Bryce Heem of Toulon looks to offload the ball during the European Rugby Challenge Cup semifinal match between Toulon and Leicester Tigers. Photo / Getty Images
Bryce Heem of Toulon looks to offload the ball during the European Rugby Challenge Cup semifinal match between Toulon and Leicester Tigers. Photo / Getty Images
Bryce Heem has arrived home with a unique perspective as he prepares to make his earlier than expected Blues debut.
Heem is thankful to be back with family, thankful to be done with isolation, and ready to repay the faith shown by his former Tasman turned Blues coach, Leon MacDonald,against the Crusaders at Eden Park this weekend.
Local rugby fans will recall Heem as an electric outside back who represented the Chiefs during his last New Zealand season and the national sevens team for four years – claiming a Commonwealth Games silver medal in 2014.
Since leaving New Zealand in 2015 Heem spent five-and-a-half years abroad - four with the Worcester Warriors in England, then the past 18 months with Toulon in the south of France - before making the decision to move home without any guarantees he could continue his career here.
"When I decided to leave France I didn't have anything lined up," the 32-year-old said as he linked with the Blues for the first time last week. "My wife and I had been talking about coming home for a while but the main thing is someone in the family got sick so being able to help out was the drawcard.
"I was lucky that I gave Leon a message and things worked out. It's a perfect scenario for me to be home, close to family and have a job."
In sport, as in life, timing is everything. The Blues initially chased Pumas midfielder Santiago Chocobares as the final member of their 2021 squad but when that pursuit fell through, Heem's versatility and experience proved the perfect fit for a squad light on centre and fullback options.
"Chocobares was a 13 so I imagine I'll cover more 13/wing which I feel comfortable about," Heem said. "I saw the Blues play last season and they've got lots of explosive power and skills all over the park.
"Coming in here I got an awesome welcome - they really made me feel at home. They know where they want to go and they've got plans to do it so it's exciting for me to try to help achieve that goal and share my experience from overseas.
"I played with Liam Messam at the Chiefs and Toulon and when I said I was playing for the Blues he said, 'Sorry, I can't support that'. Otherwise I haven't had too much grief."
While Heem savoured his time in Europe, the backend of his stay in France was consumed by the Covid-19 pandemic and months of stringent lockdown measures.
France is fast closing in on four million confirmed Covid cases and has suffered more than 88,000 deaths. Only 26 people have died in New Zealand after catching the virus.
Living through the height of the pandemic in Europe enhanced Heem's appreciation for home comforts.
"It's pretty tough for foreigners that are away from family. Life overseas is completely different too. You can't travel, you can't do any of the stuff you initially moved over to do.
"In terms of the state of the world it's completely different coming home. New Zealand has worked hard to get to the level it's at. It's a privileged position the country is in – yeah, there's still a few outbreaks of cases here and there but it's nothing compared to what the rest of the world is going through at the moment so it's pretty exciting to be home."
Surviving two weeks in managed isolation wasn't easy, though.
"That was hard yakka. It was me, my wife and 2-year-old daughter all in one room. It was testing times ... but let's say we're stronger for it."
In anticipation of a much faster-paced game than he grew accustomed to in Europe, Heem hopes to hold is own against New Zealand's next gen talent.
"Expect an old fella to try to keep up with the young guys. When I left Auckland a lot of the young guys were just starting out and now they're leaders in this team. Hopefully I've still got a bit of power and speed still left in there but we'll wait and see."
