NEWS

Beaudein Waaka on Building Something Good in New England

Written by Joe Harvey | Photo by Justin Walker

Returning to the New England Free Jacks for a third season is New Zealander, Beaudein Waaka. In his career to date, the 27-year-old has turned out for numerous Bunnings NPC teams and represented the All Blacks Sevens on the World Rugby Sevens Series circuit.

First arriving in Boston ahead of the Free Jacks’ inaugural season in 2020, the 27-year-old has proven himself as an invaluable part of the team. Able to play multiple positions in the backs, Waaka is now preparing for another campaign in New England and spoke to majorleague.rugby with under two weeks to go until the 2022 season gets underway.

COMING BACK TO BOSTON

Arriving back in Boston in early January, Waaka has slipped back into Massachusetts life seamlessly. An avid Celtics fan, it is fair to say that the New Zealander has found a second home on the east coast.

About to take part in his third campaign with the side, the 27-year-old says it is the team’s fans and the local community that keeps on inspiring him to come back to the Free Jacks.

“I just love Boston itself,” Waaka said. “Living in New Zealand, it is such a small country, and coming to Boston, it is just massive. There are big buildings, it is a big city and just the people here, the local rugby community and the public itself. 

Photo by Justin Walker

“They welcomed us with open arms, didn’t have any problems with the public. They actually got to find out who we were, and they actually interacted with us, and likewise with the boys.

“We interacted with the public and got around to rugby clubs as much as possible as much as we could to offer our knowledge of the game to help harness their game. I just think the people here are just amazing.”

This offseason has seen plenty of change at Veterans Memorial Stadium. With Wian Conradie, Jackson Thiebes and Vili Toluta’u all having parted ways with the team for new challenges off and on the field, the team have recruited heavily from within MLR and outside of it.

Reegan O’Gorman and Paula Balekana have both come from Texas (Austin Gilgronis and Houston SaberCats), while Holden Yungert has arrived after four years with NOLA Gold. Cael Hodgson, Zach Bastres and Anthony Adamcheck are all draftees, as Foster DeWitt comes from the Pacific Pride program in Canada.

 

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Jesse Parete, Slade McDowall and Wayne van der Bank lead a number of arrivals from New Zealand and South Africa. Another new arrival is Head Coach, Scott Mathie. As a professional Mathie played in his native South Africa and in England, beginning a career in coaching at the conclusion of his career.

Appointed as Head Coach in New England after Ryan Martin took on an assisting coaching role in Australia, the 38-year-old will no doubt be looking to implement the physical style of play we come to associate with South African rugby.

“Once he was appointed, he was having phone calls and Zooms with all the boys while he was still in South Africa,” he said. “We just got it going as soon as he was appointed. 

“We got to familiarize ourselves with him through Zooms and phone calls, and once we had got here it was like we had been mates for ages.

“Everyone knows the typical South African coach, all they want is brutality and for everyone to smash each other. We have adapted to Scott and the way he is bringing over his South African brutality, but at the same time we have got a Kiwi forwards coach who has come over too, but also loves that sort of stuff.”

OFFSEASON SILVERWARE

After his commitments with New England came to an end in 2021, Waaka returned home to New Zealand. Following a period of self-isolation upon his re-entry to the country, he began preparing for the Bunnings NPC competition that takes place between August and late-November every year in New Zealand.

Previously having represented Taranki in the competition, Waaka was now wearing the colors of Waikato. It was a successful campaign for the province in the end, the side eventually winning the competition when overcoming Tasman 23-20 in Hamilton.

Coming off the bench in the final, Waaka played a vital role for the team across the duration of the season, the 27-year-old revealing some of the adversity that the team faced in their campaign. 

“I am not a person that likes to lose,” Waaka said. “I am all about winning. I am a competitive person, so when I get out onto the training field or into a game, it is all about competing and winning every moment.

 

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“That is exactly what our environment was with Waikato. It is a funny story, because we had to move away from home for eight weeks of the season, and the boys had to move away from their families and live in a hotel because of Covid and all of the lockdowns that were happening.

“When we first moved away, it was quite tough. We weren’t used to it, but our last four weeks we really nailed it down when competing against each other, putting the best team forward to try and go out to win that championship.

“And that’s what we came away with, a championship.”

AMBITION IN 2022

Starting 2022 with a clash with NOLA Gold in Louisiana, New England will then have a bye week before coming up against Old Glory DC, the LA Giltinis and Rugby New York to conclude their first four games of the season.

Their home opener against the Toronto Arrows will follow in week six, Waaka and his teammates knowing that a good start is needed in order to compete for a place in the playoffs this year.

Stating the team’s ambition, Waaka is more than aware of the task ahead of the team this season, knowing they are in for the long haul in order to experience success.

Photo by Justin Walker

“Like with every team I have been a part of, and that the rest of the boys have been a part of, the ambition is to win the competition,” Waaka said. “But it is not as easy as saying it.

“Everyone can say ‘let’s win the competition’, but there has got to be steppingstones put in place. We have got to take it week by week, or even day by day, with what the coaches have brought this year. There is something good going on.

“The ambition is to win the competition to start with, but it is about winning the little battles first, so getting through the 18-week season, and then hopefully winning the competition.”