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Irish billionaire backs Samoan rugby against New Zealand
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<blockquote data-quote="TPenman" data-source="post: 244850"><p>This is a piece written by Jonathan Falefasa "Tana" Umaga, Order of New Zealand, a year or so back in the Otago Daily Times which I think says it all.</p><p></p><p>"My parents emigrated from Samoa; I was born in New Zealand. There are some All Blacks who were born in the islands but came to New Zealand as children. Their parents brought them here for education, to give them the opportunity of having a better life than they had. </p><p></p><p>My parents met in New Zealand. My mother worked up and down the country, picking fruit and doing odd jobs before becoming a nurse and my father worked in a factory to earn money to send back to his family in Samoa. They knew that education was a key for their children and wanted to send me to the best school, but couldn’t afford it. My parents made sacrifices for their children; I may be a public success story, but a lot of that is due to them. All their children have benefited from the sacrifice they made by leaving their homes and families in Samoa to make a better life for their children in New Zealand. </p><p></p><p>Our parents sacrificed to give us opportunities and for some of us those opportunities were in rugby. A few became All Blacks: we had the opportunity to play for the best team in the world and earn a living doing it, and we took it. Wherever in the Pacific Islands you come from, when you’ve lived in New Zealand for any length of time the All Blacks are your first choice. I don’t take these things lightly; I did it because I loved it and I knew that it would make my parents proud. Whether you’re Pacific Islander, Maori or Pakeha, you want to make your people proud of you, especially those who looked after you and sacrificed for you when you were young. That’s why I get angry when they go on about poaching."</p><p></p><p>Kia kaha</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="TPenman, post: 244850"] This is a piece written by Jonathan Falefasa "Tana" Umaga, Order of New Zealand, a year or so back in the Otago Daily Times which I think says it all. "My parents emigrated from Samoa; I was born in New Zealand. There are some All Blacks who were born in the islands but came to New Zealand as children. Their parents brought them here for education, to give them the opportunity of having a better life than they had. My parents met in New Zealand. My mother worked up and down the country, picking fruit and doing odd jobs before becoming a nurse and my father worked in a factory to earn money to send back to his family in Samoa. They knew that education was a key for their children and wanted to send me to the best school, but couldn’t afford it. My parents made sacrifices for their children; I may be a public success story, but a lot of that is due to them. All their children have benefited from the sacrifice they made by leaving their homes and families in Samoa to make a better life for their children in New Zealand. Our parents sacrificed to give us opportunities and for some of us those opportunities were in rugby. A few became All Blacks: we had the opportunity to play for the best team in the world and earn a living doing it, and we took it. Wherever in the Pacific Islands you come from, when you’ve lived in New Zealand for any length of time the All Blacks are your first choice. I don’t take these things lightly; I did it because I loved it and I knew that it would make my parents proud. Whether you’re Pacific Islander, Maori or Pakeha, you want to make your people proud of you, especially those who looked after you and sacrificed for you when you were young. That’s why I get angry when they go on about poaching." Kia kaha [/QUOTE]
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