Word: clubness
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...always the chance that Sonny Bill Williams would be special. Old-timers remember his maternal grandfather, Bill Woolsey, as one of the toughest men to wear the New Zealand rugby league jersey. Williams, who's part Samoan, started playing at the age of eight for Auckland's Mt. Albert club and was soon turning heads with precocious displays of power and skill. He was in primary school when spotted by a scout working for the Australian National Rugby League club Canterbury, which brought him over to Sydney's southwest when he was 15. Three years later, Williams...
...performer in the years since, blending strength and finesse in a way the game has rarely seen. He became bigger news than ever July 26, when, in the run-in to next month's NRL finals and without a word to anyone at Canterbury, he walked out on his club and sport to sign a new, richer deal with the French rugby union club Toulon. Pursued by Canterbury for breach of contract, Williams, 23, has settled out of court with his former employer and insists his rugby league days are over...
...coaches and administrators to review old habits. As a young player, Don Feltis idolized champions of the 1950s and '60s such as Clive Churchill and Johnny Raper. Nowadays, at 73, Feltis is immersed in the new wave as the boss of junior league at the Penrith Panthers, an NRL club west of Sydney where close to half the youngsters are of Polynesian descent. It's a realm very different from league of old, in which the Islander players routinely gather to pray before matches; in which a coach couldn't connect with his church-going, 14-year-old Polynesian charges...
...Most people involved in rugby and rugby league will tell you that Polynesians are naturally suited to the sports. "Oh, they're gifted athletically, there's no doubt about it," says Peter O'Sullivan, recruitment manager for the Sydney Roosters NRL club. "It's not just size. It's balance, footwork, skill and strength." But attributing Polynesians' football prowess to inherent qualities can lead to the quicksand of racial stereotyping. In focusing on the physiques of Maoris and Islanders, it's easy to overlook other, perhaps more important, factors in their growing presence in elite football - motivation, hard work...
...cope with the change, clubs in both codes are increasingly appointing Maori and Islander men to their administrative staffs. "I think that's a really good idea," says Tuqiri. "We do hear and interpret things differently at times. It's not racism, but it can be easier to talk to someone of the same cultural background." Justifying his decision to leave Canterbury, Williams said the club was underpaying many of the players, and "I think it is my duty to speak up, especially for the Polynesian boys...