Moana Pasifika head coach Tana Umaga has distanced himself from a story linking him with a job in Dave Rennie’s new All Blacks regime and in the next breath has accused cross-town rivals the Blues of intentionally making it difficult for Moana Pasifika to survive and “thrive”.
Umaga’s comments today will add a huge amount of spice to the Auckland derby which kicks off at Eden Park on Sunday afternoon.
And while the Umaga, a former All Blacks captain, may take attention away from his association with the national team and new head coach Rennie with his comments, there was nothing contrived about his depth of feeling about the Blues who, he said, “don’t want us here”.
Making Umaga’s comments even more significant is that he is a former head coach of the Blues, who are, of course, under the jurisdiction of New Zealand Rugby, potentially his next employer.
After he was asked to address the "elephant in the room" of being linked to Rennie, written yesterday by 1News reporter and presenter Scotty Stevenson – which Umaga brushed off as "speculation" – the 52-year-old was lobbed a question about the Blues.
Asked whether they were Moana Pasifika’s "greatest rivals", Umaga responded in a manner that suggested his thoughts and feelings on the matter had been building for a while.
"I don’t know if they realise there’s two professional rugby teams in this city but we do know they don’t want us here," Umaga said. "We’ve got nothing against the playing group and nothing against the other staff because I’ve worked there.
"But the people who make the decisions have made it very hard for us to survive over here. Yes, they probably are our greatest rivals because they want to see us not do well, not thrive.
"I struggle with that. When rugby is at a place … I struggle with the narrative they came out with last year when they said they believe they represent the Pacific.
"Well, the Pacific team is here. You're not willing to assist us or embrace us for the betterment of rugby... I struggle with that and that’s why this game means a lot to us."
Part of Umaga’s frustration will come from Moana Pasifika's struggles to find a home.
They were effectively forced out of Mount Smart Stadium after their establishment in 2020 and have since found a home venue and training base at North Harbour Stadium. They won four of their five games there last year, including a thrilling victory over the Blues that prompted wild celebrations among players and fans alike.
However, they are limited to five games per season at the venue and a recent attempt to play a home game in Tonga fell through due to a lack of sponsorship. Rotorua will instead host the round nine match against the Chiefs.
"We’re only allowed five games here," Umaga said at his team’s base today. "When our game against Tonga didn’t go through, straight away we had the Northland union say 'hey we’d love to have you up here' – which they have numerous times and the Blues said 'no, that’s in our region. No, you can’t go up there'.
"This year, because we play our other games at Pukekohe – which is obviously in the Chiefs region – the Blues have tried to say to us 'actually, that’s in our super city so you’re still in our boundary'.
"That’s what we’re up against, but that’s fine. We just have to look back at our past as Pacific Islanders around how tough it is for us here; how tough for our families and parents. How they’ve fought to provide for us here in this great country. So, it’s nothing new for us, as a small entity, to try to grow and build for the betterment of our people."
The press conference, held on the sideline of Moana’s training pitch, was then quietly brought to a close by a franchise representative.
In response, Blues chief executive Karl Budge said: "Tana was one of my idols growing up and I have a huge amount of respect for him as a player and a coach, and he is entitled to his opinions.
"I think this is Tana trying to create a bit of extra spice against their cross-town rivals ahead of our game on Sunday. We have really enjoyed the rivalry we’ve created on the field and this weekend will be no different.
"It has been great to see our two proud clubs work closely together to promote the game and ensure rugby fans, be they in Blues or Moana Pasifika jerseys, get out and support their team.
"We look forward to what will be another tough game against them at Eden Park on Sunday afternoon."
Speculation on a role with the All Blacks
Earlier, Umaga, who was coached by Rennie at Wellington, was reluctant to engage with what he described as rumours and speculation about the All Blacks' job, adding: "I’m really honoured to be mentioned in the conversation that Sumo [Stevenson] has put me in, from what I’ve heard.
"I suppose it’s my turn this week. I see there were a lot of names that Rens was looking [at].
"It’s not something I’m really thinking about… it’s a bit untimely, my family is letting me know what’s happening and I’m getting a lot of texts. I had to turn my phone off… as I said, I’m honoured to be part of that conversation."
Asked whether joining Rennie was within the “reams of possibility”, he said: “I don’t know, what are the realms of possibility? That something you need to ask.
“I’m a coach, I do what I do and whatever happens from there – I’ve been fortunate to do what I do.
“Something I talk to our players about is that you can only control what you can control and it’s a waste of time thinking about anything else.
“Until it’s a done deal and everything is down on paper, it’s exactly what we’ve been talking about, it’s speculation.
“That’s what I know of Dave. He doesn’t let too much fluster him. He’s very precise and specific about what he wants and what he believes in. As you stated, that looks like a calmness and steadiness to what he does.
“His addition to the All Blacks is positive and, as an All Blacks fan, I’m happy that we’ve got someone there and, knowing Dave, I’m happy that he’s got the job.
“I’ve played for that team and it means a lot to me.”
Umaga said watching the All Blacks struggle over the past couple of years was not easy.
“Whenever that has taken a dent or is tarnished, you do feel it, or I do as a fan. You just want to see it get back to where it once was but I’m sure that’s an exciting challenge for Dave and the group that’s coming in. You’re chasing teams now, whereas usually you’re the one being chased – that’s a different perspective to what the All Blacks have had before.”
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