Youthful passion gives stars heart

The All Black video conference at Kelston Boys' School. Picture / Dean Purcell

It was their old headmaster, Graham Henry, who asked for a blackout to support the All Blacks against the Lions. And Kelston Boys High School certainly gave him one yesterday. Twelve hundred boys, in shiny black plastic parkas, some sitting cross-legged on the floor, others seated, the rest leaning on the walls, are crammed into the school auditorium to welcome their heroes, Tana Umaga, Justin Marshall, Mils Muliaina and Jerry Collins.

The school haka is magnificent, the excitement of the boys electric after Kelston old boy Muliaina takes the stage. "Thanks for the haka, it's good to be back, to be honoured."

"Tana, Tana, Tana," they chant. "Jerry, Jerry, Jerry. Mar-shall, Mar-shall, Mar-shall ... " As Marshall says when he eventually gets up: "Coming into this room we could feel the passion ... it gives us great heart for what we're going into."

For the past hour the All Blacks have been in the school library, facing a large TV, answering questions from 12 schools around the country, including Kelston, via a Telecom video conference.

From Reporoa College near Rotorua: "What impact do you, as a rugby player, have on New Zealand society? What effect does that have on you?"

Umaga: "I thought I could go out and do my own thing without anyone caring but I've been proven wrong, And it was a lesson I learned. Quite tough."

Marshall quotes the 4/11 rule: "If you do well a person will tell four people. If you do bad that person will tell 11."

Darfield High School: "Do you chill out with the other ABs? What do you do?"

Umaga: "Marshy enjoys his golf ... Jerry gets his hair done."

Marshall: "I try and get photos of my mates for my son. He likes to run round being Tana and Millsy, being a little All Black."

Hastings Boys High: "How did it feel the first time you wore the black jersey?"

Collins: "Time stands still. You can't hear anything. It's like before you're going to die ... "

Marshall: "I remember that day like no other other ... It was Paris, 1995. It was a very proud moment representing my country. Mum and Dad were at home watching ... "

What rituals do you go through before a game?

Umaga: "I eat the same food at the same time, four hours before the game, listen to music."

Collins: "Sleep the whole day. I wake up 20 minutes before the bus picks us up, sleep again in the changing room."

Marshall: "In my first test in '95 I had a bad wrist and taped it up with white tape ... Every test since I've done the same thing and taped my wrists, even though they're not sore."

Kelston Boys High: What do you think about the plight of rugby in the Pacific?

Umaga: "The IRB got £120 million to fund the last World Cup. People meant to fund rugby worldwide are very slow to fund rugby worldwide."

Reporoa College: Does rugby affect New Zealand society?

Marshall: "I think it has a bigger bearing than it should. I've come home from two World Cups and it's like the country's almost died. The country needs to grow up a little bit, accept that rugby is a professional sport and if we lose games ... it helps the ABs build a little more resolve and what they need to win the World Cup."

Caitlins Area School: How much time did you put into training when you first started?

Muliaina: "I did a lot of work on ball skills, especially passing, because I didn't have very good ball skills."