Fijian born Timoci “the difference” Tavatavanawai said it was unreal making his debut into Test rugby last night for the All Blacks as his mother and two younger brothers also came to see him play.
The All Blacks thumped France 43-17 to seal the series.
Timoci Tavatavanawai’s mother and two of his eight siblings made a last-minute trip from Fiji to watch the Highlanders powerhouse make his All Blacks debut on Saturday.
He had left his large family behind to pursue a better life in New Zealand as a teenager.
After being named on the bench on Thursday, New Zealand Rugby pulled some strings to help get Tavatavanawai’s family to Wellington for the game.
Tavatavanawai who is All Black number 1228 says it was also a special moment.
He says he was so high with excitement that he just had to calm himself down, just nail what the team expects him to do, and that is just to carry the ball and do his core role.
The winger says the All Blacks environment is a lot different from super rugby as they need to concentrate on the basics, nail what they expect him to do.
Tavatavanawai admits he still has a lot to learn and is eager to keep on growing from that.
The occasion clearly meant a lot to the 27-year-old as he was overcome with emotion during the singing of the New Zealand national anthem.
Source: stuff.co
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