by Israel Folau
‘Um, well, those other kids are bored,’ Sione said, gesturing to the boys sitting at the fence. ‘They’re sitting out.’
Daniel wiped the sweat off his forehead. ‘I reckon they can’t handle the pressure.’
‘I think you’re right,’ Sione agreed. ‘It’s just that, well, it’s their first-ever game. Maybe we should let them have more of a go at playing. You know, give them a slice of the action.’
Daniel pulled a face. ‘You can’t go soft on them just because they’re new. They have to learn the game right from the beginning. I’m showing them how to play. That’s what Izzy always tells me – lead by example. If they don’t want to follow or join in, then that’s their problem.’
Sione couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He watched Daniel walk away and could feel the frustration rising within him. ‘But we’re not here to win,’ he yelled at Daniel’s back. ‘We’re here to make sure these guys want to play rugby again another day.’
Daniel hesitated, his shoulders sinking, and Sione couldn’t help but feel guilty. He understood how Daniel found it difficult to play a game of touch as simply a fun game and not see it as a challenge to compete or a struggle to win. But then he saw Daniel change course and jog over to the kids sitting out and urge them to get on the field. Sione watched him throw a ball to one of them and smiled. Maybe Daniel could change after all.
Ever since Sione had accidentally stumbled upon Izzy’s morning fitness sessions, he had woken up early every day to join in. Most of the other boys knew about the sessions by now, but no other Valley player seemed willing to brave the early start. Sione didn’t mind. Not only did he get in extra training before his hearty breakfast each morning, it meant that he had one-on-one time with his hero every single day. It was a chance to chat about things – and to listen to his advice.
After a bout of long runs interspersed with sprints, Izzy and Sione settled down to stretch on the grass in a small park next to the camp site. Sione had been anxious to tell Izzy about Daniel’s attitude during the game of touch the day before but had kept his mouth closed.
‘What’s up, Sione?’ Izzy asked.
Sione’s head snapped up in surprise. ‘What do you mean?’
‘You’re so quiet. Is something bothering you?’
Sione shook his head. He wanted to talk about it, but he also didn’t want to make Daniel sound mean or get him in trouble. Besides, the second half of the game had gone well enough.
‘Sometimes it helps to talk,’ Izzy added. ‘Even when you aren’t talking about anything in particular, it can help to get something off your chest and clear your mind.’
‘I don’t know,’ Sione said, shrugging his shoulders. ‘It’s just that I was really upset yesterday. Some of our players didn’t let the visiting kids have a proper go. It was embarrassing how our guys wanted to win the game more than help the local boys to learn it.’
‘Thanks for standing up for having fun,’ Izzy said with a smile. ‘It’s hard juggling priorities in sport. You’d be surprised what motivates some players to put on their boots!’
‘Like what?’ Sione asked, his brows creasing.
‘Well, for some it’s about money or being famous,’ Izzy replied. ‘For others it’s all about winning. Some players feel a huge pressure to perform. I decided it’s good to want to be great, but above all else you need to want to enjoy yourself.’
Sione nodded, letting it sink in. ‘I want to win and I want to do well, too. But it’s different. I’m not really thinking about the future or how good I want to be, I’m just focused on the game I’m playing at that moment.’
‘I think that’s a good way to be,’ Izzy said. ‘Come on, let’s go have fun of a different kind – I’m starving!’
Sione laughed and stood up. He and Izzy were gathering their things when they spotted two boys appear from between the trees that circled the camp site. They were carrying fishing equipment: a rod, a net and some kind of spear with two or three sharpened spikes at the top end. Sione recognised the taller boy from the day before, but the one with the spear was new to him.
The taller boy pointed at them and said something to his friend. They called out hello and jogged over, their bare feet spraying up dust from the sandy grass as they ran.
‘You the city blokes?’ the smaller boy asked.
Izzy and Sione nodded and said hello.
The taller boy laughed and nudged his friend. ‘Mate, that’s Izzy Folau!’ he said.
‘Oh,’ said the shorter boy. He clearly had no idea who Izzy was.
