Source: Themba Hadebe
THE LOOK ON his face told you enough.
When you’re right by your line and you’re five points up in a Bledisloe Cup match and there’s just 41 seconds left on the clock, the touchline can seem like a narrow enough target.
It was October 30 2010, exactly 51 weeks short of the moment that would define Stephen Donald’s career.
He kicked deep and failed to find touch, and after phase upon phase of relentless Australian pressure James O’Connor sidled inside the All Black defence to level it up. His conversion won it, a first win against their Bledisloe rivals in 11 attempts.
The backlash was brutal, and Donald was hit with the brunt of it. At first, it just seemed like normal criticism, the price you pay for being an All Black. Eventually, it became too much.
“The public weren’t too impressed with me after Hong Kong and there weren’t too many times I ventured out that I didn’t get reminded of it.”
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The following June it was announced he was leaving the country for the Aviva Premiership and Bath after the World Cup’s conclusion, and when he was left out of the 30-man squad by Graham Henry soon after, he decided to enjoy what time he had left in New Zealand.
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He took in some of the World Cup as a fan. He caught up with his old friend Isaac Boss in Taupo and took in some games in Hamilton with Liam Messam, another player outside the All Blacks’ tent, looking in.
He pointed the car for the wilderness, he packed up the fishing rods and nets, and he set off for the Waikato River.
“I knew I was going to Bath, so I decided I was going to leave for a bit of a break, so I just went out hanging with family and friends.
“I was imagining that I was going away from New Zealand for such a long time, so I said I wanted to live everything I love about New Zealand.”
“I went and fished and socialised and in the end had a few barbecues and a fair few fishing trips before I planned to go to Bath.”
By now, the World Cup was the last thing on his mind. He cracked open a few beers and enjoyed himself, one final holiday at home before his career would ultimately take him away for the next four years.
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All the while, his All Black teammates, and in particular the out-halves, were dropping like flies. Dan Carter’s groin injury bumped Colin Slade into the firing line, and Aaron Cruden got the coveted late call-up. Donald didn’t even bother checking his phone.
As if there was something in the New Zealand air, it was another groin injury that put Slade on the sidelines, a week after he’d taken over the 10 jersey from Carter.
Aaron Cruden would start the semi-final against Australia, Donald would be called in. The only problem was that while the exiled out-half was still technically in the country, he may as well have been a million miles away.
“I knew Ted wouldn’t be ringing me for a cup of tea, so I had a fair idea what it was going to be about.”
Donald sitting between coach Wayne Smith and the also called-up Hosea Gear after arriving in camp Source: Andrew Cornaga
He didn’t have to be asked twice. After celebrating his Grandmother’s birthday that night, he was in a tracksuit in Auckland the following afternoon.
However, he still knew his place. He’d been told he was the reserve, but that didn’t bother him. Considering 24 hours earlier he’d been by a riverside on his holidays, there was nowhere he’d rather be.
“Since I’d been a young boy all you ever want to do is play for the All Blacks and until the day they chuck me in a coffin I’ll still have that dream. There was no way I wouldn’t have accepted it, it’s not who I am.
“They told me on the phone that I’d be on the bench and we can go from there. I knew exactly where I stood.”
After a few weeks of beer and barbecue and chilling out, he wasn’t exactly World Cup conditioned.
Donald’s jersey didn’t quite fit, as he kicks the winning points in the final. Source: PA Archive/Press Association Images
In time it would become a source of amusement, even the jersey he wore against France in the final kept sliding up his back. It wasn’t the best fit, but he didn’t really care.
He didn’t leave the bench in the semi-final win against Australia, but he wasn’t expecting to either. Aaron Cruden was holding down the fort at 10 and scrum-half Piri Weepu was on the tee, but he wasn’t looking comfortable.
30 minutes into the final against France a week later Donald found himself taking off the tracksuit. The out-half curse had struck again.
Cruden had twisted a knee, and Donald got the nod. It was a week short of one year since he’d been vilified by the public; no better time to answer the critics.
The memories of the previous 12 months were making him more and more determined to right the wrongs, like kindling on a bonfire.
Piri Weepu had been on kicking duties since the semi, but by half-time in the final he’d scored just four of his last 10 attempts on goal, and was 0 from 3 in the final.
When the first chance to kick for goal came at the start of the second half, Donald grabbed the tee. It may have felt like just another kick, but it was much more than that. It crept inside the post. The lead was eight.
“I’ve said it before and as the time’s passed since the game, if I’d thought about it and realised the significance of it I’d probably have been under a bit more pressure than I felt at the time.”
When the final whistle went in Eden Park and the scoreline read 8-7 in New Zealand’s favour, Donald had completed his transformation.
Two weeks beforehand he’s been sipping beer and catching whitebait by the pound. Now, he’d just kicked the winning points in the World Cup final.
“It was the most bizarre feeling imaginable. I guess the thing that I remember more than anything is that feeling after the final and spending time with the team and the reaction of all New Zealand. Just the joy that it brought to the country.”
“Beaver’s” status in the country went from rags to riches in the blink of an eye. Instead of being the guy that lost a Bledisloe Cup, he’s the guy that won the World Cup.
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In sport, your reputation can change with the tides, but Donald’s happy he went through the rough, if it means he came out smooth at the end.
“It is what it is, and yes it is fickle and all the rest, but I appreciate the significance that rugby has in New Zealand, and when you sign up for it you know what you get and you wouldn’t trade it for anything.
After finishing with Bath in 2013 he spent time playing in Japan, four years away from the country in total. He’s now back where it all began, wearing the red, yellow and black of his home province.
You’ve just spoken to him the morning after his Waikato homecoming, a 30-25 win against Southland in the ITM Cup.
The New Zealand Herald’s report the the following morning described him as an “All Blacks folk hero”.
They weren’t wrong there.
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