champion

 

I don’t know the bloke  
but I’ve seen him on tv a hundred times    
played that many games for the All Blacks    
the team my country hangs our pride on so heavy    
that when they lose a game    
domestic violence spikes;  
more riding on the game points    
than just bruises to ego    
   
he was here to talk to the local rugby teams    
about passion    
pride    
and getting on the program    
but really an excuse    
to drink away from home;  
gladiator on the come-down  
 
it's no secret that his missus is leaving him  
has pulled him through the courts  
wants two thirds of the cash  
and all of the kids  
 
it's on every magazine cover  
even all the way out here  
and no one will say it  
but we think we know his life  
   
he’s only just retired    
new to it    
saw his face twitch a downward glance    
when they introduced him at the clubrooms    
as ‘former All Black great’    
then later that night    
there was the big game being played live    
on the clubroom tv    
and at the end of it    
the bigscreen was full of men embracing    
this year’s champions  
the crowd screaming their names    
and he sat like wood    
his face locked on the screen    
could see it hitting him    
those-days-gone written all over;  
hard road being 34    
and thinking your best days are burned  
   
the next night we went out making havoc    
invited him to an after-party thing    
just a few of us    
and we got to shit-talking    
   
a couple of the women    
wet with the idea    
of being in the room with an All Black god    
one of them asked a question    
aimed squarely at getting him to take his shirt off    
“how many injuries have you had, what does your body look like now”    
said he got away pretty lucky    
luckier than the rest anyway    
then spent ten minutes telling all the things he can’t do anymore    
can’t lift his arms to pull the curtains    
can’t run    
can’t throw a ball from bicep tears    
ended it quiet    
said “yeah, I’m basically fucked”    
said it in to his drink    
   
nobody laughed    
   
we turned up the music    
got the party going    
no one asked him anything like that again