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'At Exeter I'd issues, I used that as a learning and I'm thankful'
Nemani Nadolo is proud that he will soon leave the Gallagher Premiership with his head held very high following his exemplary two-and-a-half years at Leicester. The Fijian powerhouse could understandably have baulked at the idea of ever playing in England again given how shattering his short-lived 2011 spell at Exeter was.
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Having originally arrived in Europe to play for Bourgoin in the Top 14, he made a mid-season 2010/11 hop across the Channel to link with a Chiefs operation that at the time was getting used to life in the top-flight for the first time following promotion from the Championship.
A miserly five appearances were all Nadolo managed on the pitch for the Chiefs, limited exposure not helped by the Australian passport gaffe where he was mistakenly picked alongside two other non-Kolpak players which resulted in Exeter being docked two points and fined £5,000.
More gravely, he was arrested for drink-driving, fined and banned from driving, a conviction that resulted in him getting released from his contract the day after a magistrates court appearance and having to head to Japan to rescue a career that had hit the buffers.
Given that deflating experience, Nadolo might have easily crossed England off his list of preferred destinations when it came to moving on from Montpellier after the premature end to the pandemic interrupted 2019/20 Top 14 campaign. He thought the opposite, however, and his decision to hook up with the Tigers became life-affirming.
Asked by RugbyPass for his thoughts on returning to the Premiership in the summer of 2020 to Leicester nine years after slipping out the Exeter back door, Nadolo said: “I am always a big believer in second chances and that everything happens for a reason. Coming to Leicester, I realised when I was at Exeter I had issues both on and off the field. I used that as a learning and I’m thankful for it.
“I am grateful that it [Exeter] did happen to me at that age because it helped me become the player that I am today as well and that is part of the journey that you go on as a rugby career. What excited me about coming to Leicester was it was a young squad at the time and you just didn’t know what you were getting yourself into. Thankfully, 24 months later, we won the thing.”
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Now 34 and poised to head to the Waratahs before the end of 2022 on a one-year deal covering the 2023 Super Rugby Pacific season, Nadolo revelled in being an older, wiser figure in the Steve Borthwick-inspired transformation of Leicester from back-to-back eleventh place strugglers into champions of England last June.
What helped greatly was his own change in mindset. Nadolo had previously been the sort of character who would seek out what was said about him good and bad and that negatively affected him as he was constantly comparing himself to other wingers. Getting to Leicester, though, was the prompt for him to all-out enjoy who is his and what he brings to the rugby party, not what he is lacking in his game.
“I genuinely used to worry about what people thought. Throughout my career, there were always a lot of people that would say this about me, and I used to get satisfaction out of that whether I would have a good game or a bad game. It probably weighed me down a little bit.
“I used to always take people’s perspectives about me as a rugby player in a lot. I am a big winger and there are always people who are going to say this about me, I’m too slow, I’m this and that. It used to get to me, I’m not going to lie, but then I just realised I am different from everyone. What I offer is different to the likes of Chris Ashton.
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“I stopped comparing myself to other wings, that is what I did. I just stopped comparing myself and accepted who I was, who I am. The sooner I got that I just enjoyed my rugby and it is like I am playing the game, they’re not, and now when I do get people that say this and that about me it’s water off a duck’s back.
“I have just got to look at myself and if I have done everything I can I should be happy but for so long I was always comparing myself to other wings. Don’t get me wrong, as the years go on the wingers are really quick. As you see here in the Premiership you have got the likes of (Adam) Radwan and Jonny May and these guys are rapid.
“I have had to play against them but rather than see it as daunting, I see it as a challenge and it’s good. It’s an opportunity for me to see where I am at with these guys. I’m never going to be quicker than them, never going to be fitter than them but the one thing I do have [size], I try and use it to my advantage.”
Why did this epiphany occur at Leicester after years of playing elsewhere around the globe? “I guess the situation around me changed. I came into Leicester as one of the older guys rather than going into other teams I have been in where I wasn’t so much the older guy. Naturally, when you are the older guy the younger guys are going to look up to you and I can’t be thinking like that and I had to change.
“Again, I just stopped comparing myself. I just enjoyed the challenge and the Premiership has so many talented wingers and rather than look at it as daunting, it’s okay, I know you are quicker than me that is for sure but… it just keeps my mind ticking over because it makes me realise okay, there is things that I need to do to get myself right.”
