AT THE HEART OF THE MATA

TIMING is everything in sport and, in that respect, Edinburgh can look back on the summer of 2016 and feel like they won a watch. It was a sliding doors moment, not only for the club but also in the career of a man who has since gone on to establish himself as a truly world-class operator. At that point, Viliame ‘Bill’ Mata was a 24-year-old Fijian trying to make his way in the game and his raw talents had yet to be rewarded with a professional contract. It certainly wasn’t for the want of trying. A string of English and French clubs were offered the chance to sign him, but all declined. They viewed him mainly as a Sevens player, unconvinced he could make the leap to 15s. That’s where Edinburgh came into the equation. As is the modus operandi of Scottish clubs, they saw value in what was being offered to them. Certainly greater value than some of the overpaid and overrated players being touted to them from Super Rugby. Recruiting a player who nobody else seemed to want, remarkable as that now seems in Mata’s case, came with considerable hazards. But it is a punt which has now paid off tenfold. After being contacted by Mata and his representative, an agreement was reached for him to join Edinburgh in July 2016, pending one or two issues around him being granted a visa. That came prior to his involvement in the Rio Olympics in August, where he was part of the Fiji team that won the Sevens tournament, beating Great Britain in the final. Suddenly, in the space of a few short weeks, Edinburgh had gone from signing a relatively unheralded player to having an Olympic gold medallist on their hands. A rough diamond, admittedly, and one which represented a classic case of risk versus reward. That it was the latter of the two is now beyond question, although things didn’t get off to the smoothest of starts for Mata in the capital. Big Bill, a nickname used with as much affection as fear, has since admitted he was overweight when arrived in Scotland. The next few months were spent not only adjusting to his new environment, but also trying to trim his immense physique. There was also the issue of Edinburgh’s on-field troubles. In Mata’s debut season in 2016-17, they finished fourth from bottom in the old Pro12. The catalyst for change, however, would come with Richard Cockerill’s appointment as head coach in summer 2017. It is under Cockerill’s guidance and transformation of the club that Mata has been given that platform to shine. ‘He’s one of our best players,’ enthused the Edinburgh boss as he looked ahead to tonight’s epic clash with Montpellier. ‘He’s going to be very important against the French as they will be well aware of his talents. If we’ve got any ambition as a club we have to keep players like him as he is one of our best. He’s going to be very important for us in the rest of the season.’ Watching him in full flow now, it is remarkable to think that this is a man who only three years ago had never played 15s. He was exclusively a Sevens player, with a rugby league background. It was in the World Sevens where he initially came to Edinburgh’s attention, which was then reaffirmed when his representative made contact with the club. Ben Ryan, the Fiji Sevens coach at the time, spoke in glowing terms about Mata when Edinburgh sought his counsel on him. Indeed, it was Ryan who plucked him from obscurity in Fijian provincial rugby. The rest, as they say, is history. To receive a glowing endorsement from such a well-respected coach served as the rubber stamp on Mata’s move to Edinburgh. He has since immersed himself in the culture of the Scottish capital. He regularly visits the Dreghorn army barracks, where he and others in the Fijian community share a close bond and cook meals for each other. He certainly seems in no rush to leave. With Mata under contract until 2020, Cockerill will fight tooth and nail to hang on to one of his key assets. And after Mata’s sublime offload for James Johnstone’s try in last weekend’s victory in Toulon, who could blame him? ‘Vili produces some match-winning moments but you could say that James Johnstone’s take from his offload is just as big a moment as the offload,’ Cockerill continued. ‘So they’re all important. Vili’s world-class and we hope he has his best game ever against Montpellier. ‘I think the way we play at Edinburgh suits him. He doesn’t tackle that much but he carries the ball superbly well and he can be the difference for us.’ And so comes tonight’s showdown with Montpellier, where victory would lead Cockerill and his players to the Heineken Champions Cup knockout stage. Mata, of course, is key to their hopes of progress; this Fijian force of nature whose dynamism and skillset puts him in a truly elite bracket of players around the world. Clubs will be lining up to try to tempt him away from Edinburgh. Not bad for a guy who, at one point, nobody wanted.