Rugby: Kaino remembers 'pain' of Park

Jerome Kaino has released an insightful book that delves into his troubled past. Photo / Supplied

Jerome Kaino has played a starring role for the All Blacks at the great rugby stadia of the world but he has only bad memories about Mount Maunganui's Blake Park.

It was there he endured the worst of All Blacks Sevens coach Gordon Tietjens' infamous fitness testing during a period in Kaino's career when he was struggling to establish himself in the All Blacks.

His fitness was suspect in that early part of his career so being sent to a Mount Maunganui boot camp was the way the All Blacks selectors saw to get him fit and toughen him up mentally.

The revelation is one of many fascinating insights in his book Jerome Kaino: My Story released this week.

Kaino, 32, was in Tietjens' squads for two years but never played a tournament so it was all training and pain, without the glory.

"It is a great part of the country but they were very tough times at Blake Park. I don't have many fond memories of that park," Kaino said.

"The Mount is a place where you like to go and enjoy yourself but I was always very nervous every time I went there because you knew you were going to be in a lot of pain. Every time we got back to the hotel Oceanside it was straight to the rooms to sleep before the next session.

"But sevens is a great platform for you to kick on because you really get tested mentally. It is also a great way to learn what is expected of a professional rugby player and I don't think any fifteens side works harder than what Titch has for those sevens boys."

Kaino is candid about his problems with alcohol, which at one stage threatened to derail his career before it had a chance to reach the world class levels epitomised by his starring role at the 2011 Rugby World Cup. "A lot of people in rugby circles were quite aware of the challenges I had and the battle I had," he said. "It was quite important for me to be quite transparent in that aspect and for other people to learn so me being honest was quite important. Not sugar coating anything so that if they were in a similar situation, I could show them how I got through the other end.

"I am quite proud of where I am now and what I have done. I owe it to people who helped me through that dark time in my career. Thankfully there has been a huge change in drinking culture and the game is really professional now to what it was 10 to 12 years ago. Kids who are coming through are a lot younger and there is much more emphasis on recovery and peak performance each week.

"It is definitely a change for the better."

-Jerome Kaino: My Story, Jerome Kaino with Patrick McKendry, Penguin, $40