INTERVIEW

TAI L AVEA – MASTERING DISASTER

In these uncertain times one thing that’s as close to a sure thing as sport can ever provide is that good coaches know how to turn disaster into triumph. JON RAWLINSON explains.

Pakuranga’s Saint Kentigern College has become well known for its on-field success, with regards to rugby. However, as one of the school’s past pupils and former First XV coach, Tai Lavea, recalls, the school has not always been on top of its game.

“When I started [coaching Saint Kents’] in 2009, the team was the laughing stock of First XV rugby; [rebuilding] takes time. By the time I left, in February 2018, we had won the 1A title five times (between 2011 and 2017) and the national title once (2012). I guess you could say we did manage to turn things around.” Over recent years, private schools have received flak for winning by ‘player poaching’. And yet, speaking as someone who some would say was ‘poached’ himself, Tai points out that there are two sides to this story.

“[Attending a private school] is a very fortunate position to be in for the families as well as the students. For me, it was tough to adapt – academically and culturally as well as sporting-wise – but it was a fantastic opportunity,” he says. “Scholarships provide huge opportunities, and not just in sport. Youngsters can benefit from the best possible education, so [scholarships] don’t just develop professional sportspeople, they’re about giving young people strong foundations [from which] to succeed in life.”

It must be noted that, with the exception of international level, professional sports teams are not restricted to drawing from home-grown talent. And, as private schools cover no set zone, everyone and anyone could be considered local.

Now coaching Counties Manukau Steelers, Tai is set on helping the union, despite a slow start, recover from its relegation to the Mitre 10 Cup Championship last season.

“There’s a lot of groundwork to be done. Winning will be a by-product of setting all that in place. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t coach to lose and I hate losing, but you have to have the right processes in place first,” he says.

Along with his twin, Tasesa (the current Saint Kents First XV coach), Tai grew up in South Auckland before attending Saint Kents, initially on cricket scholarships. While his professional playing career began and ended with Brisbane North, a feeder team for the NRL’s Melbourne Storm, Tasesa

“There’s a lot of groundwork to be done. Winning will be a by-product of setting all that in place. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t coach to lose and I hate losing, but you have to have the right processes in place first.”

played professionally for more than 12 years, from the Storm and the Kiwis in rugby league, to Auckland, the Blues, Chiefs, Clermont, Sale and Samoa in rugby union.

“Honestly, it never bothered me at all,” Tai remarks regarding his brother’s success. “I was happy for him and I was on my own journey, trying to figure out what I wanted to do.

“After I finished playing, I became sports coordinator at Aorere College [in Papatoetoe]; I then took over as the First XV coach. I was at Aorere for about five years. We won the B grade competition and were promoted to 1A. We then played Saint Kents, and beat them. Saint Kents’ team manager at the time, Neil Ritchie, approached me and asked if I would be interested in a position.”

While some become coaches after lengthy playing careers, others learn the trade from the grassroots up.

“I know a lot of coaches who’ve had long playing careers; they use a lot of tools they developed from their playing days, but I don’t think I’d been around professional sport long enough to do that,” Tai says. “It meant I was working with a blank canvas and just had to learn through experience. I probably thought I was a good coach when I first started but I was very green. That said, coaching is all about connecting with people, which I think I am [naturally] good at.”

Tai left his coaching role at Saint Kents to become an assistant coach to Alama Ieremia at Auckland Rugby. As at college level, his knack for transforming failure into success became even more apparent during the 2018 Mitre 10 Cup.

“It was a huge step up for me [and] I learned a lot working

Tai Lavea

Richard Spranger, courtesy of Counties Manukau RFU

with a coaching team which [also] included Graham Henry and Filo Tiatia. There had been so much disappointment from the previous season but the players, as well as the coaches, were all hugely motivated to earn the respect of the Auckland community.”

Motivation paid off – after narrowly avoiding relegation to the Championship in 2017, Auckland won the Premiership the following year. Not one to shy away from a challenge, Tai is now tasked with helping ensure Counties Manukau returns to the Premiership as soon as possible.