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hi team and welcome to episode 30 of
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Runners only with dom Harvey on this
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episode rugby Superstar Tyler Nathan
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Wong you should be I feel like more
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famous and more well-known than what you
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are you know what I mean like you you
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know you you as I suppose like the
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female Aaron Smith
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ahead of her but already she's won
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silver and gold Olympic medals a
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commonwealth games gold a couple of
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rugby sevens World Cup titles and she's
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been twice named New Zealand Sevens
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Player of the Year oh as well as that
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she was a model for Anne giddis as a
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baby something that we do chat about in
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this conversation I loved this podcast
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so much Tyler is such an easy
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conversationalist in a real open book
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and I really hope you guys enjoy this
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one as well let's get into it Tyler
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Nathan Wong
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[Music]
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[Music]
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Runners only with dom Harvey and Tyler
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Nathan Wong hello hey how's it going
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good Tyler the Creator Tyler have you
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got like a title of their name
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um they call me tiny here in the city
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yeah right yeah I mean Tyler the Tyler
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Tyler the playmaker
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hey I'm so good where are we by the way
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what is this place the Adams um Adam
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Center of high performance so this is
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where we're based for um rugby sevens
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men and women's are out of here and yeah
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we're all yes you could say Central
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realize or have to live down here and
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train out of this epic building every
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single day almost yeah it's a sick
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looking gym here is it named after Dame
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Valerie no I don't think it's named
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battery but I'm not too sure who's at
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who's connected to the University of
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waikato right right hey um that is great
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to finally uh sit down with you we've
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been going um backwards and forwards on
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the DMS for months now we have been yeah
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you agreed to come on like at the
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beginning of 2022 and then I'm like oh
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should we do it this week and you're
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like no I'm in Paris no I'm doing this
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busy girl oh busy busy busy yeah the
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life of a rugby player especially a
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sevens rugby player you know as the
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world's open back up we're starting to
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travel a lot more and and being able to
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go back to more tournaments and so yeah
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it's finally good to have you down here
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yeah to meet you in person finally yeah
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likewise likewise um let's just run
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through uh some of your achievements uh
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there's two World Cups by the way
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correct me if I get anything wrong okay
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okay two World Cups um an Olympic silver
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medal an Olympic gold medal Commonwealth
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Games gold medal six World Series titles
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first person to reach a thousand points
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yeah
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it's full noise hey yeah
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yeah 2012 so I was 17 when I first made
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the squad and been there ever since so
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we're going I think it's our 11th my
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11th season and there's about maybe
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three other girls in the same situation
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so it's yeah it's been a pretty long
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career growing up in this program and
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achieved some pretty wicked stuff with
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this team so you're the youngest
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youngest player ever I think that's
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correct yeah I think I was the youngest
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player ever to debut for this team at
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the time yeah so um we're talking black
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fence or sevens right okay so um so you
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make the team when you're when you're
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17. are you still at school then or yeah
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so I was in my last year of high school
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um year 13 at Linfield College and with
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Linfield it is um in Auckland Central
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West Auckland um not far from Mount Ross
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School okay gotcha right so yeah made
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the team in my last year of high school
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back then we went full time
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um we were class stairs yeah part-time
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athletes and so we were having to wake
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up and train at like 4 30 a.m in the
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morning I'll then go to do a full day of
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school and then train again in the
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afternoon and does the same with other
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girls who had jobs so they could fit
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that in their life style but as
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everything started getting you know this
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professional professional but in regards
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to the demand as well was more the
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demand of um of us as athletes started
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getting higher and so it came impossible
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to I guess hold down a job for the girls
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because they're having to take you know
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eventually so much to leave that ended
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up being unpaid from their work yeah and
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all that kind of stuff so it threw a bit
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of a tobacco in the thing and regards to
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New Zealand Rugby and then then
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alongside the Players Association ended
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up coming up with contracts I think that
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might have been in 2013 and we slowly
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progressed from semi-professional and
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now to full-time professional athletes
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are things are things good now you
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mentioned to me just before that you've
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you've got a mortgage so you've got your
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own I got my own house which is cool I
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think of this is my third coming up
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third year in my house so yeah this is
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amazing to say that I'm a full-time
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professional rugby player I get to do
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this for a living this is my job you
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this wasn't possible you know 10 years
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ago yeah females especially you know
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males has always been around it's been
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around for a while but for a female
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rugby player like it's just bloody
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incredible yeah things that it feels
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like things are getting better all the
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time like um at the time that we're
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recording this in July
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um an announcement was made about
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women's Cricket in this country I know I
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saw that this morning I was like wow
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that is fantastic you know like same
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thing they play the same sport as the
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male counterparts but it's also awesome
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to see the support from them their male
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counterparts as well yeah and that was
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exactly the same with us and rugby like
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we had some of the All Blacks and all
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that kind of stuff supporting us in
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order to get um those contracts
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initially and then now being on equal
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pay as well yeah is the money for you
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okay yep so we uh so we're the men and
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women's sevens we our tears that we have
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are equal which is
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with those um achievements that I read
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out before like Olympic gold silver
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Commonwealth Games Gold World Cups yada
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yada I mean you you should be you should
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be I feel like more famous and more
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well-known than what you are you know
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what I mean like you you know you you uh
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I suppose like the female Aaron Smith
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financially I'm sure he's in a far
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better position than than what you are
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yeah
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our paid and stuff doesn't compare to I
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guess what the the All Blacks are on but
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like anything you know it is a great
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start for us but you know we're still
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we're still working it's going in the
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right direction it is it is going in the
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radiation and it's also cool to see now
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the 15s girls on board as well and them
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getting more support too behind them
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financially to be able to commit
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full-time because it is a Juggle like
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back in the day you were like balancing
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I was bouncing school girls are
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balancing work your priorities are all
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over the place plus you know then you're
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chucking rugby you Chuck in life and
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it's just hard to be out of balance all
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of that and then so when you know that
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you're financially secure or you're
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getting something from what you do that
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you putting everything into it just
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takes that you know the pressure
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pressure away 100 you're not having you
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know some of these girls have families