When he leaves the Premiership behind in the next few months for a return to Super Rugby ahead of his 35thth birthday in January, what is the standout winger moment Nadolo will take with him from his latest stint in England?
“The biggest one for me is Radwan, Newcastle Falcons. He is a kid that is going to go places. I am a big fan of him and how he plays the game. I’ve followed his career so far so, have played him a few times and a few times he has run around me and made me look silly.
“Yeah, obviously he is not my Leicester teammate but as someone who is in opposition, Radwan is someone who I guess is only going to get better as well which is scary. He has got a big future in him.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Gee my Highlanders were terrible. They have gone backwards since the start of the season. The trouble began when we left Millar behind to prep as the 10 against the Brumbies and he was disconnected from the team that came back from Aussie. We rested Patchell for that game and we blew an avalanche of ball in good attacking positions in the 1st half. Against the Rebels we seem to of gone into a pod system with forwards hanging off from the breakdown leaving Fakatava to secure our ball!
72 Go to commentsPot Kettle, the English and French teams have done it for years.
19 Go to commentsHas virtually played every minute of previous games. Back row of Li Lo Willie , Grace and Blackadder would be the 1. Crusaders issue is a very average 1st 5 who cannot run. Kicking in general play is also below par They need to put Yong Kemara in. He must have so.e talent for them to bring him down from Waikato. Hoehepa would struggle to play in so.e club sided
4 Go to commentsI hope this a good thing making all these changes!
2 Go to commentsThe Hurricanes are good, especially with a decent coach now. However, let’s be real, the Crusaders and Chiefs are clearly a good degree weaker without the players they’ve lost overseas now. The Canes lost one player. It’s also why the aussie teams ‘seem’ to be stronger.
9 Go to commentsOr you could develop your own players instead of constantly taking from the SH competition and weakening it in the process? With all the player and financial resources these unions have compared to SH countries you’d think they could manage that, or is weakening the SH comps and their national sides an added bonus? Probably.
3 Go to commentsNot so fast Aaron, we might need you in black yet lol. God knows he’d be a lot less nerve-racking than hot and (very) cold players like Perofeta. It’s really a shame Reuben Love isn’t playing 10, we’ve got enough 15 options.
4 Go to commentsAnd those from the NH still seem to be puzzled (and delighted) why NZ’s depth isn’t what it once was. Over 600 NZ players overseas, that’s insane. This sort of deal is why Super Rugby coaches have admitted they struggle now to find enough quality to fill out their squads.
6 Go to commentsArticle intéressant ! La question devrait régulièrement se poser pour les jeunes français originaires de Nouvelle-Calédonie, Wallis-et-Futuna et de Polynésie entre la Nouvelle-Zélande et la Métropole… Difficile pour la fédération française de rugby de se positionner : soit le choix est fait de dénicher les jeunes talents et de les faire venir très tôt en Métropole, au risque de les déraciner, soit on prend le risque de se les faire “piller” par les All Blacks qui, telle une araignée, essaye de récupérer tous les talents des îles du Pacifique… À la France de se défendre en développant l’aura du XV de France et des clubs français dans ses collectivités d’Outre-mer !
3 Go to commentsWrong bay. He needs to come to the REAL BAY which is Bay Of Plenty and have a crack at making the Chiefs.
3 Go to commentsIs Barrett going play full back??? They already have all the centers…
15 Go to commentsForgive my ignorance, I might not fully understand so would appreciate clarification: Didn’t the Bulls have to fly with three different carriers, paid for by the South African Rugby Union, whilst Edinburgh got a chartered flight sponsored by EPCR? Also, as far as I understand it South African teams don’t yet share in the revenue from the competition and are not allowed to host Semi-finals or Finals at home. Surely if everyone wants South Africans to “take the competition seriously” then they must make South Africans feel welcome, allow them to share in the revenue, and give them the same levels of access as the teams from the other countries. Just a reminder that South Africa has a large and passionate Rugby audience. Just by virtue of our teams being a part of these competitions means that more of us are likely to watch the knockout games, even if our teams haven’t qualified. It would be silly to alienate such a large audience by making them feel unwelcome.
