SBW: I’d have mulled switch to Samoa after 2015 RWC

The cross-code star talks to Paul Cully about what coaches must ‘get’ about Pasifika/Ma¯ ori players, and how rugby’s eligibility change came too late for him.

W‘‘‘We all the know the politics in sport, especially in the islands, but it’s a step in the right direction.’’’ SONNY BILL WILLIAMS

orld Rugby’s eligibility rule change came too late for Sonny Bill Williams and it may have cost the code the chance to see the former All Black wear the blue of Manu Samoa at the 2019 World Cup in Japan.

Williams is now 36 and about to embark on the final chapter of his sporting career as he ‘‘scratches the itch’’ to give boxing a proper crack.

But Williams is more than a sportsman these days. After hanging up the boots he moved into the commentary box with broadcaster Stan in Australia, and away from the industry entirely he has used his platform to advocate on behalf of asylum seekers.

He’s also a champion for Pasifika. In an interview with Sunday News from Sydney, Williams reiterated his call that there needed to be more Pasifika/Ma¯ ori coaches at the

All Blacks level, and welcomed Moana Pasifika’s introduction into Super Rugby with an emphatic ‘‘about time’’.

It naturally begs the question: had World Rugby’s new eligibility rules been in place during his All Blacks career, would he have entertained exiting the black jersey after the 2015 RWC – his second – with a view to playing for Manu Samoa four years later?

‘‘One hundred per cent,’’ Williams said. ‘‘I kind of did it [representing Samoa] but going back to Tana [Umaga] and what he was trying to achieve at the Blues.

‘‘Obviously, we didn’t achieve everything we wanted to, but I was in that space that I was well aware of what we could represent and what we could achieve as Polynesians and

Ma¯ ori. So, yes, I definitely would have entertained that idea.’’

Granted, it’s only a hypothetical question, but it

WOULD be a mistake to see the ANSWER as meaningless. Williams’ standing with Pasifika players on both sides of the Tasman remains high and his intense support for Pasifika rugby is in part fuelled by a sense of injustice that rugby politics have, for too long,

prevented the island nations from being fairly represented on the big stage.

‘‘No-one wants to see the All Blacks beating Tonga by 100 points, because that’s not a true representation of the competitiveness and the quality of players that Tonga has produced,’’ Williams said. ‘‘If we had more competitive game, more high-profile players playing in them, then you’d get more money in the game. We all the know the politics in sport, especially in the islands, but it’s a step in the right direction.

‘‘I think it was the given World Cup in France [in 2007], where Fiji just looked unbelievable [they beat Wales to qualify for the quarterfinal before losing to eventual winner South Africa].

‘‘For me, that was a representation of what island footy is about. ‘‘

Then there is the issue of Pasifika/Ma¯ ori in the coaching ranks at the All Blacks level. In one of last acts as an All Black, Williams raised the subject in a press conference. He went back to it in his book You Can’t Stop the Sun from Shining, and when Stuff mentioned it in relation to Clayton McMillan’s coaching philosophy of ‘treat everyone the same but different’, it relit the fire in Williams.

‘‘The best coaches I’ve had had that personal touch,’’ Williams, said. ‘‘They’re people people. There are 10 different guys in the room from different ethnicities who are playing to 90-95 per cent of their capacity each weekend.

‘‘Talk about the islanders, for example. When we give, we give our whole heart and soul. But if we feel like something’s not there or something is not right, we will pull back.

‘‘A lot of these coaches need to understand that. The reason I was pushing for Polynesian or Ma¯ ori coaches in the All Blacks, is because there’s so many of us playing for them.

‘‘If you need that 90-95 per cent performance every week, you need them to believe in what you’re doing, to believe in what you are as a man.

‘‘I know from experience that we respect the man first and foremost, and then what he has to offer as a coach. A lot of the great coaches that I’ve been coached by understand this, especially when it comes to islanders.’’

Moana Pasifika represent another step forward for Pasifika players. No-one is kidding themselves about the challenges they face in Super Rugby, but Williams sees their inclusion as part of the bigger picture.

‘‘About time,’’ he said. ‘‘I don’t understand the politics of rugby, and I understand there were a couple of teams vying for that spot [Moana Pasifika and Kanaloa Hawaii], but it’s just great to see.

‘‘It’s just great to see a team from the Pacific Islands being pushed into that space.

‘‘You know, it’s been a long time coming.

‘‘We represent so much on the field, but we lack that representation off it.

‘‘It’s a changing of the times, hopefully, and God willing inshallah we can see many more things like this.’’