All Black Lomu in the Green
Almost eight years have passed since the unstoppable juggernaut sent a tackling Rory Underwood into orbit and reduced Will Carling to a confused wreck. Much has changed since then, but the effect Lomu has on the general public remains the same. Despite a debilitating illness and dip in form, he is still the instantly recognisable face of rugby.
These days, Lomu is more comfortable in the camera lens. The most marketable tuft in world sport was in town to promote a new Ballygowan product, but it took five minutes to realise eight years of superstardom hasn’t corroded any of the affability or decency Kiwis are renowned for.
“It has taken a while to sort of get used to being recognised everywhere. I always try to show people the same respect they show me, whenever I get stopped in the street. I am not going to take bodyguards wherever I walk in the streets. You just have to learn to appreciate people and respect them like they respect you.”
While in the past he mightn’t have always been easy with the profile his immense natural gifts afforded him, Lomu, in recent years, has understood the benefits. Growing up in the rough neighbourhoods of South Auckland, Lomu has often spoken of how rugby saved him from the gangs made famous (if not romanticised somewhat) by those fantastic films Once Were Warriors and What Became of the Broken-Hearted.
Last month, he launched the “Brothers, not Colours” campaign in New Zealand. And a lot of his time away from the rugby field, these days, is taken up with ensuring troubled kids veer away from gangs.
“It is something I grew up with in South Auckland, people from different ethnic backgrounds fighting and killing each other on the streets. And when you are exposed to that from a young age, it does affect you. With rugby, which is the only other thing I have ever known, you can go out and kick the crap out of each other for eighty minutes and still go for a couple of pints afterwards.
“With our campaign, we are trying to show we mightn’t be the same colour, mightn’t be from the same family, but we can still get along. There is no reason why we should be fighting each other. I have lost relatives, people close to me, because of the gang fights and they are a serious social issue in New Zealand for a long time. We want to show these young kids that they don’t have to join gangs because their brothers did, they are other ways to channel their aggression.”
Lomu is a regular speaker at some of New Zealand’s more notorious schools and is enjoying the role as one of the public faces of bringing peace and harmony to some of the country’s more violence-blighted areas. “I do go to schools, particularly in troubled areas, talk to troubled kids, it is about showing these kids there are other ways to better yourself than through violence. I hope these kids will look at people like myself and see what I achieved and see that it can be done.”
Lomu has changed over the past few years. His battle with nephrotic syndrome, a serious kidney disorder, has made the star more aware of his short career span, but the struggle with the disease is an everyday thing.
“Well, it is more controlled now, it is not as bad as it was a few years ago. I am down to three tablets a day, whereas a couple of years ago, it was 21. But, it is always going to be there. It is just like getting up in the morning and brushing your teeth, I will always have to take the medication.”
Like the image of Lomu is always going to be there. A man who re-defined wing play in rugby, re-defined the way coaches look at wingers (Ireland’s Shane Horgan is a prime example). Even in flesh, he resembles a comic-book super-hero. It is what convinced Ballygowan to part with a serious amount of cash to being him to these shores (they ain’t telling how much).
His frame is legendary, 77 inches of tightly-packed of muscle and sinew. As is his demeanour, typical Kiwi who goes happy and lucky.
He transcended his sport in the way Ali, Michael Jordan and Carl Lewis did before him. You don’t necessarily have to be the best to do that, just have the quality to captivate people. And although Doug Howlett has replaced him as the All-Black poster boy, Lomu is still its image. As for the World Cup this Autumn: “I don’t think it matters that the cup is not going to be played in New Zealand. In fact, the only way it is going to affect us is that there will be no pressure to win our home games. But, I have a lot of relatives in Australia, so does most of the team, so there will be plenty of Kiwis supporting us there.”
While it may seem inconceivable to the casual rugby fan, Lomu realises that he has to prove himself during the Super 12 season to get a place.
Having watched Ireland down under last summer, how does he rate their prospects? “They are a good team. And they seem in fine shape now. It wasn’t that much of a surprise that they beat Australia, Irish teams are always very dogged and they have some good players.”
One of whom, of course, is Brian O’Driscoll. “I think everyone in world rugby knows what Brian is capable of now, he is one of Ireland’s key players and would be one of the top two midfielders in the world. I mean, Ireland came down last year and showed how competitive they are. It has progressed a lot from the last World Cup and they will be a team to watch.”
However, most eyes were watching Lomu yesterday. The biggest phenomenon the world of rugby has ever known.
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