Paul Lewis: Tana and Ruben rewrite history

One of the finest pieces of play I ever saw from Jonathan Falefasa 'Tana' Umaga was the towering pass he delivered to Sitiveni Sivivatu in the first test against the 2005 Lions. They say it covered 15m but it seemed further - an impossibly ambitious thing that sprouted wings and looked like it could have made it to Switzerland before Sivivatu's hands intervened.

It was fired off with accuracy and intent to a highly dangerous winger in space, who danced through the tatters of the Lions defence to score. It was, all at one time, an affirmation of what was missing in Northern Hemisphere rugby and a confirmation of the greatness of Umaga, the player.

That confirmation came in 2005, and not just with the Grand Slam. It brought him rare success as an All Black captain but also underlined the unique qualities Umaga has brought to the All Blacks.

Few players have the confidence to go to an All Black coach and suggest they might like to field them in a different position. Especially wingers. The glamour boys of the backline earn their spurs, even in today's multitasking rugby, by being finishers. They are also great defenders of their own qualities and the least likely to volunteer that they might have lost a yard of pace or some of their elusiveness. It's a bit like Pamela Anderson seeking a breast reduction.

Yet Umaga, scorer of 22 tries at wing in his first 18 internationals, volunteered that he might be losing a bit of pace and lobbied for a crack at centre. Moving from wing to centre is not something that many can achieve at top level. Although both are closely allied, the skills are different - particularly in defence and in reading a game.

In modern All Black history there have only been a handful of players who have successfully moved from wing to centre - the great Bryan Williams being one (and his move there was occasioned by a lack of options for the selectors) and Bill Davis, the silky All Black centre of the 60s, who started his career as a winger. There have been few others. Stu Wilson had a game or three at centre but was predominantly a winger. Craig Innes, Graham Thorne and Tim Twigden were all essentially centres who played on the wing and utility players like Marc Ellis and Buff Milner played in both positions as well as others.

None have mastered the wing-centre shift as successfully as Umaga. He conquered the positional and physical demands of the position quickly and his league background gave him the ability to defend superbly and make offloads as defences became more cluttered. He scored 15 tries in 56 tests as a centre but it was the authority he brought to the role and to the All Blacks that counted most.

It added, too, to his authority as Umaga the captain. I have been lucky enough to be covering rugby during the reign of two great All Black captains - Wayne Shelford and Sean Fitzpatrick. To that list, add Umaga. His authority on the field and physical style became part of his persona and his famous quote - "We're not playing tiddlywinks here" - to a referee punishing one of his team-mates for excessively robust play will remain forever linked to him.

He is a straightforward man with enough self-confidence to discuss himself in the public eye without appearing egotistical. As Gregor Paul, of the Herald on Sunday, wrote in a recent profile, Umaga was not only man enough to admit his failings as a captain (he felt he was trying too hard to live up to previous All Black captains), he was also intelligent enough to fix the problem (he concentrated more on being himself). The result? He is held in enormous esteem, almost awe, by this All Black team.

As do the Kiwis revere Ruben Wiki, whose teary aftermath to the 24-0 Tri-Nations caning of the Australians had hardened old league lags reaching for the tissues and pretending they had something in their eyes.

As an emotional moment in New Zealand sport, it rated right up there. Try the rowers at the 1972 Munich Olympics. Or Sarah Ulmer's breathtaking win in Athens last year. Or any Kiwi victory attained after back-breaking training and overcoming all the odds which accrue in a small country with limited funds at the bottom of the world. That's what causes lumps the size of Australia in the throats of many Kiwis - the sacrifice, the sheer giant-killing justice of it all.

That's what Wiki's men gave rugby league last weekend.

Wiki himself is unlike Umaga in that his work is done at the coalface - a pick-axe of a player whose steel and stubborn commitment carry his team with him. Like Umaga, he's accorded almost godly status by his team-mates. His absence from the field has often been apparent in a reduction in the quality of the Kiwi play, something restored when he is subbed back on.

Like Umaga, he is a Polynesian. Whatever the future for these two, they have given us the finest examples of Polynesian leadership. When, as will inevitably occur next year, someone reaches into the cliche bag to talk about the over-abundance of Polynesians in the Warriors or the Auckland rugby team and how the 'brown' boys need the guidance and the thinking skills of the white boys - think of Umaga and Wiki.

Think about the discipline of the Kiwis and the All Blacks and know such misguided sentiments for what they are - sheer, unmitigated twaddle.