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and have young ones and so it takes that
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pressure away from having to provide
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um another way yeah also if you're if
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you're that good at what you do and and
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you are you're very good you know it
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wouldn't be fair that you get to 30 35
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whenever you choose to retire and have
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nothing to show for yeah so that's why
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I'm very like you know we're very
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grateful to be in the position that we
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are there's a lot of sports out there
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that still aren't you know fully backed
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and supported they're having to find
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their own ways or get funded from other
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places so to be in the position we are
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we are very grateful for it but at the
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same time you know you don't want to
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just be great for you we deserve to be
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where we are yeah you want to thrive not
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just survive yeah exactly hey um I just
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remembered I I didn't start recording so
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I'll just um get my camera on and
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so straight into it uh
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so I need something like a little bit of
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content for
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for the tech talk
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um
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so um so the podcast is called Runners
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only um so we need to take off the
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running box it's like a guarantee on
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every podcast there has to be at least a
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little bit of run change
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let's go you're like Queen of the cross
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country or something yeah yeah it was so
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I won every single school cross cross
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country that I ever competed in and then
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also I think it was an instant Media
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made a couple of um trips to like the
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interzone Auckland stuff and my first
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year there I ended up placing second and
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here I was running on like bare feet and
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stuff against all these like you know
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pretty intense you know Harriet type run
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of people and came second in Auckland
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and intermediate school age so yeah it
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had a little bit of running behind me I
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guess and it definitely helps in the
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sport of sevens just um just naturally
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good yeah so I don't never I guess yeah
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just naturally really like thank God for
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my genetics for my parents
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um yeah I just enjoyed going out there
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and I think it's more so the Competitive
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Edge too like in any competition I'm in
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it and I'm gonna push no matter what
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type thing and yeah it just came
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naturally to me just running longer
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distances and yeah do you run do you run
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now like if you don't have to so say
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you're say you're um say you arriving in
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Paris for a tournament and you're jet
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lagged and you've got a couple of days
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before you have to get into things would
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you go for a run around the city or
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anything oh no does running seem like
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work yeah yeah it's more so for me if I
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we arrive I'll jump on a bike or
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something like that spin the legs over
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but we do get the odd days where it is
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self-directed or we've come back from a
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trip and we've landed back in the
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country we get a few days off and we get
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a few different aerobic options given to
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us that's when I'll most likely go out
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and jump on the road and go for a little
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bit of a you know 20 30 minute run type
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thing right wow were you just one of
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these kids were you just naturally good
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at everything do you think yeah yeah our
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guests don't be humble don't be humble
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yeah
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um I guess so and that especially in
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regards to sport like I just loved
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anything and everything in high school I
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played every single sport pretty much
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available you know I was doing the
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hockey I was playing soccer touch rugby
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tag I did swimming Taekwondo like I just
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was excited about giving anything new a
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go pretty much and you know any new
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challenge or anything that tested me I
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was happy to put my hand up and step
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forward and give it a go at least once
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you know yeah so um so so rugby and
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sevens in the early years when because
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you're 28 now yes I am so when you're
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sort of like primary school age
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intermediate age we're there with their
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like girls teams no
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no
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maybe around nine somewhere that there
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was a we had a rugby team at primary
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school and so no girls were playing and
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I was like I want to play and so I went
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around and like you know registered for
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the team and then the principal actually
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had to go and ask my parents to make
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sure it was okay and they had to
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obviously go through a few channels to
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make sure that a girl playing in a boy's
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competition was okay too and yeah that's
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kind of where I had my first taste of
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context book because back then it was
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actually you know contact I think now
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it's more ripperary
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those sort of Ages but back then that
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was contacting
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um went to my first rugby tournament and
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absolutely loved it um got photos still
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you know my little headgear my dad was
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there supporting me like
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um
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um and yeah like the I think it was like
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the maroon burgundy color of our school
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and then
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um I got picked by I think it was our
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coach or principal at the time today I
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um take the ball up and go get it signed
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by um the great late John Alamo and
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that's the first ever all black I got to
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meet so that was pretty incredible
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experience yeah unreal so how old were
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you then
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I think it was like eight or nine it
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must have been eight or nine around then
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yeah right so there was that sort of
00:11:45
when Jonah was in his prime yeah yeah
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yeah
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20 years ago now yeah and then how how
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were the um how are the boys and the you
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know having a girl on the boys team were
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they okay yeah I was friends with all
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those boys in the team and yeah they
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obviously knew how competitive and
00:12:00
sporty I was at school anyway and yet
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they they absolutely were fine with it
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oh that's cool yes I have had a um I've
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had Sophie Devine on the podcast the uh
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the captain of the uh the women's
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cricket team and
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um she's like four years older than you
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but she she had a sort of a similar
00:12:14
experience and there were no like boys
00:12:16
cricket teams I have no girls cricket
00:12:17
team so she had to play with the boys
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um and she said
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um some of the boys were a bit weird
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until she sort of proved herself but she
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said that the parents were the ones that
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were were weird about it like have you
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not having her on the um boys yeah
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I don't get that yeah you didn't have
00:12:33
any sort of experience like that not
00:12:34
that I can remember no not that I can
00:12:36
remember I just I think the boys and the
00:12:38
team knew how like sporting competitive
00:12:40
I was anyway because you know I'd pretty
00:12:42
much most win most things whether it be
00:12:44
Athletics cross country at school so
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they were more than happy to have me on
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the team really
00:12:49
um yeah I don't think it was more so
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actually it was more so the opposition
00:12:52
being like Oh there's a girl in their
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team and I don't remember I still
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remember it quite vividly like this boy
00:12:59
like um yeah saying something like oh
00:13:01
there's a girl in the team and then
00:13:02
ended up going out there and we ended up
00:13:04
smashing their team so that was pretty
00:13:05
cool oh that's so cool yeah it's gonna
00:13:07
be um what's the age we're talking about
00:13:09
intermediate sort of age that was that
00:13:11
was primary yeah yeah that was primary
00:13:13
but I actually played League was my
00:13:15
first ever sport so I would have been
00:13:16
about six years old playing with my um
00:13:18
cousin in an all boys team as well my
00:13:20
dad and uncle coached us and I played
00:13:23
for Newland Stags and then ponsonby
00:13:24
Ponies as well right right why
00:13:27
um why didn't you stick with League
00:13:29
uh four girls there this wasn't really
00:13:32
anything our cake was very yeah there
00:13:33
wasn't much but I come from a league
00:13:35
family so I've Loved League against all
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lovely to this day I'll you know
00:13:38
secretly watch it more than rugby
00:13:41
yeah
00:13:43
and watching the NRL the NRL W like all
00:13:47
of that yeah who's your do you have a
00:13:48
favorite team and then I really have
00:13:50
like the gray dance would be the
00:13:52
Warriors you know I always support the
00:13:54
worries right because they're the new
00:13:55
zealand-based team so I had to always
00:13:57
support the Warriors good to see them
00:13:59
get the win over the weekend finally
00:14:01
it's good to see that happen and and to
00:14:04
for them to be home because their power
00:14:06
out their sacrifice so much to you know
00:14:08
keep that competition alive but yeah you
00:14:09
know support the worries but for me it's
00:14:11
