Episode 11: Bundee Aki - From Counties-Manukau to Connacht and onto representing Ireland Rugby. Selected to the British & Irish Lions tour of South Africa in 2021, then onto beat the All Blacks for the 2nd time. We chat about it all.

It is always good to catch up with my close friend Bundee Aki about what's going on in life and rugby.We obviously chat about his recent game against the All Blacks and how he felt after the win and what the week leading up to the big game was like for him and the team.  It was his second win against the All Blacks in as many games. We chat about his journey from the Patumahoe Rugby Club in Counties-Manukau to Connacht and he lets us in on the similarities between the provinces and what he loves about them and how he used what he learnt in Counties-Manukau to drive Connacht to gaining respect in the European rugby community.  He has never forgotten where he's from in South Auckland and how his determination and grit have seen him achieve so much away from his birth home and family.He's become a regular in the Irish Rugby Team since making his debut in 2017 and to watch him and to hear his story about how he found out about his selection for The British & Irish Lions team to tour South Africa was a proud moment for me.It was also good to hear that he is putting things in place for when his playing days come to an end and how he's getting out of his comfort zone to do that.  A good listen if you want to hear how someone made some hard decisions, then didn't take anything for granted but worked his butt off to get what he wanted.