Ban was the hardest time of my career, Keven Mealamu
All blacks’ forward Keven Mealamu, who is facing 2 weeks ban from international rugby, believes that the ban is the hardest period of his career.
31-year old Mealamu had a clash with England captain Lewis Moody in the first match of their Northern Hampshire tour.
He was initially banned for 4 weeks from international rugby. But a panel from International Rugby Board met again and reduced his ban to 2 weeks, as Mealamu’s action was considered a foul but not deliberate.
Mealamu, who was very surprised with the ban, said that he is feeling much more relaxed after the ban was reduced and after being cleared that it was an intentional action.
"When the ban was cut to two weeks I was stoked - it was nothing to do with the head, it was out of control and I could have hurt him, but that can happen to any player in the clean-out position as so many players are down there. Most of the video clips
were from just the one angle but we had a few more that showed it was leading with the shoulder".
Mealamu, who has played 82 test matches for All Blacks, missed the matches against Scotland and Ireland due to a ban.
But the good news for All Blacks is that Mealamu is available for the next match against Wales. The match against Wales will be the last match for the All Blacks on this tour of Northern Hampshire. They have won their previous 3 matches.
All Blacks would love to win their last match too and remain unbeaten on the tour. Mealamu’s return will definitely help them to remain unbeatable.
Mealamu spoke to media after his ban and said that there is nothing worse than being suspended.
He said, although he was banned, his team and family supported him and he is thankful to his team and family, who supported him throughout the ban period.
He went on to say, he did not waste his time during the ban and tried to fix his weaknesses. He worked hard during the period and prepared well for the upcoming match against Wales and his preparations will definitely help him and his team.
Mealamu said, although a ban is a not ideal thing for anyone, it will not affect his performance.
He said, the ban may be at the back of his mind but he has to do his job, which is to remove people from the ruck if they are getting in the way or slowing the ball down. You have to be physical to be able to move people but he may be a little more careful.
Mealamu will play his return game against Wales this Saturday. Wales has not beaten the All Blacks in the last 57 years and they will try to break the shackles.
Although, Wales’ performance is not up to the mark in the recent past, Mealamu said, they will not take them easy. They will play to their full potential.
He said, they will be playing on their home ground in front of their home crowd, and that would give them an edge.
But Graham Henry, who is currently coaching the All Blacks, has coached Wales in the past, will give some insight about them.
No doubt a ban is the worst thing for any player and it can disturb your performance but now Mealamu’s ban has ended and we hope that he will make his comeback with the same performance, he is known for.
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