‘He plays with the Wallabies,’ said the taller boy.
‘You play with wallabies?’ shrieked the kid holding the spear.
Izzy laughed heartily. ‘Not the animal, the rugby team!’
The boy laughed. ‘Oh, I get it.’
‘My name’s Jason,’ said the first boy. ‘Thanks for yesterday, it was fun.’
‘Thank you for coming,’ Izzy replied.
‘My name is Kev. I couldn’t come yesterday,’ said the other boy. ‘I was going to but my mum needed help.’
‘That’s no problem,’ Izzy said.
‘Hey, we were doing the catching and throwing with you, right?’ Jason asked Sione. ‘That was a really fun session.’
Sione grinned. ‘Thanks.’
Jason scooped up a rugby ball Izzy had brought. ‘Kev,’ he called, running backwards, ‘I learnt how to kick a rugby ball – watch!’
He expertly kicked the ball directly at Sione’s chest despite being barefooted.
‘Cool! Can I try?’ Kev asked.
‘Sure thing.’ Sione passed the ball to him.
Kev ran backwards as Jason had done and kicked it towards Sione, before clutching his foot and squealing. ‘That ball’s a lot bigger than I’m used to,’ he said, laughing and rolling on the ground. ‘And pointier!’
Izzy and Jason laughed too. ‘Don’t drop-punt it,’ Jason explained. ‘In rugby you lift your leg and kick the ball out of the air.’
‘Ohhhhh,’ Kev said, still rubbing his foot.
‘You learnt how to kick from Daniel, right?’ Izzy asked, and Jason nodded in reply.
Daniel taught them that? Sione thought, feeling very proud of his friend.
‘I hate to leave the party, but I have to round up the troops,’ Izzy said. ‘Have fun, guys. Sione, don’t forget we have breakfast in fifteen minutes.’
Sione nodded as he caught a high ball from Jason. ‘Yep, I’ll be there!’ he called.
Once Izzy jogged off, the three boys formed a triangle and began kicking the ball to each other.
‘Oh! I know who he is now,’ Kev cried suddenly, ‘it’s Izzy Folau!’
Sione and Jason doubled over in laughter.
‘What? He played AFL for a bit,’ Kev said.
‘Yeah, we know, brainiac!’ Jason said, shaking his head.
Sione picked up the ball and threw it to Kev.
‘What’s it like down south?’ Jason asked.
‘It’s very different,’ Sione said. ‘In some ways, anyway. It looks different, it feels different, but the people are pretty much the same.’
‘It’s really busy there, huh?’ Kev said.
Sione shrugged. ‘I guess.’
He wasn’t sure what Kev meant by that. He looked at the boys’ fishing gear in a bundle on the ground. He had never been fishing before. He looked at the boys’ bare feet. Maybe life is busier back home, he thought.
Kev noticed Sione looking at their feet. ‘Don’t worry, we aren’t going fishing near any crocs,’ he joked.
‘Oh,’ Sione said in surprise. He hadn’t even imagined that fishing could be so dangerous.
‘So, how long are you here for?’ Jason asked.
‘Just a couple more days. We have practice matches lined up for today and tomorrow, then we head to Sydney for the State Championships.’
Jason raised his eyebrows, impressed. ‘You gonna win?’
‘I hope so,’ Sione replied, grinning.
‘You’ll win,’ Jason said confidently. ‘You’re good.’
Sione laughed, wondering what Jason was basing that on.
Kev’s stomach grumbled, interrupting them. ‘Ugh, I’m starving,’ he said, picking up his rod and bucket.
Sione’s stomach gurgled at the thought of food. ‘I should probably get back, too, before the food disappears.’
As they said goodbye, Jason pointed to the far end of the park, near some scrub. ‘Check it out! A jabiru,’ he said.
Sione saw a large, white bird with spindly legs was walking around. Occasionally it tickled the ground with its long, curvy black beak.
‘That’s good luck for your game today,’ Kev said.
‘What makes you think that?’ Sione asked.
