‘‘It’s just real hard to see a kid go through that’’ Liam Messam’s heartwarming reason to get back in the ring
Former All Black takes up invite to Super Rugby training, but he tells Aaron Goile it’s boxing and a heartfelt cause, which is a major focus.
Chiefs legend Liam Messam may just not have played his final game of Super Rugby after all, but it’s boxing and a heartfelt cause, which is occupying most of the former All Black’s attention.
Having notched a record 179 matches for the franchise between 2006 and 2018, including captaining them to their two titles, Messam has been back in Chiefs’ colours – well, the bright purple and teal training hues, at least – the past few months after taking up an invitation to ‘‘spread a little bit of grey hair on the young fellas’’.
After two seasons at French club Toulon, Messam last year returned home, chiefly to ‘‘be a dad’’ to his two school-aged sons. He linked back up with Waikato for the Mitre 10 Cup, then also featured for the Ma¯ ori All Blacks in their clash against Moana Pasifika in Hamilton in December, but didn’t put his name forward for selection in Super Rugby, instead wanting more family time.
The itch is always there, though, and for a man who has been renowned for the exceptional way in which he looks after his body, through both meticulous nutrition and training, the 37-year-old is loving being a ‘‘live tackle bag for the boys’’ after coach Clayton McMillan, assistant Roger Randle and co-captain Sam Cane got in touch to say the door was always open at their Ruakura HQ.
So Messam chooses one day a week to put the mouthguard in, lace up the boots and take part in training. Not half-hearted, either.
‘‘S ... yeah, bro, fully into it,’’ he tells the Sunday Star-Times of how hard he goes.
‘‘If I’m going to come down I’m going to do everything at 100 per cent, that’s just the person I am. There’s got to be a purpose of what I’m trying to do.
‘‘The first contact session, there probably would have been a few yellow cards, a few high tackles that I was putting in. But that happens when you’ve been out of the game for a few months. But it’s good banter with the boys too, the young fellas chipping at me.’’
Messam revealed a couple of other Super sides had actually reached out about linking with them, though he never seriously considered it.
‘‘Everyone knows that I’m a Chiefs man through and through, it’s in my DNA, it’s in my blood,’’ he says. ‘‘They were just throwing it out there seeing if I was willing to take the bait.
‘‘If I hadn’t enjoyed my summer, then maybe. But I was enjoying dad life, going to play golf when I wanted to. With rugby, I’ve been on a schedule for 17 years, so this is the first time I can wake up when I want and plan my trainings and do my own things.
‘‘But I always go back to the reason why I came home from France, and that was to spend quality time with my kids.
‘‘With Super Rugby, you’ve got to put your full effort into it, every day, every week.’’
That’s not to say he would turn down an opportunity to run out for the Chiefs again, though, if crisis point came in the loose forward department.
‘‘Who knows, anything could happen,’’ Messam says.
‘‘I wouldn’t say no.
‘‘If they really needed me to play, they got down to the last straws, there was no-one else, then I’m more than happy to chuck on that jersey again.’’
Just not next weekend. Because, at the same time as his Chiefs’ mates are in action against the Crusaders in Hamilton on Saturday night, down the road at Lake Karapiro Messam will be jumping in the boxing ring instead.
Lining up against Joe Ageli in one of four professional fights on a card complemented by corporate bouts, the Iron Fist 10 event at the Don Rowlands Centre will see Messam fighting to raise money for his nephew’s battle with brain cancer.
Nine-year-old Antonio PohatuBarbarich, of Tauranga, was last November diagnosed with medulloblastoma – a cancerous tumour at the base of the skull. Following two brain surgeries and radiation treatment, he is now into his second lot of chemotherapy.
And thanks to a remarkable coincidence, and a lightbulb moment from Messam, the boxing night has been used as a vehicle to raise $50,000 for Antonio’s family, who have relocated to Auckland to be with him at Starship Children’s Hospital.
‘‘They asked me to repost something on Instagram for a Givealittle page, and then literally that same day, Nigel that’s running this boxing event asked me if I was keen to get back in the ring,’’ Messam says.
‘‘And it was just like, those two things happen at the same time for a reason. So I was like ‘Bro, I’ll jump in the ring, but we’re going to turn it into a charity match, and I’m going to try and raise as much money as I can for Antonio and his wha¯ nau.
‘‘It’s just real hard to see a kid go through that, and the wha¯ nau have to go through all that as well. So the bro’s fighting his own fight. He’s kicking cancer’s arse at the moment.’’
The event, which can also be booked on pay per view on
Facebook, will have Messam in his second professional bout, having beaten Australian Rhys Sullivan by unanimous decision on debut in Sydney in 2015. Previously he had a win against Wendell Sailor (2011) and a loss against Paul Gallen (2013) at the Fight for Life events.
There’s been 13 weeks of training and about 100 rounds of sparring for the four three-minute rounds, which could be a prelude to more bouts for Messam in future.
‘‘We’ll see how it goes, it’s all good saying you’ll have a few more fights until you jump in the ring and box,’’ he says.
‘‘There’s no place you can hide. You’re doing something that’s totally out of your comfort zone. But I love it ... I love the actual art and science of boxing.
‘‘I’m in really good shape, I’ve lost a few Christmas kgs, and it’s kept me fit for further on down the track when I put the boots back on.’’
That is set to be in the NPC. Messam hasn’t signed for 2021 yet, but the plan is to go again. He is just seven caps away from three figures, and it’s a special year for the Mooloos, as they celebrate their centenary.
‘‘I’ve never played rugby for those sort of milestones, but it’d be pretty cool to do a hundy in the 100th year of Waikato,’’ he says.
A factor Messam believes is helping his longevity and that he feels could be key to others, is CBD oil.
Having first taken it after moving his career offshore, the effects were so profound that he and former NZ Sevens rep Teddy Stanaway have started their own company in France – Ora CBD.
‘‘It’s been awesome, it’s going really well,’’ Messam says.
‘‘We’re trying to make it a big success in France so we can bring it back here to Aotearoa, whenever that is, and we can give it at an affordable price to help benefit our people.’’