more about so players like Jonathan
00:14:12
Thurston was a player that I enjoyed
00:14:14
watching um and also the likes of Darren
00:14:16
lockia and all that kind of stuff too
00:14:18
yeah maybe you can explain that I I know
00:14:21
very little about sport so what's the
00:14:23
sort of what's the sort of difference
00:14:24
between rugby and league and I suppose
00:14:27
what I mean by saying that is so you've
00:14:29
got someone like Benji Marshall right
00:14:30
phenomenal League player makes the
00:14:32
switch to rugby plays for the blues
00:14:34
doesn't do very well then you have like
00:14:36
Roger turvasashek phenomenal League
00:14:38
player but and a shitty team that had
00:14:41
leaving once then he makes the jump to
00:14:42
rugby plays for the blues and excels and
00:14:45
now is in the All Blacks yeah so one
00:14:46
thing is Roger had a rugby background to
00:14:49
begin with so he I think started in
00:14:50
rugby then went to league and then came
00:14:52
back to rugby so he already had a bit of
00:14:54
that you know rugby IQ and knowledge
00:14:55
behind him yes he hadn't played in you
00:14:58
know rugby for a while and it had
00:14:59
Advanced across the year since he had
00:15:00
been out of it
00:15:02
um so I think that was probably one of
00:15:03
the main things I don't know if Benji
00:15:05
had that rugby background right but the
00:15:08
games are very different like how you
00:15:09
how you do play like obviously you've
00:15:11
got six tackles in League
00:15:13
an unlimited amount of time with the
00:15:16
ball in rugby you know if you hold on to
00:15:17
it the entire half and then you hold on
00:15:18
to it the entire half-time thing and
00:15:21
then just how you play like whether
00:15:22
you're playing flatter
00:15:24
um a lot of the time
00:15:26
league if you watch it live like
00:15:28
watching on the TV you know it's amazing
00:15:29
that you watch it live you actually see
00:15:31
a lot of the ball plays a lot of the
00:15:32
workers just around the ball carrier and
00:15:35
the tacklers you know a lot of these
00:15:36
other players can kind of switch off for
00:15:37
a little bit
00:15:39
um while that occurs whereas rugby you
00:15:41
know a song gets tackled
00:15:43
people are flying in there to try and
00:15:45
secure the rat so it's going back and
00:15:46
forth whereas in League you get tackled
00:15:48
it's about you know you the ball carrier
00:15:50
and a couple of tacklers on you you're
00:15:52
just the ones fighting where Israel and
00:15:53
Alice is kind of just getting in a
00:15:54
position right it's a bit more constant
00:15:56
I think looking at League though it
00:15:58
looks a lot more physical
00:16:00
um it's a lot more you know they get a
00:16:02
get away with a lot more too you know
00:16:03
some tackles that happen in League it
00:16:05
won't you won't get in away with those
00:16:07
aerobics you'll get either yellow or red
00:16:09
card yeah rugby seems very strict now
00:16:11
doesn't it it is it is very strict but
00:16:13
it's a good thing yeah at the end of the
00:16:15
day you know follow the rules you'll be
00:16:16
fine like you can still see some massive
00:16:17
incredible hits going on and and then
00:16:20
they just play a welfare and safety you
00:16:22
know if we can protect the players heads
00:16:23
and from them getting concussions you
00:16:25
know all the time you know that means
00:16:27
we'll have better longevity in players
00:16:29
being able to play yeah and you know
00:16:31
when it comes to you've seen the likes
00:16:32
of um the different stuff coming out
00:16:34
around dementia and and Cal Heyman the
00:16:36
ex all black yeah he's 40. it's not just
00:16:38
in like rugby but league and then you
00:16:40
know and then fell too it's all
00:16:42
it's although the better we can protect
00:16:43
our players while still allowing it to
00:16:45
be entertaining and that context book
00:16:47
that we all love and enjoy is I'm all
00:16:49
look for it have you you've been
00:16:51
concussed yep no 100 yeah I have been
00:16:53
I've had I'd say two major ones and then
00:16:57
a third not so bad one
00:16:58
um but yeah it's not nice it's probably
00:17:00
one of the worst I guess injuries you
00:17:02
could say that you can have because
00:17:04
unlike a you know a sprained ankle you
00:17:06
can treat that you can treat the stuff
00:17:08
around it you can get rehab given to you
00:17:10
to think and you can really track the
00:17:12
progression of it the concussion it's
00:17:14
all very individual your concussion to
00:17:15
my concussion could be 100 different and
00:17:18
that's something I've noticed with the
00:17:19
two major ones I had they were very
00:17:21
different
00:17:22
um the first one I had back in I think
00:17:23
it was 2013 got it in the Rugby World
00:17:25
Cup final landed awkwardly on top of the
00:17:28
hip of a player when I tackled them it
00:17:30
just got me like a kind of Ricochet and
00:17:32
bounced off I got up and I was it was
00:17:34
just spinning around me everything was
00:17:36
spinning I went to run and move fell
00:17:38
straight back to the ground and then all
00:17:40
I remember is the ball coming like
00:17:41
they've kicked the ball back and then I
00:17:43
just picked it up and I just hear my
00:17:44
teammates yell kick it out kicked it out
00:17:46
we won the Rugby World Cup for um final
00:17:48
for in Russia in 2013 and that one
00:17:51
though
00:17:52
I passed the tests like cleared
00:17:54
everything
00:17:55
um but I still had symptoms and it
00:17:58
wasn't until a day or two later I ended
00:17:59
up getting like a delayed concussion so
00:18:01
my emotions were all over the place I
00:18:03
was crying for no reason felt um really
00:18:06
anxious and a bit panicky whereas my
00:18:09
next one I had
00:18:10
um it was more around the nausea I felt
00:18:12
really sick and dizzy all the time and
00:18:14
stuff like that so it was very different
00:18:15
experiences
00:18:17
um but grateful for the team that were
00:18:19
around me to make sure that I progressed
00:18:21
and did everything right to get back to
00:18:23
being normal yeah and it's a process
00:18:25
like one day you could go for a run you
00:18:27
know like run and then you got a judge
00:18:29
am I like what symptoms are coming on if
00:18:31
none then sweet you get to go and do
00:18:33
some again the next day but if symptoms
00:18:34
come on you have to stop and rest that
00:18:37
next day so it's very back and forth you
00:18:39
could go two steps forward to come you
00:18:41
know three steps back yeah right right
00:18:43
God how frightening yeah it is it is
00:18:44
Friday because you're like this isn't me
00:18:46
like you know this isn't me I'm I'm not
00:18:48
this emotional um anxious type person
00:18:50
what's what's going on type thing and
00:18:52
you know for me I always say you've only
00:18:54
got one brain so anytime I get an head
00:18:56
knock or you know there's another girl
00:18:57
in our team like just take your time
00:18:58
because you want to be right before you
00:19:01
come back because there's a lot of stuff
00:19:03
around secondary impacts and Drug too
00:19:04
and that's just not good yeah that's a
00:19:07
that's a good um a good a good motto but
00:19:09
some of us don't even have a whole brain
00:19:11
I I am I I recorded a podcast with um
00:19:15
Kieran Reed and like we we talked about
00:19:17
concussion we talked about his head
00:19:18
injuries and
00:19:20
um that sounds awful like just um the
00:19:22
delayed effect like he told me that I'd
00:19:23
be driving this car turn his head a
00:19:25
couple of times to look in the blind
00:19:26
spot and then it would bring on like
00:19:28
massive massive awful nauseating
00:19:30
migraines yes that's another thing the
00:19:32
massive yeah the headaches the migraines
00:19:34
but even just my um my ability to
00:19:37
construct a email you know and put
00:19:39
sentences around I'd send an email to my
00:19:41
dad and he replied back like you know
00:19:43
those emails all over the place it
00:19:44
doesn't make sense and then I I don't
00:19:47
realize when I sent it you know but just
00:19:48
the ability to even just construct a
00:19:51
simple email to someone wasn't working
00:19:53
for me at the time either so you you
00:19:55
weren't aware that your email didn't
00:19:57
make sense no I wasn't no so you thought
00:19:58
so it's almost like um it's almost like
00:20:00
you're wasted in a way yes it was crazy
00:20:02
so that that one in 2013 probably was
00:20:05
the yeah one of the worst ones I've had
00:20:07
that's nine so that was the new the
00:20:08
early stages of your career when you're
00:20:10
still like 19. yeah yeah oh yeah it just
00:20:12
literally turned 19 the next day right
00:20:14
oh well God what a shitty birthday will
00:20:17
you win the World Cup yay but then you
00:20:19
get the concussion what other injuries
00:20:21
have you had have you anything really
00:20:22
bad
00:20:23
um were you pretty lucky I a and 20 what
00:20:27
was it I had a string of bands so 2015
00:20:31
um into 2015 I got a real bad concussion
00:20:33
in Dubai so that put me out for like two
00:20:35
or so months and then started 2016 so
00:20:37
this is the Olympic year I ended up
00:20:39
returning from that concussion I think
00:20:41
Feb for our tournament in Brazil and
00:20:43
went and played and I think it was our
00:20:44
first or second game ended up partially
00:20:46
tearing my kicking League my quad and so
00:20:49
I didn't realize I had done it though I
00:20:51
just knew it was a sharp pain so I
00:20:52
played the entire tournament and then it
00:20:54
wasn't until we got home and we did
00:20:55
scans they're like oh you know oh
00:20:57
whoopsie you've actually partially torn
00:20:59
your quad so that then put me out for
00:21:01
another couple of months um and then I
00:21:03
was able to return for the Canada and
00:21:08
Atlanta tournament so Atlanta was first
00:21:10
and I just went as the traveling 13th
00:21:12
Reserve just to give me that extra time
00:21:14
to recover from my quad so then the
00:21:15
following week I was like sweet got
00:21:17
Canada you know excited doing all the
00:21:19
trainings it's my first 20 back
00:21:21
um since you know Brazil I'm excited and
00:21:24
then it would being I think a day or two
00:21:26
before two days out from tournament we
00:21:28
were doing our last proper training run
00:21:30
and caught Auckland Arab in Iraq and
00:21:34
actually dislocated my left kneecap oh
00:21:37
yeah
00:21:38
it was the worst pain I've ever felt and
00:21:42
I didn't go back in either it stayed out
00:21:44
and so someone did someone someone from
00:21:47
medical try and like pop it yeah physio
00:21:49
so our poor physio it was her first it's
00:21:52
our physio now okay
00:21:55
um and um it was her first solo
00:21:56
tournament with us so she was filling in
00:21:58
for she was in Alpha zoo at the time but
00:21:59
she was filling in for our main Physio
00:22:01
and so it was her first tournament solo
00:22:03
by herself and then this happens and
00:22:05
she's like oh my god what the heck but
00:22:07
thankfully she was able to
00:22:09
um yeah push it back in and get it into
00:22:12
place but oh it was next level pain I
00:22:15
think I went into shock too because I
00:22:17
had the feeling of like just wanting to
00:22:19
faint and everything like that but oh it
00:22:21
was yeah don't do that don't dislocate
00:22:23
your kneecap guys not recommended I
00:22:26
don't think anyone's writing that down
00:22:27
on their phone I'm going to put their
00:22:28
Note 6 to my phone don't dislocate your
00:22:29
knee but at the same time that was
00:22:31
former months after the Olympic Games
00:22:33
and so I thought my Olympic Games was
00:22:35
done I thought so what for what year
00:22:36
2016. so Rio Olympics I thought that was
00:22:39
me done I think I would never wouldn't
00:22:41
be able to get back from something like
00:22:43
that and so my dream that I had you know
00:22:45
since a kid was potentially over
00:22:48
um but thankfully I you know did all the
00:22:51
rehab listened to the support medical
00:22:53
people did everything I could possible
00:22:56
to get back and I did so I was able to
00:23:00
make it back into the team get selected
00:23:02
and make my you know Olympic debut and
00:23:04
that's when you that's when you won the
00:23:06
uh the Silverman that's when we got the
00:23:07
silver medal yeah were you um yeah let's
00:23:09
talk about that were you were you happy
00:23:11
I mean it's your first Olympic
00:23:13
experience
00:23:14
um and so winning a medal I suppose is
00:23:16
awesome but we what was the mentality
00:23:18
like of you personally and the team like
00:23:20
were you happy with the silver or were
00:23:21
you kind of gutted not to get the gold
00:23:22
like the initial reaction was 100 good
00:23:24
like for any team sport
00:23:27
um or that tournament style thing is
00:23:29
like that's not a race
00:23:31
you don't win the silver you you lose to
00:23:35
get the silver you know what I mean like
00:23:37
chicken place is the first loser yeah
00:23:39
it's not like a race where a 100 meter
00:23:41
race where you're all racing and like
00:23:43
you know you win the silver medal you
00:23:45
win the gold the bronze so you know you
00:23:46
win gold you're elated you win bronze yo
00:23:49
I won a medal
00:23:51
I still won that game to get that medal
00:23:53
to get silver you lose that yeah you
00:23:57
know that that you lose the gold um
00:23:59
pretty much and so we yeah if I don't
00:24:01
know if anyone's seen the um footage or
00:24:04
you know remember watching that we would
00:24:05
yeah pretty distraught when that that
00:24:07
happened
00:24:08
um pretty emotional just knowing that
00:24:10
you know how hard we had been working
00:24:13
um
00:24:17
the coffee cup
00:24:20
it's all right I'm just trying to prop
00:24:22
my phone up on an empty coffee take my
00:24:24
coffee cup oh that was good there we go
00:24:26
all right let's go balancing the phone
00:24:27
yeah so we were pretty Disturbed really
00:24:29
and
00:24:30
um I didn't make you more Master major
00:24:32
even hungrier I guess for them
00:24:35
but but back then like we were guarded
00:24:38
and it wasn't at all we had a chat with
00:24:40
Emma Twigg and she was like you know
00:24:42
first of all only I can't remember
00:24:43
exactly but it was something around like
00:24:45
first of all only a certain amount of
00:24:46
play uh people make it to the Olympics
00:24:48
and then only a smaller portion get a
00:24:50
medal so she's like be bloody proud of
00:24:52
what you girls have achieved and you
00:24:53
know obviously we've seen her career she
00:24:55
was so close to getting you know those
00:24:57
medals those goal finished fourth I
00:24:59
think a couple of times and it wasn't
00:25:00
until Tokyo that she finally yeah which
00:25:03
was amazing to see like all her hard
00:25:05
work too and so yeah so that what that
00:25:08
pretty much fueled our fire for the
00:25:09
entire campaign suspicious girls who had
00:25:11
been there in 2016 which is a large
00:25:13
portion of our our Tokyo Squad really
00:25:15
and so yeah that fueled it even though
00:25:18
we weren't thinking about it necessary
00:25:19
every single day it was just you know
00:25:21
sticking away on the back of the morning
00:25:23
sure that feeling of like you know that
00:25:26
disappointment and all that kind of
00:25:27
stuff and so when we did eventually um
00:25:30
get to Tokyo and and won that game in
00:25:33
the final against France and found out
00:25:35
we were Champions uh if you saw that too
00:25:37
I have my you know ugly face cry was all
00:25:39
around the world
00:25:41
see that are you an ugly cry oh
00:25:50
um so so I've had um Hayden Wild on the
00:25:53
podcast so he's the triathlete he won a
00:25:54
medal um at Tokyo last year and I I
00:25:57
asked him about his Olympic experience
00:25:58
because it was a very very weird
00:26:00
Olympics last year wasn't it due to
00:26:01
covert but he's got nothing to compare
00:26:03
it to but you on the other hand you do
00:26:04
like you you experienced normal Olympics
00:26:06
in 2016 and surreal Olympics in 2020.
00:26:10
what's the difference between the two oh
00:26:12
it was 100 differently and like I just
00:26:15
know that would probably be one of the
00:26:16
greatest Olympics of you know all the
00:26:19
Japanese people and everyone else was
00:26:20
able to come and support because I know
00:26:22
the Japanese just you know first of all
00:26:24
they love New Zealand they love rugby
00:26:25