‘It’s both of our totems,’ the two boys said in unison.
Sione wrinkled his nose. ‘What’s a totem?’
‘For our people,’ Jason said, ‘everyone has an animal totem. It’s the symbol of you. It is sort of like who you are.’
Sione wasn’t totally sure he understood. He stared, watching the long-legged jabiru, and decided it was an elegant bird. He liked it.
‘We’re both jabirus,’ Kev added. ‘That’s how we became best friends.’
‘That’s cool,’ Sione said. He wished he had a totem.
‘I guess we’ll see you at the game later,’ Jason said, picking up the rest of the fishing gear.
Sione smiled. ‘You’re playing?’
‘Of course!’ Jason replied. ‘I might get Kev to come along, too.’
The three boys said their goodbyes and Sione gathered up his water bottle and towel to head back to the camp site. He was glad that he’d bumped into Jason and Kev. Just weeks ago he would have been too shy to talk to them. He had almost been too shy to climb onto the tour bus back home. But since being on this tour, Sione had changed a lot. He was more open and willing to put himself in new situations. It was still scary, but he had made many new friends because of it.
Sione stood and watched Jason and Kev disappear into another thicket of trees on their way to the river, before turning to walk back to the camp site.
‘We’re not here to win, we’re here to have fun.’ Those words went round and round in Daniel’s mind, like a broken record.
It confused Daniel to have such thoughts. They were so unlike the messages he was used to receiving from his school coach and, most especially, his dad.
What was it Dad had said before the tour? Daniel thought. He frowned, trying to remember. You don’t need to be taught how to have fun … Winning is fun.
‘Hey, Daniel! Heads up!’
Daniel glanced up and immediately ducked out of the way of the incoming football.
‘Wow, thanks for the warning,’ he said to Harrison. ‘That was a close one.’
‘No probs, but remember you’re supposed to catch the ball, not headbutt it!’
Daniel laughed. A light training session had been organised by Izzy for after breakfast, but since waking up that morning, Daniel had been deep in thought. He was finding it hard to concentrate on what was going on around him.
Focus. That used to be my motto, he berated himself. What’s wrong with me? Why can’t I concentrate? He thought about his dad’s words once again. Surely it was possible to have fun without winning?
Daniel had talked himself into thinking this game against all-comers would be okay, but when some of the players showed up to the ground without any kit and one boy without any kind of footwear at all, his worries about the match returned. It was clear to Daniel which members of the opposing team were regular players and which were new to the game.
‘What is this?’ Jake asked him and Adam as they watched the other team warm up. ‘This will be a walk in the park. I almost feel bad playing them.’
‘It’s not exactly going to get us match-fit for the Champs,’ Adam added.
Daniel sighed. This is what he had been trying to tell everyone all along. He thought back to what Izzy had said to him yesterday and decided to bite his tongue.
‘Today isn’t about us,’ he said, toeing the line. ‘It’s about introducing rugby to the local community and having some fun.’
Jake and Adam looked at him with raised eyebrows.
‘I mean, apparently,’ Daniel added.
‘All right, everyone,’ Izzy began, gesturing for the Valley boys to gather around him. ‘Today is another scorcher, so please drink plenty of water. I want to get this out in the open from that start – yes, we will probably win today, but that’s not the point. I’m not even going to take score.’
The Valley boys looked at one another, surprised by this news.
Daniel rolled his eyes. What is even the point? he thought.
‘Today,’ Izzy continued, ‘is about giving these local kids some enthusiasm for the game and to get our legs turning over. We haven’t put in much of an on-field effort since we arrived, and I don’t want the game against the Pythons tomorrow evening to come as a shock.’
Izzy then called out the bench for the start of the game: Derek, Ty, Kian, Sean and Kane. Adam was starting in the second row to give his ankle its first proper test since his injury. TJ was at fullback, Sione and Steven on the wings.
Before kick-off, the opposing coach told both teams that, with yesterday’s skills camp and their training session that morning, every player on his team was aware of the basics.
