Rugby: Life after ABs is sweet for Evans

Nick Evans playing for the All Blacks against Romania in the 2007 World Cup. Photo / Brett Phibbs

This time last year, Nick Evans struggled with his emotions as he sat at Twickenham watching the All Blacks destroy England.

He couldn't quite come to terms with the fact he wasn't part of it any more; that he was no longer an All Black. It was an uncomfortable 80 minutes for him as the wave crashed home - he was a former All Black. At 28, he'd have to accept his test career had ended.

"I did some stuff for the BBC when they played Scotland and that was definitely a bit weird. Then I went to the England game and had mixed feelings. I wanted to be out there."

The All Black flame was still flickering in those first few months after he left New Zealand to join Harlequins in London. He didn't know how strongly until the All Blacks turned up on his doorstep and reminded him. It was like seeing an ex-girlfriend move on - it's easy to deal with, to forget all about until there is an actual sighting which sends a rush of memories, a rush of emotions through the system.

What left him vulnerable to this emotional blast was the fact he hadn't quite shut the door on his test dreams when he signed his contract to leave.

"Was I ready to leave? Probably not. I probably could have stayed to be honest. That was why it was such a tough decision. I wasn't forced to or anything like that. I sat down and worked out what would be the best thing for me."

The best thing, he decided, was to move on. He's honest enough now to reveal that the presence of Daniel Carter weighed heavily in his thinking.

"I could sit here and say there are a lot of reasons. That I came for the different culture, different people and money - all those kinds of things. But that [Carter] was definitely a big part of it. But life is tough, there is no point in crying about it.

"I gave the All Blacks a pretty good crack and when I sit down with my family and talk about it they tell me they are proud of what I achieved.

"Every time I had a chance I played pretty well."

It's easy to see why Evans hadn't quite made peace with his departure. Most players know when it is time to move on. Either their creaking body is telling them or the selectors are. The signals are normally clear.

For Evans, there were conflicting messages. He was, arguably, the pick of the All Black backs at the World Cup. One of the few who enhanced his reputation as he scorched across the grounds and showed why he was once rated by his former Highlanders coach Greg Cooper as the best running five-eighth in the world.

Yet, come the critical selection for the quarter-final, he was overlooked. Normally that would be okay but Carter was hobbling around most of the week before the test.

Evans could only wonder if the selectors reckoned Carter at 80 per cent was a better option than him at 100 per cent. When he sought some clarity after the tournament, he discovered that wasn't far from the truth.

The All Blacks wanted him in the picture but were clear - if Carter was fit, Carter would play. To those on the outside of the camp, it felt like it was almost irrelevant what Evans did. He could play the game of his life, control the test and kick a sack-full, but it wouldn't win him selection for the next test if Carter was available.

"It did feel like that," says Evans. "He's an amazing player. He's awesome. I was born at the wrong time. I could have pushed for a sabbatical, I suppose, but I didn't want to do that. If I was going to go, I wanted to commit to whichever club I went to."

In April 2008, Evans made that commitment and the All Blacks were forced to search for a new man with the unenviable task of trying to be Carter. Stephen Donald was given the job and in 18 months of trying he's never looked as capable as Evans. The coaches obviously agree as they are now urging him to focus on second five-eighth.

It's Mike Delany, the people's hero from the Bay of Plenty, who now finds himself in the shadow of Carter. Delany has promise but, right now, his presence only serves to show how lucky the All Blacks were to have Evans; that there should have been more of a fight to keep him.

It could be said it's only now that he's not available and the quality of the other candidates has been assessed, that the nation appreciates what they had in Evans. He doesn't see it that way, though.

"I get the family view of it from back home, but I don't read too much into that. I think you could say that about a lot of players [that they were let go too easily]. You could say that about [Carl] Hayman and [Aaron] Mauger. But I don't take much notice."

There's no point in anyone hoping Evans is just churning out lines he doesn't mean. He's not harbouring any simmering rage about seeing inferior prospects wear the All Black No 10 shirt. He's not about to turn his back on Harlequins. He's contracted through to June 2011 and he intends to see it through.

"I'm not sure what the parameters are of getting out of it, or even going down that road. At the moment I am fully committed and it would take something really drastic for me to even consider walking away from Harlequins. I am very happy here.

"I don't have any ill-feelings about it all. I don't look back and think that maybe I should have only signed a two-year contract. I knew full well what I was signing. It's not like I made a mistake and didn't know what was going on."

* * *

There were no mixed emotions for Evans this morning. He didn't even see the All Black match. He was making his way back to London after Harlequins' Premiership tussle against Northampton when the All Blacks were playing at Twickenham. A year on and he's sure the All Blacks are out of his system.

He's sure, because there is no room for them. Harlequins have his heart and they have his head.

There are an increasing number of New Zealand players who come to the UK, making it clear they want a couple of years away from home and nothing more. For those players, the European venture is an interlude - a break between acts in New Zealand.

For Evans, the commitment is total. This isn't an adjunct - it's an opportunity to build something at the club; to be part of something. Harlequins enjoyed their best season of the professional age in 2008-2009 and Evans was a huge part it. He was named by former England first five and now analyst, Stuart Barnes, as the best import in the history of the league.

The Quins, relegated in 2005, made the final of the Premiership and, in reaching the last four of the Heineken Cup, they posted back-to-back epic victories against Stade Francais.

Much of what they achieved has already been forgotten because of the events of that Heineken Cup semifinal. That was the game in which Quins imploded after a fake blood scam was revealed. As a result, coach Dean Richards was banned for three years and other officials booted from the club. It made global news and Evans spent much of the summer fretting he was going to be sucked into the drama as the player who came on to the field for the fake blood injury.

"It had been an amazing season. I was involved in some games that would sit as the best four or five I have ever been part of. But on the flip side, the stuff that happened after the semifinal was the worst thing I have ever been involved in. It will never happen again in 100 years and players will never go through what we had to as a club.

"Every time a video was shown about the game, it showed me because I was the player who came back on. I didn't know about it [the plan to use fake blood]. I didn't know for a long time after. Deano [coach Dean Richards] came up and said you are going back on and I just did what I was told.

"In the space of two weeks we lost our coach, our physio, our doctor and our chairman and I was wondering, 'am I going to go? Are they going to come after me?' It had an effect on me and the other guys as well. I wouldn't say that is why we have started poorly this season but it did have an effect."

There is now this steely determination within the squad to put things right, says Evans. The best way to put the off-field shenanigans behind them is to provide an on-field distraction and Evans feels he carries a major responsibility in that regard.

Quins had been burned a few times recruiting former All Blacks in the past. Neither Zinzan Brooke nor Andrew Mehrtens were great success stories so it was a major decision to sign Evans on marquee rates.

Evans is conscious of his obligations. He knows there is potential for him to create resentment within the club as the 'overpaid, over-rated Kiwi'.

"I made sure that I proved myself on the field before I started worrying about holidays in Croatia and the kind of stuff you can do over here. I put a hell of a lot of pressure on myself. At every training I got involved. I gave myself some leeway so I was not seen as the Kiwi who thinks he knows everything."

It was an astute approach as Evans is now seen as the Kiwi who can deliver the club to a better future. His skills are perfect for the preferred style and there are few loose forwards who can cope with his speed when he breaks.

So those mixed feelings Evans felt last year are well forgotten. London is his life now and he loves it. He lives in Southfields, minutes from training and not far from the Stoop where the Quins play.

He misses fishing, but for now, hanging out at Clapham Junction with friends or heading to the bright lights of Soho with some of the Champagne Charlies in the Quins backline will do him just fine.

And as for that holiday in Croatia - he had it in June, with his mum.