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Childhood dream comes true as Latimer makes All Blacks |
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Written by Jamie Troughton
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Tuesday, 02 June 2009 |
TANERAU Latimer's mum can remember her boy coming home from Paengaroa Primary soon after he started school, telling her he was going to be an All Black.
A mere 18 years later and Latimer's dream came true.
The 23-year-old flanker became Bay of Plenty's 20th All Black yesterday, picked in the squad for the three-test series against France and Italy this month.
While still recovering from the Chiefs' brutal 61-17 slaying by the Bulls in the Super 14 final in South Africa, his mum Meretupou Skudder was back home in Te Puke trying to compose herself.
"I was at work and he texted me - everybody wanted to know why I was crying so I had to tell a few of them and swear them to secrecy," Ms Skudder said.
"I'm just so happy. He's worked so hard for this."
Last night she celebrated with her future daughter-in-law Alana Clover, family and friends. A solo mum, Ms Skudder made huge sacrifices to give her son every chance in life, enrolling him in swimming from an early age and teaching him to always be humble.
"The swimming had a lot to do with it - it taught him that discipline from a really early age. Being on my own, I was firm and the coaches were firm and that helped set him on his course."
Latimer becomes the first All Black from Te Puke's Rangiuru club, although his uncle, George Skudder, returned there after making the All Blacks from the Waikato University club in Hamilton.
The Rangiuru clubrooms were pumping yesterday, with Latimer's half-brother Paul having double reason to celebrate after a long-standing bet came through.
"Me and [Rangiuru teammate] Andrew Leota had a wager with Tanerau that he'd be an All Black by the time he was 24 - now he's got to shout us a pallet of beer," Paul Latimer gleefully laughed.
"We've been reminding him for the last three years as well. Even without the beer, it's awesome news though - it's massive for everyone who knows him."
The promotion to rugby's highest stage was no surprise to Latimer's cousin Pineaha McNeil. The pair started playing for Rangiuru at the same time, when they were barely out of nappies.
"We've played a few games together over the years but we've always known he was going to be an All Black, even when we were just little kids running around in the back yard," McNeil said.
"He was pretty hard-out even then."
Nearly two decades after sharing his dream with his mum, meanwhile, and nursing a sore head from a night out in Pretoria, Latimer himself had a simple message for his biggest fan.
"We finally got there, eh mum?" he said. "I just can't wait to get home and share it with everyone."
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