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There’s a certain aura that surrounds New Zealand rugby players. Liana Mikaele-Tu’u and Layla Sae have all the athleticism, talent and professionalism that come with being a Black Fern but during a joint interview at Harlequins’ training ground in Surrey, what stands out most is their humility, refreshing honesty and wicked sense of humour.
The duo have signed for the Premiership Women’s Rugby (PWR) club until March. Sae, fresh off the plane from New Zealand, could make her debut against Exeter Chiefs on Sunday, while Mikaele-Tu’u already has a few appearances under her belt after joining a few weeks earlier.
Part of the attraction of playing in England, they say, is the enthusiasm for women’s sport. Both experienced the energy of large crowds when representing New Zealand during the Rugby World Cup earlier this year. But the 25-year-old Sae says: “I think it’s the quality of rugby. If we were at home we would just be training [the Super Rugby season starts in March]. I think it is going to be good for our rugby knowledge to see how this side of the world plays and get some insight into their gameplans, different ideas and upskill.”
The 23-year-old Mikaele-Tu’u says the Quins squad have been welcoming and took her from the airport to a party they were throwing for her teammate Clàudia Peña’s birthday. Mikaele-Tu’u will be staying in England over Christmas and her Quins teammate Lagi Tuima and her family have already invited her to join their celebrations.
Sae, who is making the trip home for the holiday period, arrived in England on Monday and mentions she is going to meet the rest of her teammates later that day. Mikaele-Tu’u, a World Cup winner in 2022, jokes she will be put in charge of being the DJ in the gym and it’s suggested the flanker could play the song she is named after, Eric Clapton’s Layla. “My dad named me,” she says. “He heard it when we were at the supermarket when I was a week old and he picked my name.”
Mikaele-Tu’u and Sae have been playing alongside each other in the Black Ferns squad over the past two years and are fresh from the World Cup, where they won a bronze medal. But the Black Ferns lost a first World Cup match in 11 years when Canada beat them 34-19 in the semi-final.
“It was pure shock,” Mikaele-Tu’u says. “That was the first response. I didn’t think we were losing until the 75th minute. I was just in denial. I wanted us to win so badly. When you know how much our team had gone through together to get to that game, it was heartbreaking. When the game had finished and we had to face our families who had travelled to come and support us, that was when it became emotional for me.”
While both players describe the buildup to the bronze final as tough, they were grateful to have another week together as a squad. All week in training they believed no one would show up for their game at Twickenham before Canada took on England in the final. But about 60,000 were in their seats to watch the Black Ferns beat France.
“We were cruising in [on the bus] and we said: ‘No one is coming,’ and then there were so many people,” Mikaele-Tu’u says. “We were so amazed, it was such a cool feeling.”
Both players are inspiring the next generation but Sae is also showing it is possible to be a professional athlete while having type 1 diabetes. The player was diagnosed when she was four and said it is her “normal”. “There is a lot of preparation that I don’t really think about,” Sae says. “I need to make sure my blood sugar levels are all right before I train, that I am eating the right amounts, there are a lot of little things. I am so used to it now and I have a lot of support.
“When I was young, my mum would always say: ‘You can do anything you want, just make sure you are doing your tests right. This is not going to hold you back.’ I hope it inspires other people to continue with their sports, hobbies, what they love because it is just a little extra thing you need to do but it doesn’t define you or limit you to what you can do.”
Such is the allure of a Black Ferns player that during their photoshoot, which takes place outside in slightly rainy and windy conditions, passersby bob and weave their heads to try to catch a glimpse of the pair. They aren’t the only people drawn to the duo either, as the former All Black Nick Evans, Quins men’s attack coach, introduces himself, giving them tips on where they can find snacks from back home.
Such a welcome is part of the reason both players are keen for this PWR stint not to be a one-season appearance. “The only reason we haven’t in previous years is because we haven’t been given the opportunity so I don’t see why not,” Mikaele-Tu’u adds. “The amount of games we would be able to play, the experience of playing on this side of the world, there are so many pros to being here.”
