Jonah Lomu not letting dialysis kick him down

Jonah Lomu and members of the Ngati Ranana London Maori Club. Photo: Leon Neal/AFP/Getty

Jonah Lomu is not letting his dialysis treatment crush his spirits as he travels around England during the Rugby World Cup.

Lomu is in the UK for the tournament as a fan, an ambassador for sponsors Heineken - and a dialysis patient.

"By the end of it I'll have learnt the ins and outs of every clinic in the country," he joked to the London Telegraph.

The All Blacks great is still suffering from the rare kidney disorder known as nephrotic syndrome that began to make itself apparent even when he was making global headlines steamrolling England into submission at the 1995 Rugby World Cup and afterwards.

Lomu had a kidney transplant in 2004 which assisted his battle for seven and a half years. But his body rejected the replacement organ in 2011.

"Everything that could go wrong went wrong. It was a battle. I'm lucky enough to still be here."

He has required regular dialysis ever since - but like defences around the world during his playing days, it's failing to bring him down.

"There's only so many movies you can watch, so many emails you can catch up with. But I don't let it get me down. Everybody has their ups and downs. For me, getting up is not a chore."

His sons, aged four and six, are with him on the tour, together with their mother.

"I am thankful that I have a beautiful wife and the kids are here. Nadine makes sure that my family stays together."

"She is my manager, my wife, my best friend and my boss!"

He hopes that his children will get a special insight into the game where their father made his name.

"It's a game that has given me so much and it's an opportunity to show them what their dad used to do," he told the Daily Express. "They love their rugby."

Earlier this week Julian Savea overtook Lomu in the all-time list of All Blacks try scorers.
However, Savea insists he will never match Lomu despite breaking his record.

"I've always said that no one can come close to Jonah, he's amazing," explained Savea. "I wouldn't say it's pressure to have comparisons.

"I watched him in every home game in Wellington running over people like little kids.

"It's awesome to be compared to him and it's an honour but I'm just doing my job as best I can."

Savea now has 38 tries from 39 Test, Lomu's career total is 37.