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Speaker 1: You're listening to the Weekend Sport podcast with Jason Vine

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Speaker 1: from Newstalk zedb Iwana Pacifica.

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Speaker 2: Good quick ball, hop bly hop bly up.

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Speaker 3: Till Tanny Twala Tanny Towala.

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Speaker 1: Britch pass.

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Speaker 3: They've got a score and it's lotto only see he comes.

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Speaker 2: Round behind the posts and dots it down by They

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Speaker 2: deserve man Jame over.

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Speaker 3: Scintillating game of forty and the Battle.

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Speaker 1: On the Pacific has been won by Mowanna Pacifica.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, Mina Pacifica back again this season and looking to

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Speaker 2: improve upon their performances of the last three seasons. Last year,

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Speaker 2: just to remind you, Mauna Pacifica finished eleventh on the

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Speaker 2: twelve team table with four winds, ten defeats eighteen points,

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Speaker 2: which had them about eight points outside the top eight

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Speaker 2: who made it through to the to the quarterfinals. Course

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Speaker 2: different this year, only eleven teams only a top six

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Speaker 2: will go through to the playoffs which have been rejinked

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Speaker 2: and we can obviously talk more about that as the

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Speaker 2: season goes on. But one to pacific A head coach

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Speaker 2: Tana Umaga is with us a ton of thanks for

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Speaker 2: joining us on Weekend Sport. First of all, Have you

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Speaker 2: arrived at the start line or thereabouts of Super Rugby

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Speaker 2: with with a fully fit squad after a couple of

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Speaker 2: preseason outings.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, how's it going, Jason? We have Actually, it's been pleasing,

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Speaker 3: to be honest, you know, I think you know, my

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Speaker 3: one of my pet fears obviously in the preseason is

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Speaker 3: just getting injuries, and we've we haven't done too bad

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Speaker 3: apart from just yesterday against the Chiefs we lost Nico Jones,

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Speaker 3: so that could be a little bit concerning going forward.

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Speaker 2: Is that Are we talking weeks here for Nico?

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Speaker 3: Yeah? I think so. Look what I haven't had the

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Speaker 3: final report, but it didn't look at yet. A bit

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Speaker 3: of an elbow injury and had to come straight off

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Speaker 3: the game, off the off the field, and he was

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Speaker 3: in a sling at the end of the game and

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Speaker 3: had to go to hospital for scans. So yeah, yeah,

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Speaker 3: hopefully I need more about that today than tomorrow.

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Speaker 2: All right, Well, keep our fingers crossed for him. Other

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Speaker 2: than that, In terms of the way your team's played

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Speaker 2: in a couple of preseason games you've had, as you

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Speaker 2: look ahead to your first couple of matches over the Tasman,

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Speaker 2: are you happy with the way your side is looking

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Speaker 2: on the field.

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Speaker 3: Yes, yeah, I am. Actually, you know, I think we've

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Speaker 3: improved in terms of our overall fitness from last year,

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Speaker 3: but also just our execution about what we're trying to do.

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Speaker 3: I can see these a little bit more understanding around things,

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Speaker 3: and you know, obviously when you're fitter and you're organized,

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Speaker 3: makes the game a little bit easier. But you know,

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Speaker 3: as we know, preseasons not a precursor for what happens

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Speaker 3: in the during the season, so you know, we've got

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Speaker 3: a bit of a hard going away to perform the heat.

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Speaker 3: So it's actually been good training and playing an orphan

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Speaker 3: at the moment because long made of the summer half, it's.

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Speaker 2: Not just in Auckland, right around the country. Has it

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Speaker 2: also helped you think kind of that You've you've got

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Speaker 2: a pretty strong core of players back from twenty twenty four, Oh.

