Taha Kemara: Māori All Blacks debutant previews the clash against Japan XV

Māori All Blacks Head Coach Ross Filipo has made a handful of changes to his team as they look to secure their second win against Japan XV this Saturday at Toyota Stadium. 

Filipo has listed three debutants with Crusaders Taha Kemara (Te Whānau a Apanui, Te Whakatōhea), Highlanders Nikora Broughton (Ngā Rauru, Ngāti Ruanui), and Blues Corey Evans (Te Aupouri, Ngāti Kahu) joining from the bench. 

Taha Kemara joined D'Arcy Waldegrave to preview the game. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the All Sport Breakfast podcast with Darcy
Waldgrave from News Talk zed B.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
Twenty past seven. This is your Sport Breakfast on News
Talker zed B. From the Abs to the m A. B.
Stocking Party All Black now taking on Japan's evening at
nine o'clock. We're joined by Taha camera. Hi, welcome to
the show mate, and congratulations on your debut for the
MALDI All Blacks.

Speaker 3 (00:32):
How stretch vela Actually thank you? Actually stoked.

Speaker 4 (00:36):
Yeah to be able to obviously debut for such a
prestigious team but also represent my figner and where I
come from, which is going to be pretty special.

Speaker 2 (00:44):
What you're out from Eastern Bay of Plenty Way or Portucky,
that's where your roots are.

Speaker 4 (00:49):
Yeah, yeah, come from there, finn Up New So Yeah,
pretty proud to be from there as well represent them.

Speaker 2 (00:55):
So you've been playing for the White Couple for a
while and then you shot off down to Crusaders Land
to play with a number of first fives under the
watch Live Penny and a season that wasn't fantastic. I
expect the lessons that you pulled out of that would
be immense. And you've got to look to that, just
to why you're actually playing now for Mardy or Blacks.

Speaker 3 (01:17):
Yeah, one hundred percent.

Speaker 4 (01:18):
Yeah, obviously it wasn't really a season we wanted to have,
but I think the lessons I think you have to
go through that in order to get results at Thread
Dumb the track, which I think is going to be
a better put us in a better situation for next year.
But yeah, I did learn a lot, and the lessons
I learned then I'm definitely have learned from and bringing
into this camp as well to hopefully go forward and

(01:40):
performance out tonight which will be hopefully good.

Speaker 2 (01:43):
So you've improved, plainly, that's why you've got selected. If
you're to be really critical and talking about yourself, where
do you think you've lifted, where's been the big gains
in your game? And where do you have to be better?

Speaker 3 (01:56):
I think for me, well been well.

Speaker 4 (01:59):
Had to improve with definitely all my preparation, how I
can structure my week going into games, and how I
can put myself in a position to express.

Speaker 3 (02:08):
Myself on the field.

Speaker 4 (02:09):
And yeah, obviously might work on it's definitely the game
management side and getting more experienced, but yeah, definitely that
comes with getting game time and you know, learning, as
we said before, learning from mistakes. But yeah, that's probably
definitely a work on for me. It's definitely that game management,
but also having that decide to be able to express
myself and my ability as well.

Speaker 2 (02:30):
Look back to the game last week, you didn't play
a part of that, but you would have walked over
tape one hundred times. What is your coach, Ross Filippo
said about the expectations around tonight's game, What does he
need to see? What does he want you to execute?

Speaker 4 (02:44):
I think with the game last week, we had limited preparation,
I guess, And you know, obviously you've gotten to Japan
on Wednesday, played on a Saturday, so there wasn't The
week was a lot predisrupted, but happy with performance. But
I think now we've had a couple of weeks together
to jail, so I think we're looking for a more
polished performance tonight, I guess. And so yeah, we just

(03:05):
assume we've got we've got over a detail. I had
a couple of weeks to jael to you, so we're
looking for a pretty much an eighty minute performance that
hopefully we'll be proud of you.

Speaker 2 (03:14):
Well, the All Blacks proper they kick off a couple
of hours before you start, so you're not going to
see it. There'd be that rip, your gears wouldn't have
made our bed's that.

Speaker 4 (03:23):
Oh yeah, I know it's going to be tough to
not look at the score.

Speaker 3 (03:26):
Before the game.

Speaker 4 (03:27):
So nah, yeah, I definitely would love to watch that,
but I guess stuff happened then. Yeah, we excited to
play against fan tonight.

Speaker 2 (03:36):
Yeah, what are the Japanese bring? What are you not
freaked out about? But when you look at their game,
you go, okay, this I need to be very wary
of what are they possessed to.

Speaker 3 (03:46):
They love to play a fast game. They lift the
tempo when you're not.

Speaker 4 (03:50):
Expecting it with quick taps, and you saw that in
the first game towards the end of the game.

Speaker 3 (03:54):
So I think we've.

Speaker 4 (03:55):
Got to stay on as I said before, for the
four eighty, and you know they love to play quick
and fast. I think the collision is going to be
a mess apart for us to obviously slow them down.
But yeah, so I reckon that's probably the shrink here.

Speaker 2 (04:08):
When you look to seeing your players in the site,
because plainly you learn so much after these old from
these old dogs. That have been there, done that. Is
there any character within the squad that you've attached yourself
to like Olympic to try and pick up some more information.

Speaker 4 (04:27):
Older seen the individuals, But I reckon the older players
of all the older you know, boys like Billy Harmon,
our captains like that, and you just so I think
you do want to learn about footage.

Speaker 3 (04:40):
I think the main.

Speaker 4 (04:41):
Thing when well being pushed here is learning about our culture.
I think those boys demonstrate what it is to be
a multi regular player. So yeah, that's the type of
things we sort of gravitate towards.

Speaker 2 (04:52):
So what doesn't mean to be representing the New Zealand Mary,
the all Black Marty.

Speaker 4 (04:59):
I mean everything? For me, it's just showed me that
for me as the person that my life is, my
culture is bigger than what I do, I guess and
it's more important than me to me then rugby as
as a whole. So it's just sort of this camp's
really been an eye opener as the main main goal
here is to learn about our culture and be fully

(05:21):
immersed in our culture and multiculture. So which has been good,
this best ever team I've been and where rugby is
not the priority.

Speaker 3 (05:28):
But obviously obviously it is.

Speaker 4 (05:30):
It's up there, but our multiculture is even a even
more priority which has been and it's being proud for
me to be able to be able to learn more.

Speaker 2 (05:38):
Mate. Yeah, Fun there must be absolutely stoked and proud
of you. Love these words about what this actually means.
Came out on debut for the Mary All black Out
up to Fun though up Nui and to fucking tor Hair.
I'm sure they'll be rooting for you from the back blocks,
screaming get up son. You enjoy yourself tonight.

Speaker 3 (05:58):
Thank you, thanks so much for having.

Speaker 1 (05:59):
Me For more from the Your Sport Breakfast with Darcy Watergrave.
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