Home is where the heart is for Mealamu

Keven Mealamu. Picture / Kenny Rodger

By the end of the All Blacks tour to Europe last year, Keven Mealamu was ready for a rest.

He had been involved in 10 tests on top of his Super 12, club and NPC duties. It was time to get home, see his wife and two children and relax.

He jokes that he crashed on the couch for about a fortnight, soaking up the time he had missed with his family, enjoying just being a dad.

"That is really the number one priority," he said, "everything else comes after that."

Batman, Superman and Justice League cartoons still get a thrashing when Mealamu heads through the door after his daily training sessions with the Blues. While he loves life as a professional rugby player, Mealamu likes his home life even better.

"Downtime with the family is just cool. Many people think being a rugby player is easy but, having two kids, it really puts a strain on my wife having to look after things when I am away.

"When I get home I like to contribute as much as I can."

When the 25-year-old got back to Auckland before Christmas, he reckoned he only played a few games of touch to sustain his fitness levels. There was also the odd run after the regular Sunday lunches cooked by his father, but nothing too serious.

Mealamu has an infectious smile and happy disposition which always seems near the surface. It seems incongruous that this genial man could work in one of the toughest sporting arenas as an international hooker.

Look at Anton Oliver, with no disrespect to his features, but he does have the appearance of someone who works at rugby's coalface. Mealamu appears far too cherubic to be slogging away in the murky depths of the frontrow.

On tour his room is always full of chatter and laughter, mates like Joe Rokocoko, Carl Hayman or Mose Tuiali'i are regular attendees for PlayStation or X-Box challenges.

"It is a laugh, great fun and very competitive. We get into a bit of NFL or some athletics contest. It is our way of relaxing."

Mealamu and his Blues mates may need some of the same therapy to ease their apprehension before tomorrow's Super 12 meeting at Eden Park with the Crusaders.

Their last two performances have been very patchy while the Crusaders have posted 50 point margins on their opposition.

"We have to cut down a lot on our errors, we need to hold the ball for a lot longer, we have been a little anxious I think," Mealamu said.

"We have been making it harder on ourselves, we have had enough territory and ball in our games to make things happen, we have been creating the opportunities but not delivering.

"The Crusaders have been playing well but we have to concentrate on what we are trying to do, we have to play our own game."


Keven Mealamu


Born: March 20, 1979, Tokoroa
Province: Auckland
Matches: 52. Debut: 1999
Super 12 matches: 51
Debut: 2000
Tests: 22. Debut: 2002