24:15
think that that probably with my footy came through, you know, with my teammates. Um, I really suited being a
02:24:22
tight lock cuz I have to look after my prop. I like looking after the young guys. If you saw me play, you know,
02:24:29
Richie, I'd look out for him, you know, if I felt guys were having a go at him.
02:24:34
So, with my kids, I guess I have been pretty protective of them. Um, yeah, they're just so special to you, aren't
02:24:42
they? So yeah, that would be my three words. >> They're great words. Do you tell Do you
02:24:46
tell them you love them all the time or is it not that sort of >> Yeah, we're pretty affectionate. Like I
02:24:51
said, I'm I'm a softy, so you know, I give my daughter hugs and uh you know,
02:24:58
the the sons, you know, they're going about their thing. We're not hugging all
02:25:00
the time, but you know, it might be a bit of a shoulder charge as I'm walking
02:25:04
past the hall. Um but we have uh real good connection. We're tight family and
02:25:11
we did a lot of traveling to kids uh Japan, Ireland, England. We lived in these different places and uh we're
02:25:19
we're a real tight family. The kids are tight. We're tight and it it's it's just
02:25:24
cool, mate. Yeah. >> [ __ ] You love it, eh? >> Yeah. It's awesome.
02:25:31
>> And it's hard to know if any of this would have happened without if you
02:25:34
didn't reconnect with uh Jesus. >> Yeah. I mate. Um yeah, Maryanne. Uh yeah, she like I said, I got my
02:25:46
married my best friend >> and um to be blessed with four kids. uh just so grateful and um you know it just it's
02:25:58
been super cool and as you said I just thank thank the Lord for all that I have and um I know that uh you know in that
02:26:07
time there's been ups and downs there's you know highs and lows >> and I know going forward there will be
02:26:13
too but you know I know that you know there's purpose in in in my life with the Lord and um and I'm grateful M Brad
02:26:22
Kanei Thorne, are you proud of yourself? >> Uh I feel good about um cracking into
02:26:31
things, you know. A straight mate, you've done some incredible stuff. Um not just not just
02:26:37
in terms of your playing career, but um you know, in your personal life as well.
02:26:41
What's wrong with a straight answer? >> Yeah, probably. Yeah, you get so used to
02:26:45
being uh maybe it's the footy, you know, being doing professional sport for so
02:26:49
long cuz you're always often all downplay with the media. Do you know what I mean? Maybe maybe you're actually
02:26:56
right about that instead of just saying, "Hey, yeah, I am." >> Maybe it's just
02:27:01
>> probably a Kiwi thing. Like, God, that guy that guy's full of himself.
02:27:03
>> Yeah. Yeah. It could be that as well. Yeah. I don't know. But um are you proud
02:27:08
of yourself? >> Yeah. Yeah, I guess I am. And uh uh I'm grateful and um
02:27:18
yeah, I'm appreciative and um yeah, I'm proud of our family and you know all
02:27:25
that. So yeah. >> Well, I really appreciate you doing this podcast today. It's been bloody
02:27:29
brilliant and um yeah, I wish you all the best for whatever's next in the chapter of your life. Brad Thorne,
02:27:35
>> thank you, mate. It's been awesome meeting you, mate, and uh sharing this
02:27:38
time. Just having a real good chat. I appreciate it. Appreciate your time. Thanks, brother.
02:27:43
>> Awesome.