and it would have been amazing and that
00:26:27
Stadium of like 60 000 people yeah so it
00:26:29
was there no just no one no one pretty
00:26:30
much it was just um what do you call it
00:26:33
people at the stadium like the qualities
00:26:35
and the officials and then just support
00:26:38
staff from each team it was empty like
00:26:40
you could hear yourself out on the field
00:26:42
which was crazy so yeah it was very
00:26:44
different we were pretty much you arrive
00:26:46
you compete you leave that wasn't the
00:26:49
case then Rio like you arrive you
00:26:50
compete you get to stay on if you want
00:26:52
you get to support the other athletes go
00:26:54
to their events all that kind of stuff
00:26:55
and that's what I loved about Rio we
00:26:57
were able we're a team a part of a wider
00:27:00
New Zealand team and we were able to
00:27:02
meet new athletes make friends
00:27:05
um go and support them and their Sports
00:27:07
and just really create this awesome
00:27:09
environment in regards to the whole NZ
00:27:11
team which was so much fun and being you
00:27:14
know just able to just chill out a bit
00:27:15
after competition and have some fun at
00:27:18
the end of the days too whereas this was
00:27:19
just like nah boom boom boom gone didn't
00:27:22
even get to celebrate our goal really
00:27:23
because you know when we came home and
00:27:25
in a quarantine Hotel yeah yeah so you
00:27:29
you win the gold medal and then so then
00:27:31
what happens after that eventually the
00:27:32
next day we were on a plane back to New
00:27:34
Zealand straight into a quarantine hotel
00:27:37
in Christchurch we were there for two
00:27:39
weeks that's when I was the two-week
00:27:41
time first week was awesome because I
00:27:44
was tired and fatigued so I was just
00:27:46
sleeping and then the Olympics were
00:27:48
still alive so we're still able to watch
00:27:49
yeah yeah watch Lisa character when
00:27:51
they're gold medal and all that kind of
00:27:52
stuff
00:27:53
um second week was a lot harder it was a
00:27:55
lot harder yeah just we had already been
00:27:57
away from home for two months by then
00:27:59
too so I was missing home and missing my
00:28:01
partner and all that kind of stuff so I
00:28:03
couldn't wait to get out of there and
00:28:04
then we got home and literally a day or
00:28:07
two later we're in a national wide
00:28:08
lockdown so
00:28:10
it was yeah great so I couldn't even see
00:28:13
my family or anything like that
00:28:15
um so it wasn't I hadn't seen my family
00:28:17
sort of from
00:28:19
going away and all that kind of stuff it
00:28:21
was eight months between seeing my
00:28:23
family the last time so I had to see it
00:28:25
hadn't seen me in eight months and for
00:28:27
me and my like if anyone knows that you
00:28:29
know I'm quite a family-oriented person
00:28:30
and I try and get up to see them as much
00:28:32
as I can and so knowing that I hadn't
00:28:34
seen them for eight months and then
00:28:36
eventually reuniting with them and
00:28:37
showing in you know the gold medal and
00:28:39
stuff was pretty amazing because they
00:28:41
had planned to come over to Tokyo like
00:28:43
they did in Rio so they were there that
00:28:45
was a cool thing too when you ran out in
00:28:46
Rio you just saw this like section like
00:28:48
a sea of black of all our family friends
00:28:50
and supporters there you ran out of
00:28:52
Tokyo it was just you know just nothing
00:28:55
just empty but at the same time I think
00:28:57
we were just so focused we didn't care
00:28:59
like whether people were there or not we
00:29:01
were just so focused and knew what we
00:29:03
were there to do we were there for a job
00:29:05
there to to go out there play some
00:29:08
incredible rugby
00:29:09
um and you know bring home get the job
00:29:11
done yeah get the job done pretty much
00:29:13
from from
00:29:14
um the perspective of you like kicking
00:29:15
goals is it is it easier with no people
00:29:17
there honestly I when either there's a
00:29:21
crowd or not like I just zone is right
00:29:23
now anyway like my full attention is
00:29:24
what's happening on the field and being
00:29:25
present on the field at that moment so
00:29:28
you know whether the Stadium's filled
00:29:29
with 50 000 people or not I just don't
00:29:31
really um it doesn't really bother me
00:29:33
too much so if someone's booing you if
00:29:34
I'm yelling out
00:29:35
I hope you missed that you you just you
00:29:39
you managed to Zone everything out yeah
00:29:41
pretty much yeah to a certain extent
00:29:42
really
00:29:47
I'll hear about um just so much and to
00:29:50
focusing on my process and what I have
00:29:51
to do
00:29:52
um type thing and crowds actually make
00:29:54
it a lot harder to hear yourself on the
00:29:55
field or for your teammates to hear you
00:29:57
and vice versa so the coolest thing
00:30:00
about having an empty Stadium all my
00:30:02
teammates heard me
00:30:04
oh how good how good okay so um yeah
00:30:07
let's talk about your family for a bit
00:30:09
since since you you brought that up so
00:30:11
you're um your um Pat Maori part Chinese
00:30:13
yes correct and European and European
00:30:16
yeah yes so
00:30:18
um your granddad um you call him gong
00:30:21
gong yes
00:30:22
what what does that mean so that's
00:30:24
pretty much grandfather in Japanese so
00:30:26
he's full Chinese which makes my mom
00:30:28
half and then me quarter Chinese yeah
00:30:30
and then
00:30:31
um moldy from my dad's side and European
00:30:33
from both sides too so yeah so English
00:30:35
Irish mix Jay's all over the place
00:30:39
are you um are you quite connected with
00:30:42
with all your different roots to a
00:30:44
certain degree so my dad when he was
00:30:46
growing up he didn't have the
00:30:48
um easiest lifestyle um growing up and
00:30:50
so here to do a lot of things for
00:30:51
himself him and his siblings but they
00:30:54
weren't um related where where did he
00:30:56
grow up he grew up in West Auckland with
00:30:57
his family is from Purity
00:30:59
um which is kind of this Tiny Town
00:31:01
whisper whangarei okay yeah so yeah love
00:31:05
Northland why didn't he have an easy
00:31:06
time growing up um just you know his you
00:31:08
know parents there was about seven or
00:31:09
seven kids and all that kind of stuff
00:31:11
and so they didn't have a lot of money
00:31:12
okay a lot of mouth a lot of mouths of
00:31:15
feed and yeah all that kind of stuff and
00:31:17
so he had a tough a tough upbringing in
00:31:20
so he
00:31:21
um they didn't speak or weren't really
00:31:23
connected to their moldy side either so
00:31:25
his dad didn't speak it he didn't speak
00:31:26
it and neither of none of his siblings I
00:31:28
don't it's terrible I don't think it was
00:31:30
a thing and I think um how much you did
00:31:33
what's your dad I did is
00:31:41
I am yet
00:31:47
things like 51. right so he's he's
00:31:50
probably almost at at the Casper at that
00:31:52
age where if you if you even tried to
00:31:54
speak Maori in school you get you know
00:31:55
you got told definitely as parents you
00:31:57
know yeah yeah where it wasn't you know
00:31:59
it wasn't allowed at all and it was
00:32:01
alarming isn't it it is it is and so we
00:32:04
don't really yeah don't really hit
00:32:06
didn't have that connection growing up
00:32:08
at all and so for me it all it's been
00:32:11
about trying to build that connection
00:32:13
again and you know being in this team
00:32:15
and this environment we're very um you
00:32:17
know culturally aware and there's a lot
00:32:18
of girls that do know their background
00:32:20
so it's awesome just to continue to
00:32:21
learn from them like learn our language
00:32:23
the tea counter behind it all and
00:32:26
different stuff like that so that's been
00:32:27
an awesome thing and then it's opened my
00:32:29
eyes to have been wanting to you know go
00:32:31
down that Journey around my moldy side
00:32:34
and to learn more about it you know last
00:32:35
few
00:32:37
um previous to the last few years you
00:32:38
know I don't even really know my pippiha
00:32:40
and I couldn't even you know say it to
00:32:42
anyone whereas now I know my PPR I can
00:32:45
say it off the top of my head type thing
00:32:46
you have to excuse my ignorance what's
00:32:48
up it's kind of just like a whenever you
00:32:51
go to a setting
00:32:53
um whether it be for more formal it's
00:32:54
like an introduction of weeks okay so
00:32:56
it's like your your Mountain your
00:33:00
ume all that kind of stuff so that's
00:33:03
kind of what you go through when you
00:33:04
introduce yourself to honestly like the
00:33:06
660 song yeah yeah yeah yeah
00:33:08
so how yeah is exactly exactly that so
00:33:13
um yeah so that's something that I now
00:33:15
know which is pretty cool and I went to
00:33:16
my sister my dad and me we took a day
00:33:19
trip up to
00:33:21
um our tea and I hadn't been there since
00:33:23
I was like a baby so I didn't remember
00:33:25
it so we went there there must have been
00:33:27
what are we three or so years ago now
00:33:30
three plus years ago that we went there
00:33:31
for the first time really when you think
00:33:33
about it and got to actually see Al
00:33:35
madai and the area that you know our
00:33:37
ancestors and stuff come from and
00:33:39
connect back to so that was a pretty
00:33:42
um
00:33:42
spiritual and like you know connecting
00:33:45
why why don't the type experience um for
00:33:47
us so that was cool but oh yeah I'm
00:33:49
continuing to go down that journey and
00:33:51
that process and learning you know our
00:33:52
language to deal Maori and all that kind
00:33:54
of stuff um for me when it comes to the
00:33:56
Chinese side I probably had a little bit
00:33:58
more of connection to that because
00:34:00
um I was mainly brought up around my
00:34:02
mum's side even though we do still have
00:34:03
that connection on my my dad's side um
00:34:05
but yeah mainly brought up around that
00:34:07
but even then my granddad my gong
00:34:10
you know he's kiwi born first generation
00:34:13
in New Zealand grew up playing rugby
00:34:16
league very kiwi
00:34:18
that's the craziest thing right yeah
00:34:20
right so so yeah so he's the first
00:34:22
member of your family
00:34:24
um born in New Zealand yes
00:34:26
um so what year was he born how old is
00:34:28
he he
00:34:35
so I'm thinking of like a like a like a
00:34:38
Chinese man playing rugby league in New
00:34:40
Zealand like 60 years ago not common at
00:34:42
all I think he was the first Chinese
00:34:44
full-blooded Chinese man to represent
00:34:46
Auckland and he would have actually gone
00:34:48
on to play for the kiwis um but he broke
00:34:51
his leg and you know Mr oh is it that
00:34:53
good yeah yeah no it's legit yeah yeah
00:34:54
no he was legit he played with the likes
00:34:56
any any
00:34:57
um rugby league supporters out there
00:34:59
knows some of the greats he played the
00:35:01
likes of like um Roger Bailey and all
00:35:02
those guys so yeah he was among some of
00:35:04
the greats of um New Zealand Rugby and
00:35:06
he played alongside them and so yeah he
00:35:08
was he was that good he could have been
00:35:10
a kiwi yeah but just the Stars didn't
00:35:12
quite align yeah for him back in the day
00:35:14
but yeah it definitely was not common
00:35:16
for a full-blooded Chinese man to be
00:35:18
playing rugby or sorry rugby league back
00:35:21
in the day and so you know his mum his
00:35:23
parents they barely spoke English and
00:35:25
they definitely did not support him
00:35:27
playing you know a very non-traditional
00:35:29
Chinese
00:35:36
[Laughter]
00:35:38
um so yeah so that was yeah they kind of
00:35:41
frowned upon that for a bit so he was
00:35:43
like I think seven years old had to you
00:35:44
know clean his own uniform and
00:35:46
everything his own boots and stuff
00:35:48
because they were like no we don't want
00:35:49
anything to do with it and all right so
00:35:51
like if you you can play but it's not
00:35:53
yeah will you play but I got nothing to
00:35:55
do with it type thing that's kind of how
00:35:56
I respect them yeah yeah I can't imagine
00:35:58
I can't imagine life would have been
00:36:00
life would have been easy big I'm just
00:36:01
trying to think of like you know racism
00:36:03
in New Zealand back then yeah there's
00:36:05
still a lot of racism today but yeah
00:36:07
definitely him growing up there was a
00:36:09
lot of racism you know they got Stones
00:36:10
chucked at them and everything called a
00:36:12
whole bunch of different names actual
00:36:14
100 yeah one of our cousins uh my mum's
00:36:18
cousins actually lost an uh lost an eye
00:36:20
because of uh kids throwing stones at
00:36:22
her when she was younger
00:36:24
that's terrible yeah yeah so it was
00:36:27
pretty bad back then so and you know
00:36:29
still not great you know could still not
00:36:31
be great today but I think we are you
00:36:33
know trying to head in the right
00:36:34
direction and all that kind of stuff but
00:36:37
now what about you have you experienced
00:36:39
much I I personally haven't um
00:36:41
experiment obviously there's been the
00:36:42
odd
00:36:47
and then they're like oh there's nothing
00:36:49
wrong and all that kind of stuff you
00:36:50
know like right you know kids not at us
00:36:54
yeah you haven't had that out of school
00:36:55
though no not our school so I haven't
00:36:57
I've obviously been
00:37:00
um mixed myself you know I haven't had
00:37:02
to experience that type of stuff that my
00:37:05
gungun or my mum and that would have
00:37:07
experienced but there's still that stuff
00:37:09
around you know when we go to these
00:37:11
events um on for my Chinese side like
00:37:13
that kind of feeling when you were a kid
00:37:16
like okay we don't look like everyone
00:37:17
else you know like are we Chinese enough
00:37:19
to be here type thing you know
00:37:22
you'd be stuck
00:37:25
in obviously um because back then my um
00:37:29
my Gung gong you know they wanted him to
00:37:31
marry a you know a Chinese woman
00:37:33
um but nope he decided and picked my
00:37:35
nana who's full European and they met I
00:37:39
think they were like 16 or 17 married at
00:37:41
18 but that relationship wasn't
00:37:43
supported initially by his parents
00:37:44
either because you know she's a white
00:37:45
lady marrying a Chinese boy that's what
00:37:48
they didn't want but thankfully from his
00:37:50
um I think it was his Auntie and Uncle
00:37:51
like no she's a good girl so let it
00:37:54
happen and she they ended up loving her
00:37:56
she learned the language
00:37:58
um Chinese and was able to communicate
00:38:00
with them and everything so they grew to
00:38:02
love her and yeah loved it typically
00:38:04
they died you got it you're um your
00:38:06
great grandparents yeah I can just
00:38:08
imagine them in the Market Garden and
00:38:10
their their kiwi born sons playing rugby
00:38:12
league hooking up with the European
00:38:13
chicks they must have been like what are
00:38:15
we doing here
00:38:16
[Laughter]
00:38:32
you've got a really close relationship
00:38:34
tight ass yeah yeah he's supported me
00:38:37
and everything I I do and um still does
00:38:40
so yeah it's pretty cool and then him
00:38:42
alongside my dad you know we um they
00:38:44
were the two that taught me the basic
00:38:46
skills my dad wouldn't actually let me
00:38:48
pass uh you know how you can spiral a
00:38:50
rugby ball so my dad won't let me spoil
00:38:52
a rugby ball until I was like 13. he'll
00:38:54
teach me how to just pass it and use my
00:38:55
wrist why just to get the basics down
00:38:57
first down first and you know really
00:38:59
strengthen my wrists and ability just to
00:39:01
throw a basic you know flat ball type
00:39:03
pass and that's oh that was really quite
00:39:05
untouched but then as my wrist strength
00:39:07
built up that then allowed me to then be
00:39:08
able to chuck a good long spiral pass
00:39:10
and I'm I'm grateful for that because
00:39:12
I'm gonna take some good passes now yeah
00:39:20
um are your parents your parents still
00:39:21
together Yep they're still the other day
00:39:22
so how am I I am 28 so they are 29 years
00:39:26
married this year wow yeah
00:39:28
I think that's right that's phenomenal
00:39:31
yeah so they're still going strong it's
00:39:34
um yeah yeah 29 yeah 29 years married
00:39:37
yeah that's great and how many other
00:39:39
siblings
00:39:40
29 years mayor you're 28 so you must
00:39:43
have been the first yes I'm the oldest
00:39:45
I've got
00:39:45
sister Shea she's if I'm 28.
