Billy still treasures his family’s warm Valleys welcome
BILLY VUNIPOLA will seek to trump any cross-border hatred on Saturday by harnessing the power of love in Cardiff — in tribute to a Welshman who helped his family settle in the UK. The Saracens No 8 and younger of England’s two Vunipola brothers spoke movingly yesterday of how the culture-shock migration from the South Pacific to Pontypool was made more bearable by the welcome they received. When former Tonga captain Fe’ao Vunipola brought his wife and children with him to the Valleys, they were warmly embraced by the community, which went a long way to helping them settle. This is why Billy will not go to the Principality Stadium for England’s next Guinness Six Nations contest driven by any of the animosity which often underpins this explosive fixture. ‘It’s a big game but there’s no hate there,’ he said yesterday. ‘I think love works better than hate because you have a clear mind. With hate, you think everything’s wrong and it’s everyone else’s fault. ‘There’s a lot of love for people in Wales. Where we kind of fall apart is when England-Wales comes into it. That’s when we divide. But that’s only once or twice a year and it’s nothing crazy — they will support Wales and I will play for England, so they won’t be supporting me.’ Recalling the arrival in Pontypool, when he was just six, Vunipola added: ‘We hold a lot of people in high regard in Wales. We have a lot of family, friends, people who really helped us out when we came over here. ‘Extra duvets, extra pillows, jumpers — all those little things. We were very naive when we came over and didn’t think it would be that cold. So we were grateful for all those little gestures, and big things too — like helping with visas and my dad’s work permit. We came in the winter in shorts and T-shirts. We didn’t know what to bring. We had knives and forks in our luggage — you wouldn’t be able to do that now! ‘You know when it’s cold and you can see yourself breathing? We thought that was the coolest thing ever until we got home and it was still there. We pretended we were like the old guys smoking, but it wasn’t cool when you were trying to go to sleep and it was still cold.’ One individual was particularly supportive. ‘Funnily enough, it was a kit-man from the club at Pontypool,’ said Billy, 26. ‘He took pity on my Dad and us as his little family. He has just passed away and we were at his funeral in Wales a few months ago. Terry Gordon. I called him Tiger. Great guy. I will be thinking of him on Saturday.’ There was another culture shock to come for the Vunipolas, when they moved to England. A first taste of London had a profound effect on Billy, who said: ‘I just remember how busy it was and being scared of it. We went from Pontypool to London, which was like zero to 100 in terms of people being around. ‘I remember having to hold everyone’s hands all the time. It just scared me!’ Not much scares Vunipola these days, but there have been nerves, as he is returning from repeated arm fractures — the latest of which kept him out of the autumn Tests. He has appeared slightly tentative so far in this championship and knows the time has come to raise his game in Cardiff. ‘I’ve been building up a little bit of confidence, and for me it’s a good time to try to play some of my better rugby,’ he said. ‘I’ve been trying to build up to it but there’s more urgency this week because my brother (Mako) is not here and Maro (Itoje) has been out for two weeks, so I’d like to try to see if I can play my best game.’