19 Go to commentsFirst of all. This guy is very much behind the curve. All the bleating, whingeing, whining and moaning took place days ago already. Not adding anything to the topic other than more bleating, whingeing, whining and moaning. 🍼 Second of all, not one mention of the fact that South African teams can’t get home semi finals or finals. The tournament was undermined and devalued by the administrators. 🤡 Thirdly, football teams often have to juggle selections in mid week games, premier games, champions league games etc. and will from time to time prioritize certain titles over others. 🐒 And lastly FEK Neil, and anyone else for that matter, for insisting on telling teams how to manage themselves. If they make what is largely a business decision that suits them and doesn’t suit you - tough shite. 💩 It’s not rocket science as to why the Bulls did what they did. If this guy is too slow to figure it out (and is deliberately not mentioning one of the key reasons why) then he isn’t a journalist. He should join the rest of us pundit plebs in comments section. 🥴
19 Go to commentsSo the first door to knock on Rob is Parliament followed by HMRC. The Irish Revenue deliver a 40% tax relief rebate on the HIGHEST EARNING TEN YEARS of every pro Irish rugby players contract earnings at retirement. That goes a long way to both retaining their best talent and freeing up wages for marquee players. Who knows, if that had been in place in the UK, you might not have been able to poach Hoggy and Jonny Gray from Glasgow…!!!
3 Go to comments1. True, if that “free” ticket means access to all but the prized exhibit - EVIP only. SA cannot host semis, even if they’ve earned it (see Sharks vs ASM Clermont Auvergne at… Twickenham Stoop). 2. Why no selective outrage over Lyon doing the exact same thing a week earlier? Out of all the countries France send the most “B teams”, why nobody talking about “disrespect” and “prioritising domestic leagues” and “kicking them out”? 3. Why no mention of the Sharks fielding all of their Springboks for the second rate Challenge cup QF? No commitment? 4. Why no mention of all the SA teams qualifying for respective euro knock out comps in the two seasons they’ve been in it? How many euro teams have qualified for KO’s in their history? Can’t compete? 5. Why no mention of SA teams beating French and English giants La Rochelle and Saracens? How many euro teams have done that in their history? Add no quality? The fact is that SA teams are only in their second season in europe, with no status and a fraction of the resources. Since joining the URC, SA has seen a repatriation of a number of players, and this will only grow once SA start sharing in the profits of competing in these comps, meaning bigger squads with greater depth and quality, meaning they don’t have to prioritise comps as they have to now - they don’t have imports from Pacifica and South America and everywhere else in between like “European” teams have - also less “Saffas” in Prem and T14, that’s what we want right? 'If the South Africans are in, they need to be all in' True, and we have to ensure we give them the same status and resources as we give everyone else to do just that. A small compromise on scheduling will go a long way in avoiding these situations, but guess what, France and England wont compromise on scheduling because they ironically… prioritise their domestic comps, go figure!
19 Go to commentsthe success of the premiership can be summarized by : only 10 teams. It makes a huge difference with the overcrowded top 14 (let us not talk about Leinster and URC…)
1 Go to commentsGood for him. The ABs were fooling around again with converted fullbacks that had a penetration of a marshmallow. Laumape or as Aki has shown for Ireland, go forward is important in the centres. If it had been DMac - Aki- Aumua - Ioane- Telea- Jordan in France the final result would have been different.
4 Go to commentsDan Carter a apporté son professionnalisme, des méthodes de travail, un esprit qui manquaient à l’USAP. Son influence, même une fois blessé a été énorme. Et pour citer une anecdote, certains soirs il venait de lui-même à l’entraînement des jeunes pour dispenser ses conseils. On ne peut pas compter ce qu’il a apporté au club en heures de jeu sur le terrain. Est-ce que le club en a eu pour son argent ? Avec la publicité sur son nom et le titre, je suppose que oui.
1 Go to commentsThe SA sides are suffering from a bum rap here. There isn’t a side anywhere in the world that would do things differently in their shoes. They’ve been set up to fail in the EPCR comps by vested interests, with last minute intercontinental travel requirements that costs an arm and a leg to book in advance just on the possibility they might be required. And the total nonsense that denies any chance of home venues is entirely biased and absolutely unsporting. Either EPCR, the Top14 & the Gallagher Premiership get it sorted on a fair and equitable sporting basis for ALL participants or expect the ridicule to continue. Right now, these comps are a joke!
19 Go to commentsSA sides should do the right thing and leave the champions cup, they are lowering the standard with completely one sided games, not up to the right level. The greatest club tournament in the world is being banjaxed by the weak SA sides.
19 Go to comments