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Speaker 3: Totally totally, and you know those plans have come back

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Speaker 3: motivated and again come back and good Nick. You know,

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Speaker 3: we've had I've got a few players that have on

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Speaker 3: their way back from injury. So I haven't paid a

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Speaker 3: lot of rugby leading up to this season, but they've

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Speaker 3: got two good hitouts under their belts, you know, and

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Speaker 3: so yeah, I think very much. So you know, that

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Speaker 3: group of core experienced plans, which is what we need,

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Speaker 3: and leadership, I think is a big thing for us

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Speaker 3: on field leadership and obviously having an Artissavi return coming

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Speaker 3: to play for us now you know that we improve

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Speaker 3: in that area immensely.

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Speaker 2: How noticeable has Ardie Sav's influence been on your team?

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Speaker 3: Oh yeah, very noticeable. Even you know, he only played

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Speaker 3: fifteen minutes yesterday and you know you could just see

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Speaker 3: the players lift around him. You know, he just gives

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Speaker 3: people confidence and obviously that's a big you know, that

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Speaker 3: obviously comes with his his abilities, but also it comes

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Speaker 3: with a bit of pressure on him too, and if

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Speaker 3: he understands that, you know, he just goes around and

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Speaker 3: does his business, you know, plays the game that he

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Speaker 3: wants to play, and I think the players just get

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Speaker 3: him behind that. And also that's that's kind of of

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Speaker 3: art his style too. You know, he's said at our

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Speaker 3: first meeting that he's here in their respect first, and

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Speaker 3: you know, he's everything he does, whether it's on the

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Speaker 3: field off the field, I think, you know, he's really

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Speaker 3: got these guys behind him, and you know, he doesn't

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Speaker 3: have to do much. You know, obviously his reputation precedes

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Speaker 3: him when he comes here. But I think now that

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Speaker 3: they're with him, you know, I can see a lot

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Speaker 3: more players talking to him now. I think there was

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Speaker 3: a little bit of you know, a little bit nervous talking.

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Speaker 3: It was pretty funny, Yeah, exactly was. But no, no, look,

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Speaker 3: he's made an impact, you know, as soon as he

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Speaker 3: got here.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I love that. I love that. I can imagine

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Speaker 2: there be a few nervous, nervous young men, but great

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Speaker 2: to know that they're starting to have a chat with

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Speaker 2: with Artie now there has been talked to her. I'm

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Speaker 2: sure you've heard of other New Zealand players following his

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Speaker 2: lead and joining more on the Pacific. Is that something

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Speaker 2: that you will actively try to make happen.

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Speaker 3: Look, well, we're here to make our program better and

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Speaker 3: you know, if you know other players that play alongside

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Speaker 3: the ARDI and for their countries, then would be silly

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Speaker 3: not to you know, It's as we've seen with ARDI,

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Speaker 3: when you've got the color of player like that coming in,

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Speaker 3: it just lifts everybody. And that's what we're about. You know,

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Speaker 3: we want to uplift our players around them. You know,

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Speaker 3: we can't have a team full of them because we

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Speaker 3: don't afford it. But you know, if we can pick

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Speaker 3: ones that we know will approve the program and lift

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Speaker 3: those around them, you know, not just with their play,

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Speaker 3: but with their off field leadership as well, you know,

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Speaker 3: then we're definitely interested. And yeah, I think it would

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Speaker 3: be silly for us not to look into that.

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Speaker 2: You start the season, as you say, with a way

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Speaker 2: trip the Force and the Reds. Presumably you'll stay in

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Speaker 2: Australia between games, So will that be a good thing

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Speaker 2: for solidifying the sides togetherness early in the season.

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Speaker 3: Touring is always great for doing that. You know. The

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Speaker 3: sad things we can't take a whole squad with us,

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Speaker 3: so you know we're still going to be leaving a

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Speaker 3: group of us behind, and you're right, we are staying

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Speaker 3: over there for our two game Australian tour and it

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Speaker 3: just makes sense as well. But yeah, I look, that

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Speaker 3: group that does get to go, they're fortunate enough that

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Speaker 3: you know, it'll be within that squad that takes qre

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Speaker 3: of those first two games and they'll be We'll be

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Speaker 3: doing a lot to grow our connections and that's been

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Speaker 3: a big part of our pre season two. It's just

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Speaker 3: growing those connections within our players and understanding that everyone's

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Speaker 3: got a role, whether you're you get to play or

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Speaker 3: you don't get to play, and how we can make

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Speaker 3: sure that we're helping each other, you know, achieve what

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Speaker 3: we want to achieve as a group.