‘But,’ he said to Valley, ‘if any rule is forgotten or someone isn’t sure what they are doing, we will stop the play when possible and teach them. I really want to thank the Valley team for playing us today and for their patience as some of us learn the rules.’
‘That’s no problem at all,’ Izzy said on Valley’s behalf. ‘We will be learning some things as well – in particular how to deal with this heat!’
The boys laughed.
Then, with the speeches over, the two teams made their way to their halves. Both coaches were going to share the refereeing duties for the game. Izzy, standing in the centre, held up his hand and blew his whistle, signalling to the locals to kick off.
Daniel watched as TJ gathered the kick. It was a pretty good one, deep in their half. He ran with it, getting to about ten metres from the halfway line before he was tackled by two defenders.
Harrison ran up behind him. TJ was able to place the ball on the ground for him to gather and pass it away. Harrison did so, passing the ball to Daniel.
Usually, Daniel would have scanned the field ahead of him, looking for a weak spot in the defensive line to take advantage of, either by running through it or by kicking a grubber into it. Today, however, he received the ball and jogged straight into a tackler. Daniel let himself get tackled, landing softly on the grass and placing the ball for Harrison once again.
A play or two afterwards, the ball landed in Daniel’s hands again. They weren’t making any ground despite having had the ball for a while, so he kicked it ahead. Instead of aiming for touch or kicking for distance, he popped it up high for the opposition to catch easily. Their fullback did so and then took the ball for a run.
As the fullback approached the line of Valley defenders, he passed the ball to another player. The team found a hole between Eric and Joseph, and one of their players made it through. Valley was now chasing. There was no one between the player in possession and the tryline thirty-five metres away.
Daniel gave chase, but when he normally would have run hard – as if the entire world depended upon him catching the player with the ball – today he jogged, letting the boy get away and score between the posts.
The local team cheered. Their coach pumped his fist and gave high fives all around. Daniel stood with his hands on his hips and his head down. He had done his job. He had helped them have fun. They were enjoying themselves.
So why do I feel so terrible? he thought.
‘What was that?’ Jake yelled at him.
‘Yeah, it was like you weren’t even trying,’ Tezza added.
Da
niel noticed Adam shaking his head in his direction, and Sione running over from the wing.
‘It’s all right,’ Sione told everyone, ‘we’ll get the ball back. It’s only five points.’
Daniel knew Sione was trying to defend him, but he wasn’t used to having his performance criticised. He didn’t like being the one that the others pointed their fingers at, the one everyone blamed for their team losing.
The local team’s kicker missed the conversion kick from straight in front, but it did nothing to dampen their spirits. They were still chuffed about the try.
I could’ve made that kick in my sleep, Daniel thought, gritting his teeth. This is a hopeless team and they’re winning. He undid his headgear and threw it on the ground so hard it bounced, then stormed off the field.
‘Daniel!’ Izzy called. ‘Jeremy, put Derek on,’ he directed before running after Daniel. When Izzy finally caught up to him, he placed a hand on his back. ‘Daniel, are you okay?’ he asked. ‘What’s wrong?’
‘I can’t do this,’ Daniel shouted. He ran his hands through his hair, fighting the urge to cry.
‘Do what, Daniel? What can’t you do?’
‘This! How are you supposed to help them to have fun without throwing the match? I want them to have fun but it feels so wrong to play badly on purpose!’
Izzy sighed. ‘You’re a good kid, Daniel. I wish everyone had your passion to do well and to look out for others.’
Daniel took a few slow, calming breaths to help him get his words out. ‘But what am I supposed to do? This feels like the opposite of what I should be doing.’
‘You’re allowed to win,’ Izzy said. ‘It’s just how you win. Play hard, do your regular thing.’
‘Really?’ Daniel said.
‘Of course,’ Izzy answered, handing Daniel his headgear. ‘You just have to remember that these boys aren’t as experienced as you, and perhaps laughing in their face isn’t the most encouraging thing to do after scoring a try. They need to be guided through how to play and what the best choice to make in each situation might be, but they don’t need to be packed in cottonwool.’