00:39:50
she's 26 I think yeah I think no 25 to
00:39:54
25 yeah 20 26 next year and so she's um
00:39:58
we're complete opposite so for like she
00:40:01
actually loves sport love playing sport
00:40:02
like detached did rugby but wasn't as I
00:40:05
guess passionate or as like driven in
00:40:07
that regards in the sporting regards as
00:40:09
me but she is amazing what she does now
00:40:11
she works at sky sport
00:40:13
um as an assistant producer or something
00:40:15
like that right it's good that you know
00:40:17
what your sister does
00:40:20
and the sky sport Department yeah it's
00:40:24
the same with me and my sister I've got
00:40:25
no idea what she does yeah no but she's
00:40:27
pretty amazing in her job and then um
00:40:29
she's got a double major
00:40:31
um bachelor's arts and Screen production
00:40:33
and all that kind of stuff so she loves
00:40:34
the real media side the photography the
00:40:37
um uh videography all that kind of stuff
00:40:39
and editing and all that so I think she
00:40:41
wants to be like get into film and all
00:40:43
that kind of stuff as well but she's
00:40:45
pretty much some of the stuff you see
00:40:47
the content you see on my um Instagram
00:40:49
and stuff she's had a hand and helped me
00:40:51
um you know edit that and put it all
00:40:53
together we're kind of like two I'll
00:40:56
come up with the concept the idea and
00:40:57
then she'll help me bring it to life so
00:40:59
yeah yeah amazing teamwork teamwork 100
00:41:01
and then there's my little brother David
00:41:04
he's what year is it 22 so he's 22 now
00:41:09
whatever the year is that's how old he
00:41:11
is
00:41:12
and so yeah he's um we're very similar
00:41:16
boat like we're you know that tall kind
00:41:18
of lanky um thing was my sister she's a
00:41:20
bit more um shorter but stockier a bit
00:41:21
more muscly and so she always you know
00:41:23
was like damn it why did you guys get
00:41:25
the height she followed my mum me and my
00:41:27
brother followed my dad um but I think
00:41:29
he oh gosh what does he do he like I
00:41:31
think repairs um drains on the ground
00:41:33
and all that kind of stuff but he's
00:41:35
gonna you really don't know
00:41:37
I don't know the actual difference like
00:41:39
the job title but yeah no he's doing
00:41:41
well in that regards he's got two
00:41:42
beautiful three beautiful kids
00:41:44
um as well so he started young yeah I
00:41:48
was thinking that he must have started
00:41:49
really young um still with the baby mama
00:41:52
not the first one right the second one
00:41:54
yes and so that so we got the yeah they
00:41:57
live not far from mum and dad the um his
00:42:00
fiance Evie and and their two beautiful
00:42:02
kids and so it's uh yeah every time I
00:42:05
get to go to Auckland I yeah I'll bring
00:42:06
the kids over bring my little niece and
00:42:08
nephew they're so cute and yeah excited
00:42:10
to see them again so hopefully stay on
00:42:12
after um once we get back from com games
00:42:15
on and spend some good quality time with
00:42:17
them for a few days yeah you seem really
00:42:19
connected to your family eh yeah well
00:42:21
you know they've been there obviously
00:42:23
since day one
00:42:25
actually before day one yeah
00:42:27
but you know they're the ones that have
00:42:29
allowed me and provided me with that
00:42:31
Foundation to be able to be the person I
00:42:34
am today and so if it wasn't for them
00:42:35
you know helping me guide me um support
00:42:38
me give me the other little you know
00:42:40
shove and push every now and then
00:42:42
um you know that's I'm grateful for
00:42:44
everyone yeah when do they need to give
00:42:45
you the um the shoving push oh that
00:42:47
would be my younger days yeah right oh
00:42:49
is that right well you're a handful I
00:42:50
can't imagine it I wasn't a handful no
00:42:52
it's very competitive and you know I
00:42:54
love Sport and sometimes you know you
00:42:56
know like anything when you know your
00:42:57
dad or your mum's giving you advice you
00:42:59
don't want to hear it but when someone
00:43:00
else tells you like oh yeah yeah yeah
00:43:01
100 yeah
00:43:03
the exact same thing yeah you do that
00:43:06
you save like your worst behavior for
00:43:08
the people that you love the most
00:43:09
sometimes it's weird I was an angel
00:43:12
don't worry and
00:43:14
um now let's talk about the um the the
00:43:16
the Anne Getters thing um yes so um yes
00:43:21
so yeah I'm older than you this was back
00:43:24
in my area in the 1990s in New Zealand
00:43:27
pretty much any sort of middle class and
00:43:30
particular Caucasian household it had an
00:43:33
Anne Getty's book on the coffee table
00:43:34
yeah and you one of the and get this for
00:43:37
anyone that doesn't know famous New
00:43:38
Zealand photographer based in New York
00:43:39
now she used to do photos with babies
00:43:41
like in terracotta pots and sunflower
00:43:43
pots sunflower pots and you were you
00:43:46
were like I'm guessing you don't
00:43:47
remember anything of it no I do not um
00:43:49
six months old and you were like three
00:43:52
stuff is like a chubby Little Sparrow I
00:43:54
was I was a kid
00:44:03
a little sunflower as well and a pot
00:44:05
with um two other babies and so it was
00:44:07
actually crazy my cousin sent my mum a
00:44:10
photo
00:44:11
um it must have been last week or
00:44:12
something like that
00:44:13
um and in Australia they were talking to
00:44:15
Ann Getty's interviewing her one of the
00:44:17
Australian news things were interviewing
00:44:18
here and of the photo they had in the
00:44:20
background was me in the sunflower plot
00:44:22
um with these two other babies and so
00:44:24
that's still going around and then my
00:44:25
auntie was in America maybe five or so
00:44:27
years ago she's walking around the
00:44:29
streets and then yeah inside a bookstore
00:44:31
over there this big blow up picture of
00:44:32
me the sunflower oh no the bird bath
00:44:35
um as a baby I know like so it's still
00:44:37
yeah pretty popular so um so how did
00:44:40
that come back you must have had
00:44:41
conversations with your mum or dad about
00:44:42
this yeah yeah I don't actually 100 know
00:44:46
how it came about I think they were just
00:44:47
like searching for babies and their mum
00:44:49
was like oh yeah
00:44:50
um kind of applied and then got selected
00:44:52
took me along and boom shot a few photos
00:44:54
and now still going around and still
00:44:56
quite popular yeah and and so your
00:44:58
parents must have signed like a release
00:45:00
form or something so do they they get
00:45:01
paid any money at the time or I don't
00:45:03
think they got paid any money but they
00:45:04
got to keep obviously the the images
00:45:07
themselves yeah so they're at home in
00:45:10
their family house but now that you're
00:45:12
um you were you know an incredibly
00:45:14
successful athlete in your own right and
00:45:16
you probably deal with lawyers and
00:45:17
contracts and stuff yeah you must sort
00:45:19
of think [ __ ] you know yeah where's
00:45:22
the ongoing royalty position I know
00:45:24
right how good would that have been yeah
00:45:27
um what an amazing thing to be part of
00:45:29
though especially like given you know
00:45:31
like you were just a tiny baby then and
00:45:33
now you've got you know you've you've
00:45:35
you've gone on to be one of the one of
00:45:37
the world's greatest athletes yeah it
00:45:38
was pretty cool so like and goodies
00:45:39
maybe a couple of must have been four or
00:45:41
so years ago now um didn't like baby
00:45:44
where are you now type thing and so I am
00:45:46
ended up like replying to that comment
00:45:49
or that and ended up emailing her and
00:45:51
then she was like wow look at like you
00:45:53
know and then posted on her social media
00:45:54
and kind of just did that for a whole
00:45:56
bunch of other babies too just to see
00:45:57
where they are now type thing and I
00:46:00
think that's when I was leading into the
00:46:01
Rio 2016 Olympics there that would be
00:46:03
about five years ago now but yeah it's
00:46:05
just crazy just to see that you know
00:46:07
this image of me is in the you know a
00:46:10
bird bath and a sparrow outfit and a
00:46:12
sunflower and a and a you know a pot is
00:46:16
still going around
00:46:18
you know 28 years later almost yeah yes
00:46:22
you're like six months old all the time
00:46:24
it's amazing that they managed to get
00:46:25
you you look real Placid by the way it
00:46:27
must have been well fed yeah oh you look
00:46:30
wealthy
00:46:32
that's amazing um and I oh it's not your
00:46:35
ring uh yes oh [ __ ] yeah oh yeah yeah we
00:46:38
we yeah we need to talk about that so
00:46:39
you got engaged fairly recently yes so
00:46:42
that was earn Feb in the Feb the 27th of
00:46:45
Feb to be exact right I know no was it
00:46:48
27 the jams our anniversary the 13th of
00:46:51
Feb sorry day before Valentine's right
00:46:54
well congratulations thank you now
00:46:56
um uh what did I read I read like a
00:46:59
woman's day a woman's weekly article so
00:47:00
so your uh your your mum and your
00:47:03
soon-to-be mother-in-law they sort of
00:47:05
like did some matchmaking yeah so that's
00:47:07
uh they both love telling the story
00:47:10
honestly it's so funny so I was up for
00:47:12
an award at the um
00:47:14
the Northland Maori Sports Awards and so
00:47:16
was my fiance at the time um but he he
00:47:19
wasn't there he was actually over in
00:47:21
Hawaii still like competing and stuff
00:47:22
like that but what does it competing
00:47:24
he's um a wakaama peddler so oh [ __ ] all
00:47:27
the big boats yeah so there's a single
00:47:29
um so it's the canoe that's got the like
00:47:31
the Outrigger Outrigger Canoe
00:47:33
on the side so he does singles as well
00:47:37
as six-man 12-man races um he's actually
00:47:39
going to the um
00:47:46
Elite worlds Sprint worlds in um London
00:47:50
and when is it August so yeah so he's
00:47:53
competing in that um he's a coach as
00:47:55
well as a peddler so he'll be competing
00:47:57
that but he also does surf ski peddling
00:47:58
and is dabbled a little bit in K1 Sprint
00:48:00
paddling too wow yeah where's where's he
00:48:03
from what's his background so he is um
00:48:06
moldy and Dutch and a little bit of
00:48:09
Scottish I think is in there as well
00:48:10
here goes between you guys
00:48:17
um he was born in Cambridge
00:48:19
um but grew up in broadwood up north far
00:48:22
north like high tire so yeah Northland
00:48:24
boy as well there's family homes up in
00:48:26
broadwood store absolutely love going up
00:48:28
there got stuck in lockdown up there and
00:48:30
loved every single minute of it amazing
00:48:32
but yeah anyway so we got put on the
00:48:35
same table
00:48:36
um at the Northland Maori Sports our
00:48:37
family so it's me my mom dad and my
00:48:39
sister and then there was his mum dad
00:48:41
and her sister her sister sorry and so
00:48:44
we were you know just chilling away you
00:48:46
know all that kind of stuff
00:48:48
