Straight Up

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That’s what I heard,” I said. “All the best, bro, like, all the best . . . you’re gonna do amazing over there.” So later that day me and Dad waited for her outside KFC. Dad had a van at the time, so we all had to squash up together on the front seat — Dad, me in the middle and then my sister, Lesh, on the side. Squashed between my dad and my sister: it was the best feeling in the world. Adults had told me it was impossible to get an older sibling, but here she was. My older sister. I couldn’t believe it. I couldn’t say a word I was so nervous, but inside I was wearing the biggest smile. Then Dad said, Do you want to hang out with her without me? Of course! The tauihu is the prow that cuts through the water with puhoro — speed and dexterity — guiding us, leading us through unknown waters. We paddle together, our strength nothing without the others. And in our wake we leave mana. And that means our footprint on this earth, the thing that is left once we’ve passed.

Ruby never pulls out,” says Hireme-Smiler. “Ruby will do everything 110% and I think that's what you learn to love about her. The least she can do, she says, is talk to the workers, and take some selfies with her Rugby World Cup medal. I love how she discussed racism and her insight to the beautiful Somaon culture. I remember my grandad teasing islanders and I’m so glad that this attitude is changing each day, it needs to stop. This book has educated me. I go in there and I literally talk to a 16-year-old who’s trying to help his family. He’s studying to be with Downer, on the road programme. You know, he might be struggling with work and family things.A number of Tui’s teammates lost family members in the months prior to the games, adding emotional strain to an already gruelling lead-up period. Ruby is such an inspiration lady and a central reason why the world fell in love with her and her fellow sevens sisters. They are breaking down so may glass ceilings on the old boys rugby, not just in New Zealand but in the world. She is key player who said refused to let the old boys club tell her that women’s ruby doesn’t matter, that they would never win any tournaments, medal or world cups and especially she wasn’t not listening when they told her that women’s rugby wouldn’t sell out Eden Park. I mean she only wrote the books because she went to a bookstore and saw that there was only ONE book about a sportswomen (and none from a Samoan I bet). She doesn’t like to be told she can’t do something because of her gender or ethnicity and I love that. I guess in one long night of tossing up between do we call help, are we loyal to the friend, how do we help dad, I'm scared… all those emotions and perspectives [combined] in one harrowing experience." Some people might find that weird. But if you walk into our team - first of all, we’re a rugby team, everybody chants after they win. You look at any clubroom. It’s a common thing. Of course, Dad’s an alcoholic, and she was young, so how we bonded was through drinking. I didn’t have the skills to say to her, I don’t need to do this. Honestly, I loved her so much, we could have just sat in a room doing nothing and I would have been happy. But I guess Dad and her were also trying to figure out their relationship, and so drinking was what we all ended up doing.

After her jaunt in the US, would she ever be tempted to play in England’s top division, Premiership Women’s Rugby? “I talked to ‘Scaz’ [Emily Scarratt] at the World Rugby Awards last year, chatting about money and that,” Tui says cryptically. “England crossed my mind. It sounds fun.”

WHAT'S HAPPENING

She’s spoken to some players who think they have given up too early; others perhaps held on for too long. A theme that constantly arises with Tui is her purpose. She feels a deep sense of responsibility – in life, relationships, rugby and commercial partnerships. And Dad? “He’s not as much of an avid reader as Mum, but he’s probably been more open than Mum about his situation. When I was talking to him, I was like, ‘I believe alcoholism in this country is a lot more rife than is talked about or we would like to believe, or is represented anywhere really’. Sometimes a cliche but mostly an inspiration. We are going to give tis book away to young people doing the Award in our Christmas giveaways.