New year’s drama proves to be much ado about nothing
I had to fight some pretty tough demons. Sonny Bill Williams
seeing it as rugby failed.
When it didn’t, he refused to back out. ‘‘A lot of people won’t believe that,’’ says Williams, ‘‘because of the way I left the Bulldogs. But there, I felt like I had a deal, and they [reneged].’’
The Bulldogs, he says, also shaped him. ‘‘But not in the sense people think. That it’s about money. It’s quite the opposite.’’ But he says, somewhat sorrowfully, he has long since given up on trying to influence public opinion; Nasser, in contrast, is rather gleeful about his ongoing feud with sections of the Sydney media. ‘‘Have you ever seen a crew more vilified than ours?’’ he chirps.
Combine the experience of good (France) and the bad (Sydney), and Williams believes it made him strong enough to keep choosing challenge over comfort – and to tell people what he’s worth.
‘‘What I think about,’’ he says, ‘‘is what is, A, going to get the best out of me; B, where I am going to be happy; and C, pretty much back to A, I know I’ve got to perform.
‘‘ So if you put yourself into situations where you have to perform it is risky – you can sit back and bank on what you did last year, or you can take the risk and do something. It keeps me hungry. I’ve just got so many things I want to achieve. ‘‘ They might be
an
escape
route
if agenda last week – not painfully justifying their housing policy. And certainly not playing games with parliamentary procedure, irrelevant to most outside of Thorndon.
Last week was a shocker for National – with the Novopay disaster and a scathing report on Defence cuts. But even in the midst of this, it managed to score some wins. A proposal to put prisoners to work was an easy hit. And Justice Minister Judith Collins managed to come out of a legal action stoush with David Bain’s lawyers without a scratch – talking up the potential cost to the taxpayer.
The teachers’ payroll saga was ‘‘Joyced’’, proving Key has played a blinder appointing his Mr Fixit. dreams in the long run, but I wouldn’t ever think I would be sitting here right now having accomplished some of the things I have done,’’ says Williams.
Does he influence others? ‘‘Aw,’’ says Williams, momentarily discomfited, ‘‘I just push as far as I can, to test my limits. But I haven’t gone out to try and be a trendsetter, although people will try and make it out as though I have.’’
NASSER IS spruiking now. He’s awkward, but he’s also a charmer. Convivial. He wants this story to be about the boxing.
Williams fights the veteran South African Francois Botha in Brisbane this Friday, his sixth pro fight, roughly Nasser’s 50th show.
On fight nights, the famously scruffy Nasser – usually wearing sandals, sportsgear, a backpack, untrimmed beard – will shuffle around with a sheath of complimentary tickets hiding under the brim of his baseball cap. ‘‘ The Lebanese Robert De Niro,’’ quips Sky TV’s Fellet.
Invited to watch a fight night close up, the Sydney Morning Herald’s Greg Baum concluded it was a shambles, albeit a shambles that worked. Nasser liked the story.
Boxing began as fun for Williams, but now shapes as a possible long-term career. He denies any plan. Nasser has one, but won’t say what it is.
‘‘I would never want my son to be a boxer but if he was I wouldn’t mind him being represented by Khoder,’’ concludes Fellet. ‘‘ He seems genuinely interested in the long- term career. Some of the things he does may seem schizophrenic – from rugby to league to boxing – but they have a masterplan.’’ DON’T GET me wrong. I love a drama as much as the next woman. But the carry-on in electing a Speaker last week – was that really a winning way for Labour to begin the political year?
Yes, National behaved arrogantly but Labour were dancing in the corridors, promising ‘‘theatre’’ as they tried to thwart the election of David Carter.
If you want theatre, forgo your $140,000-plus a year salary and join the circus.
This week – another recess – Labour really needs to put on its game face. At a caucus meeting in Henderson tomorrow, MPs will (fingers crossed) endorse David Shearer’s leadership.
The party can’t afford to reopen those wounds so he’s safe. For now. In theory, Shearer has got his ducks in a row: Labour’s priority this year is taking it to the Government on jobs, housing and education.
But Shearer’s first speech (last Sunday in Wainuiomata) was a fizzer. He’s lost momentum from his win over leadership rival David Cunliffe by dragging his heels on a reshuffle. Waiting for the outcome of the auditor-general’s report into the Shane Jones/Bill Liu case looks indecisive.
Meanwhile, John Key started the year with a major media coup – a trip to the ice. Add to that an unexpected shake-up of his cabinet, and a minor, inoffensive, policy announcement. (On closer inspection, it was reallocated money, but more apprentices for Christchurch is never going to lose you votes.) His lacklustre state of the nation speech also took a shot at red-tape obsessed local councils, always a popular bogeyman.
Key – and the press gallery, antsy after a few weeks off – demolished Labour’s new housing policy. By the end of the week, no-one was quite sure what Shearer was building for $300,000. The loss of 200 jobs in Oamaru – and a succession of high-profile submitters at Monday’s manufacturing inquiry – served to underline the Government’s torpor. Labour should have ensured this dominated their Steven Joyce pre-empted a dump of official documents by shopping his cabinet colleagues Bill English, Hekia Parata and Craig Foss for signing off on the flawed Novopay system. And he unveiled an impressive plan to make it look like the Government is taking Novopay seriously. Announcing a ministerial inquiry suggests the Government is confident it can pin the blame on officials.
National ended the week on 46.5 per cent to Labour’s 31.5 in the latest Roy Morgan poll. Come on Labour. Much as you might wish it, Key has shown no indication he’s run out of steam. National is not going to roll over and allow the electoral cycle to deliver you victory in 2014.