um and then yeah at you know at the end
00:48:50
of the night um his mum said to my mum
00:48:52
oh your your daughter should meet my son
00:48:55
one day
00:48:56
and then from there you know obviously I
00:48:59
was like oh you're talking to them so I
00:49:00
gave gave him a follow on Instagram and
00:49:02
then he followed me back and that was
00:49:04
kind of it until like a day or so later
00:49:06
he had a phone call with his mum and
00:49:08
then she was like oh yeah we sit next to
00:49:10
Tyler Nathan Wong and her family and
00:49:12
that's really like the penny Drive was
00:49:14
like oh that's why she followed me
00:49:15
because you know we've been you know
00:49:16
talking and all that kind of stuff and
00:49:18
then after that phone chat he sliding
00:49:20
the DMS and sent me a message
00:49:23
how cool what was what was the first
00:49:25
message okay so it was actually a really
00:49:27
good movie it wasn't one of those like
00:49:28
creepy like hey up to yes I was like
00:49:31
he's like
00:49:32
um
00:49:33
here I am wondering why something like
00:49:35
here I am wondering why a superstar like
00:49:37
you followed me on Instagram and he's
00:49:39
like then I was talking to my mum and
00:49:41
she told me how you
00:49:42
um we're at the same time we were at the
00:49:44
awards and it's like a king oh cool yeah
00:49:48
that's nice yeah it was nice and then I
00:49:49
just replied like oh yeah like your mum
00:49:51
did really well except in the award on
00:49:53
your behalf blah blah blah and that was
00:49:55
it you know for a little bit we just
00:49:56
kind of you know small chat you know hey
00:49:58
on Instagram you can like react like
00:49:59
yeah Emoji reacts yeah it was kind of a
00:50:02
little bit of that and then the
00:50:04
conversation started getting more and
00:50:06
more into eventually we're like oh
00:50:07
should we like meet up and we're like oh
00:50:09
yeah um I'm going to bed I'll see it I'm
00:50:11
going to Bay dreams with my sister and
00:50:12
my cousins and stuff like that
00:50:14
um what are you up to for New Years and
00:50:16
he's like oh yeah I'll come down little
00:50:17
did I know he was in full print mode for
00:50:19
his Nationals and like just came down
00:50:22
was only meant to come down for Bay
00:50:24
dreams like on the second and maybe stay
00:50:26
on the third of Jan and stuff I ended up
00:50:28
staying the whole week and we went out
00:50:29
the whole weekend that was pretty much
00:50:31
it from there like like I knew it had
00:50:33
known him for ages and so it wasn't yeah
00:50:36
because of it you know you can chat to
00:50:38
someone online but
00:50:39
it's strange though like on like tender
00:50:42
and bumble bumble and things like that
00:50:43
yeah
00:50:45
never used those but yeah no no but it's
00:50:48
like um you don't really know someone
00:50:51
until you until you meet them and then
00:50:52
there's the chemicals and things like
00:50:54
that so but they were so there was
00:50:55
nothing awkward and the attraction was
00:50:57
nothing awkward whatsoever I felt like
00:50:59
I'd known him for ages yeah it was just
00:51:01
instant like yeah instant for both of us
00:51:04
really and yeah it was pretty much that
00:51:06
was it like we hung out that week I went
00:51:08
and watched him play uh play he didn't
00:51:10
play he paddled race at Nationals like I
00:51:13
think a week or so later he then came
00:51:17
um and watched me at the Hamilton sevens
00:51:19
um that was I think that was our first
00:51:20
time playing at home time properly and
00:51:23
so he came bumped into my parents met my
00:51:25
parents and then asked me to be his
00:51:27
girlfriend
00:51:28
um at the end of that month so yes
00:51:31
that's not really common about like you
00:51:34
know it's just kind of like oh yeah
00:51:35
we've been hanging out sorry
00:51:37
he asked how is that was that quite
00:51:40
lovely it was it's quite endearing it
00:51:42
was so after
00:51:44
um after the Hamilton sevens we ended up
00:51:47
um having like a family friend type
00:51:49
Gathering our team did at um one of the
00:51:52
restaurants there just to celebrate one
00:51:54
in Hamilton sevens playing at home for
00:51:55
the first time before we then head to
00:51:57
Sydney the next day and so mum was like
00:51:59
you gotta Come Along come along like
00:52:01
type thing so he came along met all my
00:52:03
teammates you know my teammates like oh
00:52:04
who's this type thing all that happened
00:52:07
and then he dropped me off back at the
00:52:09
hotel and then as he was dropping me off
00:52:11
and saying bye he's like you know it was
00:52:13
like oh yeah blah blah blah and then
00:52:15
he's like do I just ask him like ask
00:52:17
what it was like go go go on there and
00:52:20
he's like do you want to be my
00:52:21
girlfriend
00:52:23
that's lovely it is he's a sweetheart
00:52:25
and and clearly you said yes clearly I
00:52:28
said yes I went back to my room
00:52:30
obviously with a massive grin in my face
00:52:32
one of my teammates Tanika Willison just
00:52:33
being a smart ass that she is she's like
00:52:35
what did it like you know joking around
00:52:36
like what did he ask you to be his
00:52:38
girlfriend I was like yes and she's like
00:52:41
[Music]
00:52:42
I jumped on by all of them
00:52:44
oh that's lovely yeah and then yeah that
00:52:48
was that was it pretty much and then not
00:52:49
long after that we got put into went up
00:52:52
north to for his mum's 60th and then the
00:52:54
day after boom lockdown for
00:53:03
and locked down for like what three
00:53:05
months yeah yeah and so I was like oh up
00:53:08
and North too like isolated it's like
00:53:10
are you either gonna sink or swim in
00:53:11
this relationship yeah wait a minute
00:53:13
like accelerate the the learning process
00:53:15
getting to know each other yeah it did
00:53:17
and I'm quite grateful
00:53:21
for covered period but for me I
00:53:23
absolutely loved it because it's the
00:53:25
first time I've ever actually slow down
00:53:26
and see what life is at like without
00:53:28
rugby you know I'd been so constant for
00:53:31
so many years with rugby or just sport
00:53:33
in general like at the top level it
00:53:35
actually gave me a chance to be like
00:53:36
okay what is life like without you know
00:53:38
without support without that and I
00:53:40
absolutely loved it you know I loved my
00:53:41
time away and so I know whenever my
00:53:44
moment comes to step away from rugby or
00:53:46
sport in general that I'm actually gonna
00:53:49
be happy doing that because you know um
00:53:51
you've got a taste of it I've had a
00:53:53
taste of it and I know what life's like
00:53:54
without it I think there's like a
00:53:56
blessing yeah at the end of the day for
00:53:57
me during that covert period but listen
00:53:59
listen let's not talk about your
00:54:00
retirement just yet yeah yeah so
00:54:05
um so what did what did you find out
00:54:08
about each other in lockdown like uh any
00:54:11
sort of annoying things what what oh
00:54:13
right like if I asked him what would he
00:54:16
what would he say about you oh well you
00:54:18
learn each other it's like a noise
00:54:20
it was I think he just learned how I
00:54:23
think
00:54:25
say I can't speak on behalf but I think
00:54:27
he learned just how
00:54:29
um what's the word
00:54:32
not competitive um how you know like
00:54:34
driven Focus driven a focus I am like
00:54:37
yes we had just been told like Dev
00:54:39
saying news at con Olympics had been
00:54:41
postponed or potentially canceled and
00:54:43
you know I still would get up every
00:54:44
morning and go do some trading and
00:54:46
exercise with them not training not
00:54:48
knowing what the heck was going on but
00:54:50
that's something that I wanted to do
00:54:51
because I never knew when it could come
00:54:54
back I think that's what he'd you know
00:54:56
Helena was driven focused all that kind
00:54:58
of stuff and some of me like I learned
00:55:00
that his mindset is bloody incredible
00:55:02
like he can go out and do a 30k pedal by
00:55:04
himself and be happy just doing that you
00:55:06
know like he's raced 60 kilometer pedals
00:55:09
by himself type thing like he's insane
00:55:12
and so I learned how
00:55:14
how um his mindset is and just how um
00:55:18
strong it is and to be able to do that
00:55:20
that's a long time out in the morning
00:55:22
this is 100 mental toughness that's
00:55:24
something I learned early on in that too
00:55:26
like he doesn't get paid to do it like I
00:55:29
you know what I get to do I get paid to
00:55:31
do to train every single day and all
00:55:32
that kind of stuff he doesn't he doesn't
00:55:34
get paid to do any of that like he does
00:55:36
it because he loves it but it's a
00:55:37
passion and he's very competitive and
00:55:39
you know he wants to be the best in the
00:55:41
world at it and so that's something I
00:55:43
learned from him like he doesn't he's
00:55:45
not getting paid but he loves it so much
00:55:47
that he's willing to go out and
00:55:48
sacrifice you know all this time with
00:55:51
his family over the years to be at his
00:55:53
best that he can be and I was like I
00:55:55
can't support you and whatever you do
00:55:56
type thing yeah so who who said I love
00:55:59
you first he did how long was that
00:56:02
during lockdown was that yeah okay yeah
00:56:04
yeah pretty much did it straight after
00:56:06
yeah did you um can you remember
00:56:09
remember the first time we were just
00:56:11
chilling I think watching TV one night
00:56:13
upstairs
00:56:14
um at their place and then yeah he just
00:56:16
like looked at me and I was just like I
00:56:17
love you oh that's nice then I pretty
00:56:20
much did it straight away back yeah but
00:56:22
I remember
00:56:24
I'd hate to be a bit of that situation
00:56:27
day or someone that says I love you and
00:56:28
if they don't say it oh that's nice
00:56:30
that's nice
00:56:32
oh that's sweet and and what about the
00:56:34
proposal did you know had you sort of
00:56:36
discussed getting married or was it a
00:56:38
complete surprise no so we had we've
00:56:40
been talking about it so we've been to
00:56:41
about like you know about getting
00:56:43
married here you know every now and
00:56:45
he'll be like oh I see and all that kind
00:56:46
of stuff like you know shoving those
00:56:47
jokes yeah yeah but now we're disgusting
00:56:49
we even like had the odd look at like
00:56:51
different rings and he's like oh what do
00:56:52
you like type thing I didn't even really
00:56:54
had a preference at all almost like at
00:56:56
the end of the day whatever you get is
00:56:58
gonna be special because you've put time
00:56:59
effort and thought into it that's kind
00:57:01
of how I saw it yeah yeah um but so I
00:57:04
knew I was coming but didn't know it was
00:57:06
coming on that day so he actually
00:57:08
planned to do it on our two-year
00:57:09
two-year anniversary which was the 27th
00:57:12
of Jan but uh the weather was really bad
00:57:16
like we went out to the beach for dinner
00:57:18
and the weather was really bad it was
