『 Singing Suntory's team song with teammates in the locker room 』

Samu Kerevi has always made me feel that it is rare to find a player whose on-field image is so different from off-field image. In this interview, I feel like I discovered the link between his off-field consideration for his teammates and his on-field intensity. （Interviewed on End April/2021）

◆Trusting teammates and staff

――How are you preparing towards the playoff tournament?

I feel very excited and feel that I can contribute a lot towards the finals. I am looking forward to contributing to the team despite the tension of the knockout stage.

――I believe you have experienced a lot of finals in the past, but are there any differences this time?

I have always played with the same feeling, but I think there would be a lot of pressure because we are expected to be playing in front of big crowd. The question would be how calmly we can play with our standard under such pressure, so if we can play calmly, I think we have a good chance to win the championship.
Naturally, there will be a lot of pressure on us if we advance to the finals, but we have been working very hard from practice to put pressure on each other, so I think we will be fine if we can fight with that as a solid base.

――You appear to be very strong under pressure.

Rugby is a sport in the extreme, and I think there are many things in life that put more pressure on you. In that sense, rugby is not something you play alone, but with teammates, so if we can believe in our teammates and staff, have confidence in what we are doing, and make a firm commitment, I think we will always have a good chance to win, and I think we can seize the opportunity to win. I believe that trusting our teammates and staff will help us overcome the pressure.

――Believe in yourself too, right?

I think that believing in your teammates and staff is also believing in yourself. We all have to prepare well, including analysis, so I think it is a matter of believing in what we are doing and doing it in such a process.

◆As a team, our confidence level is going up

――Beauden Barrett joined the team this season. What do you think has changed about the team since Barrett joined?

He brought huge positive impacts both on and off the field. Thanks to him, some of our players have been playing with more confidence, and as a team, I think our confidence level is going up. He has massive contribution especially in our attack. Also, since the beginning of the season, we have been talking about how we can't win without strong defense, so I think he is contributing both in defense and attack. Also, non-game-members work have been excellent this season and providing good pressure and working closely as a team in practice, and as a result we've been able to have good trainings, so I think the team is in good shape.

――With your last interview, you mentioned that you want to be the best center in the world, but how about Ryoto Nakamura, who also wants to be the best center in the world?

I feel that Ryoto (Nakamura) is in very good shape as number 12. He contributes a lot to the team on defense, and his defense often leads to turnovers. As much as Beauden Barrett is having an impact on the attack, I think Ryoto Nakamura is having the same positive impact on the team with his defense.

He has great captaincy and is leading us as a defense leader, and I think he leads us more by his actions than by his words. Thanks to his great defense, he inspires me to become better at defense. There are many other good centers such as Kajimura, Shogo (Nakano), and Daishi (Murata), and they are all good influences on me, so I think we are inspiring each other and moving in the right direction.

◆The back line is coming along very nicely

――When you get on the pitch, there is a sense of expectation and strong feeling that you will do something big, but how do you feel when you break the line?

I think each player has good expectations of each other and we are playing well. My teammates are starting to anticipate my line breaks and adopt their play. Shogo, Emi, Seiya (Ozaki), Ryoto, and others are all able to play with anticipation of how I will break the line, so I think our back line is in very good shape and we are improving each other.

The feeling I get when I break the line is the feeling I've been chasing for a long time, and it makes me feel satisfactory, but I think it's also the part where people expect me to do all the time. I must continue to make good line breaks as my standard.
The most satisfactory play for me is to get half-break and offload and the player who receives the ball goes through.

◆My teammates are close and connected

――Once again, what do you think is the great thing about rugby?

I think it's the team bonding and camaraderie. I personally don't drink alcohol, so I don't drink and party with my teammates, but the fact that my teammates are close and connected is the great thing about rugby for me.
When I retire from rugby someday, the memory of winning the championship will of course remain with me, but I think the memory of me singing Suntory's team song with my teammates in the locker room is more important to me and will be something that I will remember for a longer time.

――What are your personal goals or dreams for the future?

When you play rugby for this long, it's hard to spend time with family, so as for after I retire, I would like to spend at least a few years of quality time with my family. On top of that, if I do come back to rugby, it would be wonderful to be able to contribute to the development of the players on and off the field as a backs coach. I am not interested in becoming a head coach.

――What do you think is your work on as a player right now?

Playing aggressively in both attack and defense, with or without the ball, is becoming more important this season. I would like to improve especially in defense.

――What are your goals for this season?

This will be our last Top League season, so we definitely want to win the championship as a team, and we are making an effort to do so.

(Interview & Structure: Kazuyoshi Hariya /Translator: Yuji Yamaguchi /Editing: Yutaro Igarashi)
[Photo: Aki Nagao]