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Speaker 2: You won four games last season, six or sive even

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Speaker 2: would get you into the playoff conversation? Is that something

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Speaker 2: you talk about, Tanna? Do you talk about the number

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Speaker 2: of wins or is it really just performance and the

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Speaker 2: results will take care of themselves.

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Speaker 3: Oh, look, we don't talk about that to everybody. You know,

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Speaker 3: we kind of know the you know, the equations of

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Speaker 3: what we need to get to the finals for you

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Speaker 3: and obviously that's where we want to be. We talked.

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Speaker 3: I think you have to talk about it. The probably

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Speaker 3: problem is everyone's talking about it. Every team's got the

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Speaker 3: same goal. We all want to be in their final six.

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Speaker 3: And then then it comes down to what you talked about,

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Speaker 3: you know, just our performances and the results will take

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Speaker 3: care of themselves. But you know, we have to make

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Speaker 3: sure that we've got a goal. Our goal is to

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Speaker 3: be successful, you know, as everybody is. We want to

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Speaker 3: get to the to the top six. Once you get there,

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Speaker 3: you know things will take care of themselves. But you know,

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Speaker 3: we want to improve from last year. We know we've

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Speaker 3: got a long way to go to do that, and

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Speaker 3: we just got to work away and put our heads

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Speaker 3: down and think. You know, that's something that we get

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Speaker 3: from ADI as well, is that, you know, look our talking,

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Speaker 3: we have to let our actions do. That's talking for

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Speaker 3: us because you know, words alone won't get us to

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Speaker 3: where we want to get to.

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Speaker 2: And just to finish, Tony, You've done plenty in your

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Speaker 2: rugby career, both as a player and as a coach.

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Speaker 2: Where does coaching more on a pacifica sit for you?

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Speaker 3: Yeah, no, I think it's for me at the moment.

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Speaker 3: It's right up there. Obviously. I have a connection, a

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Speaker 3: real passion to help the Pacific people. I feel, you know,

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Speaker 3: I feel a real strong purpose connected to this franchos,

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Speaker 3: to this club and to my people. So you know, yeah,

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Speaker 3: look it's a tough one for some but you know,

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Speaker 3: I really love what I do. I enjoy giving up

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Speaker 3: every morning to go to work and I love what

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Speaker 3: we're doing and nice see things happen every day. You know,

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Speaker 3: the improvements on players, just little things, the improvements and

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Speaker 3: even within our staff and helping them achieve what they

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Speaker 3: want to achieve. You know. That's yeah. Look, I think

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Speaker 3: this is probably, you know, one of the top things

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Speaker 3: I've done, probably in my life, to be honest, brilliant.

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Speaker 2: What's you all the best?

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Speaker 3: Appearance?

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Speaker 2: Well, there is that good safe, good sight. You're good

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Speaker 2: save good save at the end there, what's you all

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Speaker 2: the best? Make for twenty twenty five, travel safe to

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Speaker 2: Australia and look forward to catching up throughout the season.

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Speaker 3: I appreciate talking to you, Jason. You take care.

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Speaker 2: You take care too, Tanna, thanks indeed, Tana Whomonga there?

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Speaker 2: Who else? Head coach of Morana Pacifica. What a quality

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Speaker 2: human being he is, Tana as I was just chatting

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Speaker 2: to him then, just you remember how good a player

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Speaker 2: he was and you know, moving into coaching it didn't

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Speaker 2: work out, I'm sure or see have hoped at the Blues,

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Speaker 2: but at my ONEA Pacifica. It just seems like the

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Speaker 2: right fit, doesn't it to have a guy like Tana Umanga.

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Speaker 1: There For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine. Listen

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Speaker 1: live to News Talk zed B weekends from midday or

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