00:57:19
super windy and cold and stuff and then
00:57:21
and then he also had to ask Mum and Dad
00:57:23
yet so it's like it's not the right time
00:57:24
I can't do it and then so I was at
00:57:28
um
00:57:28
that happened and then he was like oh
00:57:30
should we go away for Valentine's
00:57:32
weekend I was like oh yeah cool I'm at
00:57:34
Blues Camp Saturday Sunday but I could
00:57:36
meet you you know
00:57:37
I'll as soon as I finish my super camp
00:57:39
I'll come down and you know we can book
00:57:41
at Airbnb and I'll meet you there type
00:57:42
thing and that's what happened you know
00:57:43
book The Airbnb like 40 minutes from
00:57:46
where we live
00:57:47
um cute little cabin out on like a farm
00:57:49
type thing outdoor bath yeah
00:57:52
I was when I was looking for places like
00:57:54
I want an outdoor bath
00:57:57
found it and then he was gonna do it on
00:57:59
the um actual Valentine's Day but he was
00:58:02
just so nervous and couldn't hold it in
00:58:04
yeah could you tell could you tell that
00:58:06
something was up was it no so not Alicia
00:58:08
sir that's a cute little getaway for us
00:58:09
you know just to spend some time because
00:58:11
I've been busy with rugby supers kind of
00:58:13
everything starting back up and he'd
00:58:15
been busy with work so I was like oh
00:58:16
this is some time for us to have some
00:58:18
quality time together yeah um it wasn't
00:58:20
at all literally maybe like just before
00:58:22
he asked that I switched on because we
00:58:25
had dinner we cleaned out we'll just
00:58:27
like sitting under the stars he
00:58:29
disappears inside and then our favorite
00:58:32
song starts playing I was like oh that's
00:58:33
cute you know like our favorite song
00:58:35
that we listen to and he walks out and
00:58:37
then he's got his PO number one he
00:58:39
literally did not have his Pony on when
00:58:40
he walked inside so I was like what the
00:58:42
heck what like I was like that's random
00:58:44
and then like we kind of like just like
00:58:45
slow dancing like just hugging each
00:58:47
other and I was like oh you got PO on
00:58:48
he's like yeah I need it for a bit of
00:58:49
kaha and I was like oh that's where the
00:58:52
kind of the penny dropped in my head I
00:58:54
was like oh shoot
00:58:56
and then also you started saying you
00:58:58
know sweet things I can't even remember
00:59:00
because I was just like who's hit me
00:59:02
right now
00:59:03
wow I'll say he like he would have like
00:59:05
rehearsed the whole thing I guess
00:59:07
wow and so what what's the song is there
00:59:10
like a couple song It's a millionaire by
00:59:13
Chris Stapleton oh yeah yeah is that
00:59:15
your song yeah we've got a country right
00:59:17
how how did he you introduce him to
00:59:20
Chris Stapleton or vice versa or are you
00:59:21
both we both just loved capturing music
00:59:23
and so yeah we'd listen to it and then
00:59:25
one time we're just listening to a
00:59:26
better country together when obviously
00:59:28
we were together and this is a song that
00:59:30
just keeps getting repeat and replayed
00:59:32
by both of us and so yeah that's how we
00:59:33
fell upon it that's a lovely song that
00:59:35
one Yes actually yeah the opening line
00:59:37
to that song is something like
00:59:39
um all right do you know what they
00:59:40
opening line is something about love
00:59:42
love
00:59:43
um
00:59:43
You can compare love to gold or
00:59:46
something like that yeah yeah so the
00:59:47
funny thing is you can you can compare
00:59:51
love to God so what um what's more
00:59:53
special winning an Olympic gold medal or
00:59:55
being proposed to
00:59:58
I think for me being proposed to because
01:00:00
that's something I you know that's the
01:00:02
rest of my life type thing yeah yeah
01:00:04
winning Olympic goal was Bloody amazing
01:00:06
something I've been working towards but
01:00:07
now you know finding that one that
01:00:09
person that I can create my own family
01:00:10
with and you know build upon that um
01:00:13
life after type thing so yeah oh cool
01:00:16
there you go babe
01:00:18
she said the right answer
01:00:20
um have you got a wedding date when are
01:00:21
you getting married oh gosh
01:00:30
gosh with next year so 20 23 years Yes
01:00:33
actually today after this we're actually
01:00:34
doing some winning planning
01:00:41
planning a relevant question or not but
01:00:43
it's like um you're you're sort of a
01:00:46
brand and you're very well known and
01:00:47
everyone knows the name Tyler Nathan
01:00:48
Wong are you gonna are you gonna like
01:00:50
keep playing under that name or are you
01:00:52
gonna take his name no so I'm actually
01:00:53
going to take his name yeah take King
01:00:55
yeah oh that's a great a solid name
01:00:59
I know we're actually going to both have
01:01:01
the same initials TK
01:01:04
so he said she got his own business
01:01:07
trained like a king so you know once I'm
01:01:08
done we're running back and slide
01:01:09
straight into that TK and all that kind
01:01:12
of his apparel and stuff that he does so
01:01:13
amazing yeah um but yeah I'll take King
01:01:16
and so the idea being you know get
01:01:18
married in the next year and then be
01:01:20
able to play with king for a couple of
01:01:21
years and at the next Olympics hopefully
01:01:23
you know fingers cross everything goes
01:01:24
well I make it I'll run out with um King
01:01:26
Jersey on
01:01:28
you're seeing your eyes to how how happy
01:01:31
the thought of that makes you in terms
01:01:33
of like motivation yeah it's that's yeah
01:01:35
100 that's something I said to him when
01:01:37
we did get um engaged like how cool
01:01:40
would be to you know have his name on my
01:01:43
back and then
01:01:44
um right out there for the first time
01:01:45
and you know give his family one of my
01:01:47
jerseys just to be like thank you type
01:01:50
thing thank you for their love and
01:01:52
support as well wow I hope that happens
01:01:54
I can't see any reason why it won't yeah
01:01:56
the way you're going at the moment
01:01:58
um now one thing I'd like to ask you
01:02:00
everyone on the podcast is um it's about
01:02:02
the uh their mental health how are you
01:02:04
you good how are you today I'm good yeah
01:02:06
I am good um the last couple of months
01:02:08
for me have it been have been a little
01:02:10
bit mentally challenging I got a little
01:02:11
bit of a niggle at the moment which has
01:02:12
kind of been around pre-canada 20 and
01:02:15
it's not something that can just get
01:02:16
fixed like that it's not anything
01:02:18
serious but it's just constantly there
01:02:20
so it's a little bit draining in that
01:02:21
regards and then obviously I got covert
01:02:23
and France came back for a week or so
01:02:25
and then got knocked down by that nasty
01:02:27
flu that's circulating at the moment so
01:02:29
it's worse than covert it is worse than
01:02:31
covert 100 it it's my butt like I I must
01:02:35
still like kind of recovering from it
01:02:37
um it's only been my this is my first
01:02:39
proper week back training I played at
01:02:41
oceana's last week but I hadn't done any
01:02:43
training for two weeks before stepping
01:02:45
out of that field so I was only getting
01:02:47
little bits and minutes you know yeah I
01:02:48
was still I'm still dying out there
01:02:51
yeah so that's just being I guess the
01:02:54
more drain inside you know being sick
01:02:56
and all that kind of stuff and and then
01:02:58
having that little niggle so that's been
01:02:59
a little bit challenging for me but
01:03:01
otherwise now I'm really good I'm really
01:03:03
good yeah it's good it's good to have
01:03:04
you know I always catch up uh it's good
01:03:07
to have tapu home as well because he was
01:03:09
over in Tahiti um paddling for the first
01:03:11
time over there in like three years and
01:03:13
so having him home someone you know to
01:03:15
connect with but then my family's always
01:03:17
there too we're always messaging each
01:03:18
other on our little messenger group chat
01:03:21
or like video calling each other just a
01:03:23
chicken and see how each other's going I
01:03:25
think that's important yeah absolutely
01:03:26
it is completely it is and is there any
01:03:28
little like like tips or strategies or
01:03:30
things that you do like if you know if
01:03:32
you can feel your mental health not
01:03:34
being where you want it to be where it
01:03:36
should be are there any little things
01:03:37
you do your journal or anything I'm not
01:03:40
one of those ones that like likes the
01:03:41
journal or like say wake up at like the
01:03:44
start of daylight and go to the beach
01:03:45
type thing that's just that's just not
01:03:47
me like I love my sleeping
01:03:49
sleep in it yeah yeah I saw your um
01:03:52
you're one of your teammates and Friends
01:03:53
uh Ruby Tui like she's she's into her
01:03:55
morning dips at the beach or whatever
01:03:57
age to their
01:04:00
um for me I think it's just some like
01:04:01
noticing and not um putting like a
01:04:05
negative positive spin on whatever
01:04:06
feelings are coming in at that moment
01:04:08
and so just embrace them and acknowledge
01:04:10
them and that's something that I've
01:04:11
learned through rugby as well and the
01:04:13
different psychologists that we've
01:04:14
worked with over the years like just
01:04:16
notice it accept it and then and then
01:04:19
think okay what what's next type thing
01:04:21
so I think not you know trying to bottle
01:04:23
everything up and think you're perfect
01:04:25
and you know nothing's worrying I think
01:04:27
that's what's so incredible about this
01:04:28
environment is that they see you as a
01:04:30
person first before they see you as a
01:04:31
rugby player or an athlete and so you
01:04:34
know if there is something going on in
01:04:35
your home life
01:04:37
um all that kind of stuff they're like
01:04:38
take the time you need to go sort that
01:04:40
out first because we know that we can't
01:04:41
have 100 you if you're not 100 you at
01:04:44
home right yes very they're very big
01:04:47
about that here that's what I absolutely
01:04:49
love and you know we work with um we've
01:04:51
got a psychologist
01:04:52
um Kylie and we work with her
01:04:55
um and so she's open you know you could
01:04:57
see see her whenever you want type thing
01:04:59
whether it be a text a phone call zoom
01:05:01
in person type thing and so you know you
01:05:04
can go to her for anything and say it's
01:05:06
it's not just about rugby here and for
01:05:08
me it's not just about rugby and so
01:05:10
that's kind of the things I've learned
01:05:11
over the course of time and just yeah
01:05:13
accepting it and then knowing that you
01:05:15
can like you know find your person or
01:05:17
people or whoever it is that you can I
01:05:20
guess talk to and you know connect with
01:05:22
and allow whatever's going on to be
01:05:25
tabled and to express that because I
01:05:27
think when you do hold on and bottle up
01:05:28
it just gets worse yeah oh absolutely it
