Relaxed Ah Kuoi has Chiefs coach ‘pulling his hair out’
One of the young locks helping to offset for Brodie Retallick’s absence is flourishing but still has Chiefs coach Clayton McMillan pulling his hair out.
Naitoa Ah Kuoi, the 21-year-old from Wellington, says life has been easy since turning professional last season with the Chiefs, as well as becoming a father of one-year-old twins Reegan and Rylee during the Covid-19 lockdown last April.
Not every rookie would be so relaxed about their transition into the brutal Super Rugby arena, while experiencing fatherhood for the first time, but Ah Kuoi seems to take it in his stride as effortlessly as the powerful, onehanded carries which have become a feature of his game in Super Rugby Aotearoa.
There’s also his distinctive headgear, with ‘‘Mum’’ taped to the front, which is unable to contain his long, bushy hair.
‘‘Life is going fast. We’ve been going good,’’ Ah Kuoi tells Stuff of being a parent with his partner, Kayla Rangiawha. ‘‘We’ve built a routine and the missus has been unreal.’’
Meanwhile, in the heat of last Saturday’s dramatic final moments against the Crusaders, Ah Kuoi buried himself into a ruck – his ‘‘eyes closed the whole time’’, he said – as Richie Mo’unga was waiting in the pocket for a straightforward drop goal attempt to win the match for the visitors in Hamilton.
Ah Kuoi, after an anxious TMO review because of Scott Barrett’s desperate captain’s challenge, secured the match-winning turnover as the Chiefs held on for their fourth successive victory.
McMillan revealed post-match he has come close to dropping Ah Kuoi, who has been a regular starter this season, but steals like that make him invaluable, he said.
‘‘Oh, look, Naitoa makes me pull my hair out,’’ McMillan said.
‘‘He’s a different cat. He always sees the sunny side of life. He brings that into the camp. Sometimes I wish he’d be a little bit more serious. He’s on the verge of getting dumped out of the team, but then you see him play like he did tonight, where he just fronts up in some big moments – a turnover that was a game-changer. He’s a quality rugby player, learnt massively from the experiences last year, and is just going to get better and better, too.’’
Despite his relaxed manner, Ah Kuoi has a thirst for hard work to complement his athleticism, skills and strength, as well as a decent motor for a lock who is 1.96m and 116kg.
He is sixth on the list for most tackles won, with 62, in Super Rugby Aotearoa.
Chiefs forwards coach Neil Barnes has been working closely with Ah Kuoi since last year and is seeing him develop ‘‘awesomely well’’.
‘‘He’s going to grow another leg, isn’t he? But he’s had to understand what it means to be a professional,’’ Barnes said. ‘‘He expresses himself, and we encourage him to do that, but he’s got to do that work first.’’
The Chiefs have missed Retallick’s presence while he’s been in Japan since the 2019 World Cup, and while the 81-test All Black, who is due back next year, is irreplaceable, young guns such as Ah Kuoi and rookie All Blacks lock Tupou Vaa’i are cementing their spots in the second row.