Reporter Diego is at Pacific Cup Touch 2024 where teams representing six island nations make their countries and their tūpuna proud.
This was the season of opportunity for Harry Plummer, a rarefied time when years of resilience and perseverance culminated in pinnacle successes that once seemed beyond reach.
When presented with a compelling offshore offer and pressed to determine his future, though, the blocked All Blacks pathway to further enhance his prospects played a central role in Plummer’s departure next year.
Beyond a swansong season with the Blues, New Zealand is no longer the land of opportunity for Plummer.
Having emerged from his unheralded status to steer Vern Cotter’s Blues to their first championship in 21 years and then earn his All Blacks debut off the bench in Sydney, the 26-year-old Plummer is in his prime, with the promise of growth to come.
But with Beauden Barrett and Damian McKenzie contesting the All Blacks first five-eighth jersey, and Richie Mo’unga expected to return home mid-next season, Plummer assessed his options and took stock of a lucrative three-year offer from French club Clermont to make the pragmatic decision for his future.
“I’m pretty open about it,” Plummer tells the Herald this week as he helps the Blues gather and distribute 50,000 non-perishable food items to the community.
“I feel like New Zealand rugby is in a position where they showed their hand a little bit with their first-five stock.
“You’ve got Beauden, with a wealth of experience, and we saw what he did on the world stage on the northern tour. DMac has been playing some unbelievable footy and during the Rugby Championship showed exactly what he can do and the impact he brings to a game.
“Being in that environment I felt I probably wasn’t going to get a shot, a proper crack at how I envisioned it.
“There’s talks of Richie Mo’unga coming back. That didn’t seal my fate but it weighed on me little bit. Yeah, I’m young, but I’ve got this amazing opportunity in front of me to finish on a high with the Blues next season and try do something special by going back-to-back, and then get an opportunity to have a massive lifestyle change, move to a really cool part of France, and play in a great competition.
“That will grow me as a person and a player a lot more too, getting to play Northern Hemisphere rugby and seeing what it’s like going deep into their season. That was ultimately my decision and how it landed.
“I’ve got no bad blood with anyone, New Zealand Rugby or the Blues, that’s the way it goes. You can’t play footy in New Zealand forever.
“It’s really important for people to know that if I could stay at the Blues forever I probably would. This team and region has given me my crack to be in a position like this and to get the successes of 2024. I love this team, what it stands for and the community aspect. That was the hardest part, saying goodbye to that for now.”
Plummer could have hung around, waiting, hoping, for another crack at the All Blacks but in a combative sport where serious injuries can cull careers at any time, striking while his stocks are high is entirely understandable.
While he charted euphoric highs this season Plummer has overcome enough adversity to appreciate the fickle nature of sport.
Plummer’s internal tug of war over whether to stay or go was only resolved last month when injury with the All Blacks XV cut his season short and a tour of Clermont with his parents, who were already in Europe on a planned holiday, sealed the deal.
“Being in the All Blacks environment was amazing and I gave that my full attention when I was in there – as any kid would. There were a lot of dead ends with Clermont and I did feel bad about that because I wanted to be present.
“Once I was injured the club offered to show me around. It was a great opportunity to see another part of France, regardless if I signed or not. They were amazing. The club looks unbelievable.
“The people were brilliant, very hospitable. It just felt right. It felt like a family club which is something the Blues have given me and something I was passionate about going to if I was to leave.
“Once you sign the dotted line it’s final but in the back of my head there were definitely questions about if it was the right thing for me but I’m really happy I’ve buried it all and done it before Christmas so I can look forward to an awesome Blues campaign.”
For now, the goodbyes are on hold. Plummer, a proud Aucklander, has resumed training with the goal of repeat success with the Blues front of mind. There’s unfinished business to attend to yet.
“That was a big selling point, that I could do one more season. I like the challenge that’s been set out, I like working alongside Vern, the coaching staff, players and management.
“There’s a genuine drive to go back-to-back. We know we’re going to become the hunted. It’s hard to win one let alone two in a row so I’m excited to see what part I can play in that. I get to be a cog in the wheel one last time.”
Vern Cotter and Harry Plummer celebrate after defeating the Chiefs to win the Super Rugby Pacific final in June. Photo / Photosport
Plummer could one day return to New Zealand rugby. Three years in Clermont, where he’ll join George Moala, Pita Gus Sowakula, Fritz Lee, and Michael Alaalatoa, will expose him to different styles, atmospheres, coaching, and only improve his rounded playmaking ability.
By the end of that contract, as an experienced, championship-winning 29-year-old first-five, he is likely to be in high demand.
The present, though, offers a chance to exhale and ponder a whirlwind year that propelled Plummer to the black jersey and beyond.
“It’s started to hit me over the last couple of weeks having finished footy for the year. Family and those close to me are important. They’re the ones I’ve seen relish the success. That’s all I’ve ever wanted, that’s why I play the game, to see them proud.
“I know over the next couple of weeks it will sink in further and I’ll be able to sit on a beach up north with a Heineken and reflect on what an amazing year it’s been. A year of opportunity and seeing the fruits of the labour of the hard work over the last three, four, five years with Auckland and the Blues.
“Once this Blues season is wrapped up and I go to Clermont I’ll be 100% into that environment and not thinking about anything else. Rugby is unpredictable but I’ll never close doors on any teams, especially the Blues.
“There would be some drive to come back further down the road if everything aligned but we’ll see how the next six months goes first.”
