Mo’unga the man of rhythm and ruse
Dancing with the stars: All Blacks first-five raised on reggae and ready to smoke Ireland defence with his moves
Rhythm, as it would happen, runs through Richie Mo’unga’s genes.
Mo’unga has played a mere 14 tests, starting only half, but his onfield rhythm is obvious. His see-and-do rhythm helped carry the Crusaders to three successive titles and that same rhythm pushed him into starting the All Blacks’ World Cup quarter-final tonight against Ireland in Tokyo.
Where Mo’unga the young aspiring playmaker once asked Dan Carter to pose with him for a fan picture after the 2008 Super Rugby final, he is now preparing to walk in his idol’s shoes on the global stages.
“There’s no doubt you’ve got to acknowledge this is a massive game,” Mo’unga tells the Weekend Herald. “You can’t shy away from it. You can’t be frightened by it. I’m definitely not frightened by it. I love these challenges. I love big games where everything is on the line. That’s a mindset I’ve grown over the last couple of years being a part of playoff and knockout stages.
“I love the feeling of the challenge and the pressure.”
Off the field, a different form of rhythm brings balance to Mo’unga’s pressure-filled world. No one, after all, has more on their shoulders than first five-eighths, not least in a World Cup knockout match against one of the world’s best defensive teams.
Along with walks to soak up the Japanese culture, coffee catch-ups, the popular dart board in his room and table tennis duels, dancing allows Mo’unga to switch off from the intensive rugby bubble.
Ardie Savea can bust a move with the best of them but Mo’unga is equally happy to boogie on down.
“Genuinely, I enjoy being a joker and fooling around. It’s something that relaxes me. I’m not a good dancer but I’m not one to be self-conscious about dancing in public or in front of the team. It’s something I love,” Mo’unga says. “I love dancing, I love singing. I love music. It’s a passion of mine.”
Knock on Mo’unga’s hotel door during rare test week downtime and you’ll often find him in full flow, grooving to his latest, favourite hip hop and rhythm and blues tracks.
Mo’unga was raised on a reggae diet. Whether it was Bob Marley or UB40, who he has since seen twice, the musical tastes of his parents centred on these laid back vibes.
“It’s funny how music can change how you feel. You listen to a good tune and it picks you up. When you’re feeling down music can cure that as well. It’s awesome.”
Mo’unga’s other point of difference is his heritage. Father, Saimone, is Tongan. Mother, Lila, is Samoan.
During Thursday’s press conference, Mo’unga detailed how he was inspired by the late Jonah Lomu, who although born in Auckland, held proud Tongan heritage.
Mo’unga’s strong sense of self, his range of skill and growing profile, has the ability to similarly connect and inspire the many Pacific Islanders who dream of playing for the All Blacks.
“My culture is huge. It’s made me who I am. It’s who I represent while playing for the All Blacks. I’m Tongan and Samoan. Usually Samoans and Tongans are fighting against each other and I’ve got both. It’s shaped me into who I am as a player and as a person and my parents have been huge in trying to instil our culture in me. “I’m very proud of both.”
If there’s one match that illustrates Mo’unga’s evolution it’s the Crusaders’ 12-3 loss to the Lions two years ago.
That night, as the Christchurch rain tumbled down, Mo’unga and his teammates were exposed to Andy Farrell’s defensive line speed for the first time. All involved absorbed valuable lessons applicable to tonight’s match, no individual more so than the man running the cutter against Ireland.
Mo’unga grew up wanting to run everything, wanting to attack and express his inherent flair at all times.
With recent experience he has grasped that test rugby doesn’t allow the same time and space as Super Rugby or the Mitre 10 Cup.
He has, therefore, adapted his mindset from what he can do, to how he can influence the team, put them in the right areas and the many different options to apply pressure.
That’s why the 25-year-old is already the main driver, a key leader, within the All Blacks.
“The game has changed a whole lot. Teams are doing exactly what the Lions were doing.
“It’s about how you can attack against it. There’s a lot of different ways. It’s about how to negate the line speed — you can do that without the ball, you maul the lineouts instead of playing or you kick the ball away to apply pressure,” he said.
“That’s the big understanding I’ve had to try to learn over the last couple of years. You want to run and attack everything but you’ve got to accept when a defence is doing really well to put you under pressure so you’ve got to go to other parts of your game instead of trying to run yourself out of danger.
“It’s a snowball effect and in that Lions game that’s exactly what happened. They put us under pressure that we couldn’t handle.”
Two years on, Mo’unga is tasked with applying those lessons to rhythmically dance his way into the Rugby World Cup semifinals.