Eroni Clarke has faced countless high-pressure moments in his career, but none quite like secretly preparing to sing the New Zealand national anthem before the opening Bledisloe Cup test.
He had to keep it a secret from his family, including his son, All Black Caleb Clarke, for two weeks.
Therewere emotional scenes at Eden Park on Saturday before the All Blacks hosted the Wallabies when Clarke started belting out God Defend New Zealand, and it wasn’t until the English verse when his son realised who was singing, reducing him to tears.
The pair had a brief exchange prior to the haka and then Clarke missed his son scoring the opening try of the test after three minutes, which the All Blacks went on to win 33-24 to retain the Bledisloe Cup.
Clarke, who works as a Pasifika engagement manager at New Zealand Rugby, was approached by the events team and asked him if he’d be interested in singing, recalling his appearance on The Masked Singer in 2022.
After attending a sound check before the South Africa test at Eden Park, he was then asked if he would consider doing it against the Wallabies – and Clarke jumped at the opportunity.
Speaking to Jason Pine on Newstalk ZB’s SportsTalk, Clarke said he nearly blew his cover on a few occasions trying to keep the secret from his family.
Caleb Clarke (centre) pictured as his father and ex-All Black Eroni Clarke sings the national anthem. Photo / Photosport
“I wanted to surprise my wife, my kids and my wider family,” Clarke said. “From a player’s perspective, I just wanted Caleb to focus on the game.
“I didn’t want it hanging over him that his dad was going to be singing the anthem or have him thinking about that while he was warming up. So, I thought, ‘I’ll surprise him and let him focus on that.’
“It was quite a challenge, practising the national anthem at home in little bits and pieces. I nearly blew my cover a couple of times.”
In typical Auckland fashion, Clarke was late because of the traffic and had to be whisked away from his family upon arriving, which also nearly blew his cover.
Once on the field, the 56-year-old, who played 24 matches for the All Blacks during his career, tried to stay hidden to ensure his son didn’t see him.
“I look back to my playing days and I’m a wreck off the field, but when I’m on the field and it’s kickoff, I’m at my calmest,” Clarke said.
“As we got through the song, I didn’t know how Caleb was reacting, but I really loved hearing the Eden Park crowd singing our national anthem so beautifully.
“I went to walk off, but I just thought to turn to my right, there he was walking towards me, tears in his eyes.
“He goes, ‘you didn’t tell me, dad’. And I turned to him and said: ‘That’s right, son. Now it’s your turn. Go and play. Give it your best’.”
Clarke said he has been inundated with messages since the occasion and he even felt his phone going off while singing.
He then had to walk back to his seat in the corporate area, where he was hosting some Pasifika sponsors, and in that time he missed the opening try of the game, scored by his son in his first test of the year.
“I just thought, wow, that couldn’t have been scripted any better.”
Victory for the All Blacks saw them lock away the Bledisloe Cup for a 23rd consecutive year. They face the Wallabies again in Perth on Saturday in their final match of the Rugby Championship.
Ben Francis is an Auckland-based reporter for the New Zealand Herald who covers breaking sports news.
