Aussie rugby player Angus Scott-Young honours Sean Wainui after learning Maori words to tribute haka
Twenty years after his father winked and blew kisses at the All Blacks haka, Angus Scott-Young has gone “full circle” by learning the Maori words to a tribute for the late Sean Wainui.
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When talented rugby star Sean Wainui died suddenly two months ago, New Zealand was shaken.
In the days afterwards, his Bay of Plenty Steamers teammates decided to perform a special haka dedicated to the 25-year-old after their match against Waikato.
At the back of that haka stood Waikato’s Australian import Angus Scott-Young, doing all he could not to mess up, knowing full well his Wallaby father Sam Scott-Young had outraged Kiwis by winking and blowing kisses at the All Blacks’ haka before a 1992 Bledisloe Cup Test.
“We played Waikato on the Saturday, and on the Friday Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi, who we call Triple T and was Sean’s best mate, messaged the group,” said Angus, who’d gone to play in New Zealand’s domestic competition after being overlooked for Wallabies selection.
“Trips said ‘We’re going to do a Tika Tonu haka to commemorate Sean’, it was his favourite haka and an east coast haka his family are fond of.
“He sent the video in, and I was like ‘Holy s---, I’ve got to learn a haka in 24 hours’.
“I spoke to Trips and a few of the Maori boys at the captain’s run and said ‘Is it OK if I do it, I’d obviously like to honour him because he was a good man’. Trips said ‘Go for it man, you’re part of the team’.
“So I had 24 hours to learn it off a little video that Trips sent through, but to be honest I didn’t want to embarrass myself, I wanted to do it right, so I just learnt the actions, I didn’t learn the words because there was a lot of stuff I didn’t know how to pronounce.
“I did it, I was really nervous, you can see me in the video in the second row, the whole time thinking what the next movement is. But it was something really special to me, it was a privilege to do that for Seany.”
Wainui died when the car he was driving crashed into a tree on October 18. The coroner is treating the death as a suspected suicide.
Since his return to Queensland, 24-year-old flanker Scott-Young has learned the words and been performing the haka in his own home.
“I do it around the house at times,” he said.
“I’ve never experienced something like that before, especially being from Australia.
“In home quarantine I learned the full haka, the words and the actions.
“It was a really special moment for me so I wanted to learn the words and show my full appreciation.
“I also found out that the Tika Tonu’s message is to honour the perseverance of young men facing adversity, I think this parallels my personal journey and only reaffirms my gratitude in being able to commemorate Seany through the haka.
“It’s a crazy story, full circle, my dad’s blowing kisses and disrespecting the haka and I’m embracing it.
“I’m glad I got to be a part of it, it opened my eyes up to the significance of that and the Maori culture, they’re lovely people and I’ve got friends down there I’ll cherish for the rest of my life.
“I wasn’t sure if they would embrace me with my Aussie accent and my R.M Williams boots, but literally the first day I walked in, everyone is shaking my hand, chatting to me, welcoming me.
“Sean’s passing was devastating for a lot of guys in the Bay of Plenty team, and the impact it had on the broader rugby community was worldwide.
“You see the All Blacks who were playing in the United States that week, they were devastated.
“I’d only known him from a distance, playing against him for a few years, then met him about three months before he passed. He was a lovely man, proud Maori, cultural man, really funny.”
The experience at Bay of Plenty, under former NSW Waratahs coach Daryl Gibson, taught Scott-Young lessons well beyond the rugby pitch.
He has returned to Australia pronouncing Maori names and words with precision.
Campfire chats with All Blacks captain Sam Cane helped him understand leadership with a fresh outlook, and he impressed the Steamers staff so much he was made captain in the final quarter of their last two games and claimed their end-of-season Warrior Award.
“At the start I was an outsider coming in, but the main thing I wanted to achieve was to earn the respect of the players,” said Scott-Young, who lived with Steamers captain Aiden Ross and playmaker Kaleb Trask, and spent a lot of time with their former All Blacks hooker Nathan Harris.
“I didn’t want to come in with bravado and act like I run the place.
“Sam Cane coming back was huge for me, I didn’t even know he was coming back from his pec injury.
“It was only four weeks before he flew to the US to rejoin the All Blacks, but for me it was cool, having the All Blacks captain coming back, he’s a flanker so we’re doing pilfering drills together, we’re hanging out having a few beers around the campfire, I’m talking to him, listening to all his experiences.
“He wasn’t as vocal as he’d usually be in that environment because he wanted to let Rossy and Nate Harris take the reins, but when he spoke, everyone listened.
“After Seany’s passing I was really impressed with how Rossy kept his positivity and kept battling through, he spearheaded everyone getting back on track.
“And speaking to Sam about his injury, how he absolutely smashed his pec and shoulder, the amount of adversity these leaders go through and they’re able to bounce back and keep a positive mental frame is really inspiring.
“No matter what adversity they face, they keep moving forward.
“You can probably apply that to my situation, I’ve had a few tough lessons and stuff out of my control in the past, but I’m keeping a brave face and doing what I can.”
Scott-Young makes no bones about his goals for 2022.
“I want to lead at the Reds, help them become the best they can be and have success in the domestic competition,” he said.
“We got embarrassed against the Kiwis, we’re clearly not up to scratch and they are the standard, but I think it’s neat that I went down there and learnt their ways, to hopefully come back and put that knowledge to use for us.
“In an ideal world in 2022, I would love the Reds being in that Super Rugby grand final, contesting it against a Kiwi team and winning it.
“Based on the past five years of results, it’s very rare for an Aussie team to beat a Kiwi team so I don’t want to get too carried away.
“And on a personal level, I want to play good footy, use the skills I developed in New Zealand for the Reds and then hopefully, I would love to play for the Wallabies.
“It’s always been an ambition, it’s been an elusive one for me, but I’m a dedicated guy and I work for what I want, and I want it to happen.
“The main reason I went to New Zealand was I was pretty gutted on missing out on any Wallabies interest.
“I backed myself, went down there, took a big pay cut to experience the premier provincial competition in the world test myself against them.”
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