Christian Leali'ifano with his son Jeremih after scoring his 1000th Super Rugby point. Photo / Photosport
Christian Leali'ifano with his son Jeremih after scoring his 1000th Super Rugby point. Photo / Photosport
As Christian Leali'ifano looked towards goal posts to gauge an impending penalty goal attempt at Mt Smart Stadium on Saturday, the process was no different to any other attempt he had taken in his career.
That was until his son Jeremih came running out with the kicking tee.
Heading intoMoana Pasifika's match against the Waratahs - won 26-20 by the Australians - Leali'ifano needed just nine points to join the exclusive club of Super Rugby players to see their tally click over 1000. His understanding was that Jeremih would be running the tee all game, but a scene earlier in the afternoon told him otherwise.
"I saw him out in the crowd sitting there eating his chips and thought 'oh yep, he's going to be a spectator'," Leali'ifano recalled.
But as Leali'ifano stood there assessing the kick, he turned to see Jeremih running out, tee in hand with a big grin on his face.
"When he ran that out, I was obviously aware that I was close to getting the points, and that blew me away, he said. "It was a really special moment. It just felt like it was me and him out there - until I had to kick the goal, then that felt a little bit of pressure. Lucky it snuck in; lucky it was an easyish kick.
"To see him run out, smiling, the world just stopped for me. I really enjoyed that moment."
After he sent the ball through the upright to take his career points tally to 1001 points – becoming just seventh player to reach four figures - Leali'ifano shared a couple of hugs with teammates before turning to his son, giving him a kiss on the head and sharing some words with him.
"I just told him that I love him – and to just make sure he's running back the right way."
Leali'ifano's journey to get to this point is like few others. Breaking onto the scene in 2008 with the Brumbies, Leali'ifano showed plenty of potential as someone who could one day pull on a Wallabies jersey.
Christian Leali'ifano was present with a trophy to commemorate his achievement by Sir Michael Jones. Photo / Photosport
However, those early years were derailed by injury. In 2010, he was sidelined with a ruptured posterior cruciate ligament in his knee, then a broken ankle in 2012 ruled out any chance of a Wallabies call-up that year.
He fought back from that, and made his Wallabies debut the following year, going on to play 26 times.
But it's the challenges he faced in the mid-2010s that define Leali'ifano's story. In August 2016, Leali'ifano was in hospital in Canberra undergoing treatment for leukaemia - a cancer of blood-forming tissue. He underwent two rounds of chemotherapy and received a bone marrow transplant from his sister.
Not only did Leali'ifano win his fight against the life-threatening illness, he returned to the rugby pitch not only at Super Rugby level, but earned a Wallabies recall in 2019 as well.
Now a veteran presence in the inaugural Moana Pasifika squad, Leali'ifano said to bring up 1000 points in the competition – being the first Pasifika player to do so – was nice, but rather than dwelling on milestones he took every day as a chance to take stock of life as a whole.
"I've been one that has been really fortunate to play the game as long as I have, to come back from things like injuries and illnesses. For me it's about controlling what you can control and counting the blessings you get," he said.
"I more so reflect on each day and how they go, more-so off field; how I'm carrying myself as a person, the people around me, checking in with my family and things like that. Milestones? Not really. I don't think about everything that's happened. I often reflect on the journey that I've been on to get here and the people that have been involved in that. That helps me appreciate each day and move forward.
"To be here now on my journey with Moana Pasifika is a really special time. Being a more senior player and someone with advanced years of playing, I get to appreciate each day more – the fans, the people, the culture – it's something that I'm really soaking up and loving."
