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TJ Perenara speaks to Breakfast about baby news, embracing te reo and growing up in Porirua

February 18, 2020

Perenara shocked his number one fan John Campbell when he turned up in the TVNZ studio.

All Blacks halfback TJ Perenara has spoken in-depth about his life both on and off the pitch in a surprise interview with TVNZ presenter and number one fan John Campbell this morning.

Perenara shocked Campbell with his arrival in the studio on TVNZ1's Breakfast this morning before confirming he was here purely to be interviewed.

"You've been a massive supporter of mine and my wife so it's cool to be up here in your workspace for a bit and have a yack."

Campbell started the impromptu interview by explaining why he appreciates Perenara so much, saying he's not only a good rugby player but a decent person too who stands up for his beliefs and is a role model for others.

Perenara thanked Campbell for the kind words but said his character was passed down to him.

"My parents have always known that I love rugby and that I wanted to be an All Black for a long time but they've always said you have to be better man first, a better human first - that's the most important thing," Perenara said.

"It's something that I try to live by day-to-day. We all make mistakes, we all do things that we regret or we're not proud of but if you constantly try and be the best person every day, I think that helps."

Perenara will take that mindset into his next challenge alongside his wife Greer with the pair announcing last night they're expecting their first child in August.

Perenara revealed the news with a photo on social media of an ultrasound alongside their family dog.

"We're very, very excited to be becoming parents, it's something we've looked forward to for a little while now," he said.

"I massively excited for that."

The pair also discussed Perenara's upbringing in Porirua, which he was proud of, despite how others perceived it. 

"It's something that I'm very opinionated about and something I believe strongly in," Perenara said when talking about raising the status of people making something of themselves when coming from "the hood".

"I want people from Porirua, especially young people from Porirua to be proud to come from Porirua. I remember growing up, people used to talk down, and probably still do talk down Porirua. I guess it's an outside perception.

"I remember growing up, I used to tell people I'm from Porirua and they would look at me a different way, like, 'oh, you're from Porirua, that's a bit rough,' but to me, I want people to be proud of that. When you say you're from Porirua, be proud of that because I am very proud of that.

"I get that rugby is what I do at the moment and I have to keep my main thing as the main thing but I want to use the vehicle of rugby to help influence Porirua and the kids of Porirua in positive ways."

One other big influence on Perenara's life is the pride he feels to be Māori.

He spoke about learning te reo, and how he wants his child to hear it in the home. 

Perenara has cemented himself as the All Blacks' kaea heading into the World Cup.

"Te Reo Māori isn't something that I grew up with and it was something that I shied away from for a long time because I was probably embarrassed that I didn't speak the language," he admitted.

"I held that whakamamae [pain] on my shoulders for a long time.

"But I came to the realisation that through history and through things that happened, the language was diluted and wasn't taught to me - it's not my fault but it's now my responsibility to learn the language and to pass that language on to our future kids."

The pair also discussed the Hurricanes' rough start to the Super Rugby season, his mindset as a player and captain and being willing to stand up for something off the pitch.

Check out the full interview above to see more.

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