The Moana Pasifika difference: ‘It’s a special journey to be part of’
Moana Pasifika aren’t just about winning, but, writes David Long, that’s something which continues to inspire Aaron Mauger.
Coaching Moana Pasifika isn’t like coaching any other rugby team, but that’s something which continues to excite Aaron Mauger.
The former All Black is leading the fledgling team for their second season of Super Rugby Pacific, which starts next weekend and he continues to find his role one which offers more than just what happens for 80 minutes each week.
Every expansion team in Super Rugby has struggled, whether that’s the Force and Rebels in Australia or the now barely remembered Sunwolves and Jaguares. None has won the title.
Under its new guise of Super Rugby Pacific, Moana Pasifika and Fijian Drua were the two bottom teams last year, which wasn’t unexpected.
Both will hope to do better this time and Mauger talks positively about making the playoffs. But the thing with Moana Pasifika is they’ll never be just another rugby team.
As it says on their website: ‘‘As both a sports team and a movement, our vision is for Moana Pasifika to be that rising wave for all Pasifika people, lifting us all up and improving all of our lives.’’
That elevates them way beyond the tokenistic community visits other Super Rugby teams do and while it’s inspiring to have such goals, there is the risk of this impacting what happens on the field.
Yes, it’s great to inspire communities and one of the best ways of doing that is by winning games, but that, and the unique situation around Moana Pasifika to promote players from the Islands, puts a unique pressure on Mauger, but it’s one he’s revelling in.
‘‘Coaching this team is definitely different, there’s a different feel. It’s a pretty awesome feeling to be fair,’’ Mauger said.
‘‘It is a special journey to be a part of and it’s something we acknowledge and ground ourselves with every day, whether we’re having good times or tough times, we’ve got some pretty good anchors to come back to, to realise the opportunity we have and to inspire not only young aspiring rugby players coming through, but the whole Pasifika community.
‘‘We’re achieving some things on the field with the growth of our rugby programme, but we’re starting to have a broader impact right through the community, which our boys are proud of.’’
At the age of 42, Mauger has already achieved a lot as a coach. He started off as an assistant with the Crusaders in 2013, became head coach of Leicester Tigers in 2015 and led the Highlanders from 2018 to 2020.
At Moana Pasifika he has the potential to establish something special that could live on for generations, but as always, it comes down to results.
‘‘We certainly have aspirations around where we want to be come finals time and that’s one of our goals, to be playing finals footy this year,’’ Mauger said.
‘‘It’s something I’m keen for our whole organisation to embrace. We’ve been driving that mentality through not only the playing group, but everyone around what that’s going to take, to be in that space.
‘‘It requires everyone to be fully committed and buy in to what we’re trying to achieve.
‘‘We’ve been courageous with our ambition and that’s exciting. You’ve got to have something to believe in and I believe we have the people to seriously push ourselves into that space.
‘‘We had 38 of our 39 guys getting a taste of it last year, experiencing some magical moments, experiencing some games that got away from us, where things were under our own control.
‘‘But I don’t think we’re too far away and the top eight is realistic for us.’’
Leading Moana Pasifika is a role not every coach would be capable of doing, but it’s something Mauger has embraced, even if it has come with personal sacrifices.
‘‘I’m loving it. Obviously, the challenge is being away from my family, they’re still down south,’’ he said.
‘‘But I’m lucky I have a very supportive wife and she understands my passion and I love being involved in the game.
‘‘Last year, this wasn’t what I saw myself doing, to be fair. I was about to move back to Christchurch and look at a different path for a while, but I happened to end up here after conversations with inspiring men, Sir Michael Jones and Sir Bryan Williams.
‘‘They sold the vision to me around what we could achieve and the opportunity to reach so many more people than just footy fans.
‘‘I was inspired by the vision and have really enjoyed it.’’