Tamanivalu refuses to rest ahead of cup campaign
Super Rugby winning wing Seta Tamanivalu has turned down the opportunity for rest ahead of Taranaki’s national provincial championship campaign.
Less than a fortnight since helping the Crusaders beat the Lions in the final in South Africa, Tamanivalu is preparing to line up for Taranaki in their first Mitre 10 Cup match against Waikato at Yarrow Stadium on Saturday.
Noticeably tired after an excessive amount of travel, Tamanivalu’s voice has paid the price for the amount of celebrating the Crusaders enjoyed post the final.
‘‘It’s been such an enjoyable year, the whole thing has been unreal,’’ he said. ‘‘I really enjoyed it but I’m really looking forward to coming back and playing for Taranaki.
‘‘I could have had a rest, I could have had a week off, but I’ve told Coops [Colin Cooper] that I want to play.’’
If included in Taranaki’s squad for the Waikato match it seems probable it would be back in the midfield after playing the Super Rugby season on the wing.
That adjustment took time, he admitted, having never played so wide before.
‘‘I really did want to play centre but I wanted to be a good team man first. It was really challenging because you’re up against some of the best wingers in the world who have played there all their lives but I had a lot of good advice from Leon MacDonald about my role.
‘‘I just made sure I asked a lot of questions and Leon really helped me through.’’
At the Crusaders with nephew and Taranaki team-mate Manasa Mataele, Tamanivalu said he quickly thrived in the environment and under the leadership of so many experienced All Blacks.
While it would be easy to consider the Mitre 10 Cup as a significant step down from the highs of winning Super Rugby, the three test All Black insisted that was not the case.
’’The thing is for me, I see it as my job now. I embrace the challenge, even though it’s tough with not having any time off but i really love what I do.
‘‘If you asked for any better job than playing rugby, you wouldn’t get one, not in my mind.’’
Fast becoming a senior member of the team even at just 25, Tamanivalu was excited about some of the backline talent assembled by the Taranaki coaches.
‘‘Everyone really deserves to be here. It’s exciting, we are young, and it’s good to have so many Fijian boys in the team.’’