All Blacks Sam Darry, Will Jordan and Cortez Ratima speak about their shortcomings against Argentina and their preparation for this weekend's game. Video / Dean Purcell
Unique names are becoming something of a theme in the Ratima whānau.
Cortez Ratima is among the new breed of All Blacks halfbacks, Noah Hotham and the injured Cam Roigard the others, making their mark in the post-Aaron Smith era.
As he prepares for his third test appearance this weekend at Eden Park, Ratima sat down with the Herald to discuss the origins of his first name, his rise through the rugby ranks, how fatherhood forced him to rapidly mature and how he bench presses almost twice his body weight.
Raised on a sheep and beef farm in Piopio, a small Waikato town near the Waitomo Caves and a filming location for the Hobbit movie trilogy, Ratima emerged from hearty King Country stock.
Where, then, is his foreign first name derived from?
“The Nike Cortez is the old man’s favourite shoe,” Ratima explains. “I’m pretty grateful he named me after it because the other names I heard they were going for weren’t so great.
“I get a few questions here and there about whether I’m Mexican or Spanish but I’m from a Māori background so it’s purely the shoe. Dad has a decent collection, but I haven’t seen him wear them for a while.”
Ten months ago Ratima and his partner Phillipa welcomed their first son into the world. While no sneakers were used for inspiration, the couple opted for a custom name, landing on Kyvie.
“We were talking about names and we wanted something a bit unique so we made one up,” Ratima says. “At the time we laughed about the suggestion she brought up but it was the only one we could find to stick to him.”
Juggling rugby and dad duties brings daily challenges for the 23-year-old but so, too, has it inspired a greater sense of purpose that now stretches beyond the white lines.
“Being a dad definitely opened my eyes. I had to mature real quick. It’s good, it puts more wood in the fire to make you want to do well. Do well for your family, do well for yourself, do well for the little boy I’ve got now. It’s probably changed my game. It’s definitely had an impact on me being a better professional and more mature.”
Cortez Ratima and Finlay Christie at All Blacks training. Photo / Getty Images
Those who know Ratima within a rugby context highlight his maturity, which isn’t always evident in young men. They point to his focus, the dedication to his craft and an understanding of his privileged position as a professional athlete that won’t last forever.
Ratima doesn’t cut corners. From Ōtorohanga, where his father coached him in club rugby, to Hamilton Boys’ High School, where Hotham’s dad Nigel taught him work ethic in the First XV, through to Waikato, the Chiefs and All Blacks, Ratima has soaked in the lessons from his many mentors.
They include former All Blacks turned England skills coach Andrew Strawbridge who helped Ratima with his pass and handed him his provincial debut, Brad Weber and his open book tutorship at the Chiefs, and TJ Perenara, the latter his room-mate on the All Blacks XV tour to Ireland and England two years ago.
Ratima has grown to understand his point of difference and vulnerabilities. His lure as a nine, like Hotham and Roigard, are his instincts, anticipation, fitness, support lines up the middle of the park and his nose for the try line.
Ratima’s strength isn’t by chance. The fend to fight through contact and the last few metres to score stems from his ability to bench press 170kg – an impressive feat for his 87kg frame.
“The bench press is just a number but being able to shift more tin in the gym definitely helps with the collisions. I’m one of the lighter halfbacks going around – TJ, Cam and Noah are all above 90kg so any little bit of weight I can get moving in the gym will help me out.
“It’s important to know what the coach wants from you. With the Chiefs it was more a distribution focus and I was working hard on the inside trying to get support lines because that’s my opportunity to get my hands on the ball. Coming in here we get a bit more rein as halfbacks to have a snipe here and there and bring a different element to the attack which is good.”
As Ratima seeks to be a king to the forwards and a servant for the backs, finding consistency with his left-footed kicking game, while always scanning to assist decision-making from the base, are on-going improvements.
In the coming years, with Perenara set to depart to Japan at the end of the season, Ratima will jostle with Roigard and Hotham to seize the All Blacks starting halfback mantle.
“Every year you go through and set your goals and they seem so far out of reach. It all happened so quickly. It was very eye-opening being in this environment. The first couple of days was mind-blowing the intensity that we train at; the level of skill, there aren’t many mistakes. As a young fella you’re not wanting to drop the ball so you put that pressure on yourself. Everyone has been welcoming and the coaches nurture us.
“Debuting at Eden Park was surreal, being able to have my family there. Games don’t get much bigger than that so it was a nervy week leading into it but exciting too. Starting against Fiji the following week too. Hopefully, I can keep building on that.”
Having achieved a lifelong ambition, the goalposts now shift to kicking long-term aspirations.
“It’s one thing getting in the team. It’s another trying to stay here. We’ve got a few competitive nines. The goal moves from being an All Black to a great All Black. There’s no measure you can put on that but that’s something I’m always going to strive for. I may never get there but that’s always going to be at the forefront of the mind of where I want to get to.”