01:05:31
does that's one thing I've been guilty
01:05:32
of my entire life
01:05:34
are we all like this 100 Main moments
01:05:36
appear where like there might be
01:05:37
something going on at home and I've just
01:05:39
come in you know no one has no idea
01:05:41
what's going on whatsoever yeah it's you
01:05:43
know slowly eating away at me inside
01:05:45
what's going on and it's not until I've
01:05:47
talked to someone that I finally just
01:05:49
felt this you know big release so I've
01:05:50
learned that you know I've never been a
01:05:53
very emotional person myself but I think
01:05:54
it's just getting into this relationship
01:05:56
with tupu he has allowed me to be more
01:05:58
open and honest with my emotions and
01:06:00
feelings and that's 100 helped uh me in
01:06:03
everyday life as well as in rugby and
01:06:05
stuff just to be yeah open with how I'm
01:06:07
feeling and what I'm feeling yeah it's
01:06:09
got a yeah yeah yeah nothing wrong with
01:06:11
them showing a bit of vulnerability yeah
01:06:12
yeah and that's what this team yeah not
01:06:15
only you know that's what this team's
01:06:16
about it's allowed us to be that as well
01:06:18
and they're like yeah it's not just
01:06:20
about rugby yeah oh there's some good
01:06:22
messages there some good takeaways that
01:06:23
I think anyone can Implement into their
01:06:24
own life and I and good on you for
01:06:26
saying you're sleeping
01:06:29
yeah yeah and I feel like with them with
01:06:31
mental health like there's no
01:06:33
one-size-fits on so for some for one
01:06:36
person that might be writing down five
01:06:38
things in the journal at the end of the
01:06:39
day that you're grateful for but it's
01:06:40
not for everyone no not for everyone
01:06:46
oh I'll set my alarm for the last minute
01:06:48
to go up and have breakfast and then go
01:06:49
to training type thing that's that's my
01:06:51
time where I can just like even if I'm
01:06:53
not asleep you know I'm just lying in
01:06:55
bed for a good hour just oh how good is
01:06:57
that getting some me time just to chill
01:06:59
in there like you know might be playing
01:07:00
a game on my phone might be might be
01:07:03
looking at the schedule for what's to
01:07:05
come type thing or you know sending some
01:07:07
calendar reminders like just a bit of me
01:07:09
time you know is for me is crucial yeah
01:07:13
yeah whatever works like it's something
01:07:14
will be like oh you shouldn't have a
01:07:16
screen before bed you should read for 20
01:07:18
minutes but [ __ ] if it's an episode of
01:07:19
Love Island it's gonna make you feel
01:07:21
good go ahead and do it yeah whatever
01:07:24
makes you feel good is what I say is
01:07:26
yeah yeah cool
01:07:28
um that's probably just about a good
01:07:29
place to end it oh one one last thing
01:07:31
one last thing what um what still drives
01:07:34
you now like what motivation it's a good
01:07:36
question you've got a gold you've got to
01:07:38
come with gold you've got an Olympic
01:07:39
gold you've got World titles like what
01:07:41
is it that's an awesome question because
01:07:43
I'm not gonna lie after the Tokyo
01:07:45
Olympics getting that gold
01:07:47
um then slowly trying to get back and
01:07:49
training my motivation wasn't at all
01:07:51
times like it was really really hard to
01:07:53
get motivated to come back to training
01:07:55
again and I was grateful for the team
01:07:57
here they actually extended our leave
01:07:58
period
01:07:59
um even longer to allow to pushed it
01:08:01
back because I think they knew that just
01:08:03
a lot of us just weren't really yeah
01:08:05
mentally like physically we would have
01:08:07
been sweet but mentally we just weren't
01:08:08
ready to come back in and and switch on
01:08:10
I think that's because for a lot of us
01:08:12
we've been here for 11 years now you
01:08:14
know there's good chunk eight to eleven
01:08:16
ten eleven years and so you know when
01:08:18
you're doing the same thing day in day
01:08:21
out it can be very
01:08:23
um mentally challenging that's why you
01:08:24
know trying to find that freshness that
01:08:26
that what's like you said what's the new
01:08:28
thing that's motivating you what's your
01:08:29
why type thing and so for me now it's
01:08:33
just about
01:08:34
um having fun like I've achieved pretty
01:08:37
much everything almost even some
01:08:39
insomnia that I've wanted to achieve in
01:08:40
the space of rugby sevens and so for me
01:08:43
now it's just about really having that
01:08:45
pure and utter joy and fun and what I do
01:08:48
every day I always say the day I don't
01:08:50
is the day I will probably like walk
01:08:52
away from this team environment because
01:08:54
it can't like it's it's not like you
01:08:57
know you only people only see the the
01:08:59
small part you know what we let them see
01:09:01
in regards to us as professional
01:09:02
athletes but there's a whole bunch of
01:09:04
stuff that goes under it and it's it's
01:09:06
challenging like you know from
01:09:08
selections from trainings all that kind
01:09:10
of stuff it's very very challenging time
01:09:12
consuming and you know you do you get
01:09:14
home and sometimes and you're absolutely
01:09:15
stuffed from you know a day of work like
01:09:18
anyone I guess but yeah to do that for
01:09:20
you know constantly push your body to
01:09:22
those limits every single day for 11
01:09:24
years
01:09:25
um
01:09:26
yeah it can it can get to you but I
01:09:28
think for me now is that yeah that pure
01:09:30
fun is what I want to do and then also
01:09:34
for me it's about
01:09:36
putting this team in a better position
01:09:38
than what it was type thing so for me
01:09:40
helping that next Generation come
01:09:42
through and when I do walk away
01:09:44
eventually from the team being like yep
01:09:46
I did all I can to leave this team this
01:09:48
jersey in a better place and that's kind
01:09:50
of two of the main reasons why I'm still
01:09:52
here I still love what I do and to help
01:09:55
that next crew come through and cement
01:09:56
their Mark um on this on this team and
01:09:59
on the world yeah what a legacy
01:10:01
which is Universe the business class
01:10:02
flight status
01:10:13
I am sorry that's crazy money but isn't
01:10:16
it nice for you that when you when you
01:10:17
started it was economy and you you know
01:10:19
it was like an amateur Sport and now
01:10:21
things have progressed I've been through
01:10:23
that growth of women's rugby from their
01:10:25
amateur area now to full-time
01:10:27
professional and it hasn't been easy no
01:10:29
there's been lots of bumps and stuff
01:10:30
along the way but we've grown together
01:10:32
and the sport is in a really really good
01:10:35
place and as long as we can continue to
01:10:36
grow and leave it in a better place for
01:10:38
that next Generation to come through
01:10:39
like little girls now can be like I want
01:10:41
to be a black friend Simmons player I
01:10:43
want to be a black fan because that is
01:10:45
what they want to be and they can do
01:10:47
that now for a job you know it's not
01:10:49
just a hobby yeah that's cool and you
01:10:51
get these girls and they're playing
01:10:52
playing on the beach or on the backyard
01:10:54
and that they can be Tyler or they can
01:10:56
be Ruby or whoever exactly exactly like
01:10:58
they now see us on TV like I think they
01:11:00
say like you know if they're not seen
01:11:02
how can someone you know try and be type
01:11:04
thing and so now we're on TV in the 15s
01:11:07
and the sevens and you know they're able
01:11:09
to see and be like wow I want to be like
01:11:11
them and it's a you know we are Role
01:11:14
Models at the end of the day and you
01:11:15
know we are are aware of them we're
01:11:18
still humid you know we're not perfect
01:11:19
but as long as we can be someone like as
01:11:22
long as I conspire someone like it's one
01:11:24
single person here I'd be so happy
01:11:27
um with that whether they pay rugby or
01:11:28
not you know but just Inspire them in
01:11:30
some simple way would it be just to
01:11:31
pursue a goal that they wanted to that
01:11:33
they had didn't think they could before
01:11:35
yeah well I think you're a pretty good
01:11:36
role model oh thank you you're actually
01:11:39
you're a role model as a baby as well a
01:11:42
model with rules
01:11:43
foreign
01:11:48
best of luck at the Commonwealth Games
01:11:51
another medal where are the medals by
01:11:53
the way last question where are the
01:11:55
middle so the gold don't tell me they're
01:11:57
in a draw somewhere they better not be
01:11:58
not in a drawer the goal of this
01:12:07
thing though that's certainly like thing
01:12:09
they're not actually out on show and
01:12:10
then my gold Commonwealth Games and my
01:12:14
world cup ones are up home with mum and
01:12:16
dad oh nice oh yeah I mean the things to
01:12:19
be proud of aren't they I'm pleased yeah
01:12:21
like I'll 100 bring them out when you
01:12:22
know if people want to see them and
01:12:23
stuff like that but yeah it's a nice
01:12:25
little reminder every now and then like
01:12:26
you know when you see you're like wow
01:12:29
I still can't like it's still I'm still
01:12:31
like wow now
01:12:33
yeah I've done some stuff I did that
01:12:35
like we did that type thing it's crazy I
01:12:38
still pitch myself amazing hey Tyler
01:12:41
Nathan Wong thank you so much for your
01:12:42
time so I really enjoyed it oh thanks
01:12:44
Bob thanks for having me
01:12:46
oh you're still here and you're the best
01:12:49
um thank you so much for listening all
01:12:51
the way through I can't tell you how
01:12:53
much I appreciate it I'm guessing a lot
01:12:55
of people don't make it this far so so
01:12:57
if you have done uh yay yay for you I
01:13:00
really appreciate it no appreciate it do
01:13:02
me a favor if you want if you don't
01:13:04
already do this uh like subscribe follow
01:13:07
do whatever you've got to do wherever
01:13:09
you get your podcast from I'm not sure
01:13:10
how it makes a difference but apparently
01:13:12
it does feel free to give it a rating
01:13:14
like a five star or a review and I think
01:13:17
the best sort of marketing I can do to
01:13:20
spread the word about this podcast and
01:13:21
this Mission we're on is um the word of
01:13:23
mouth stuff so let a friend know if you
01:13:25
think they'll enjoy it or share it on
01:13:27
your social media channels but no
01:13:28
pressure to do any of that only if you
01:13:30
want uh the main thing is I just
01:13:32
appreciate you being here appreciate you
01:13:34
listening to this and I really hope you
01:13:35
got something out of it feel free to
01:13:37
send me any feedback complaints
01:13:39
criticisms whatever you've got any time
01:13:41
I won't necessarily change anything but
01:13:43
I do read it all and I do take it all on
01:13:46
board Instagram's a good way to get a
01:13:48
hold of me slide into my DMs at
01:13:49
domharvey NZ or email me Dom Harvey NZ
01:13:53
gmail.com okay thanks so much I hope to
01:13:56
see you next week
