Rugby World Cup 2023 | Samoa’s flying mullet

World Rugby has gathered some of the best off-field tales from this year’s ongoing Rugby World Cup in France.

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THE TASTE OF THE RUGBY WORLD CUP

The value given to a team for lifting the Webb Ellis Cup is the same that a chef feels when awarded a Michelin star.

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Just as Richie McCaw lifted rugby’s most precious trophy on two occasions, Argentine-born chef Mauro Colagreco was able to celebrate on French soil four times with the highest accolade in the gastronomic field – three with his world-famous restaurant Le Mirazur and one with Ceto, both restaurants located on the French Riviera.

But you may wonder, how are the feats of McCaw and Colagreco related in a Rugby World Cup? Well, they both have ties with former New Zealand player Jerome Kaino.

Of course, McCaw won two World Cups with Kaino.

Colagreco growing up was a strong and gutty prop for the 1976 category of La Plata Rugby Club, one of the most successful teams in the Buenos Aires Rugby Union.

The chef, the rugby fan, interacted with Kaino when the Webb Ellis Cup visited his restaurant with director Taika Waititi (all three pictured together below).

As if that were not enough, his best-known restaurant, Mirazur, is in Menton, the city where the grave of William Webb Ellis, recognised as the father of rugby, is located.

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HAIR FOR THE AGES

Samoa scrumhalf Jonathan Taumateine impressed in more ways than one in his team’s 43-10 win over Chile on Saturday.

His great take to fly over the tryline had tongues wagging, but so too did his quite astonishing mane – bleached blond and coiffured into an eye-catching mullet.

Commentators and fans alike were speaking about it, and so it was put to Taumateine in the mixed zone post match that perhaps his haircut aided his try scoring.

“That’s not wrong!” he replied.

“I really love animé, and this is my favourite – Naruto Shippuden. He has blond hair so I dyed my hair blond.”

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PORTUGAL SOUNDTRACK

Portugal are competing at their first RWC since 2007 and not only are they back with a bang on the pitch but they have also brought a catchy original song to the tournament.

Somos Lobos by Xutos & Pontapés was released this year and features lyrics like: “We are giants in commitment. Our will has no size. We give our lives in every tackle. In search of glory full of courage.”

Give it a listen, it could be a regular on your Spotify playlist!

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NEGRI – ‘I NEVER SAW HOME AGAIN’

Italy back-rower Sebastian Negri has spoken about having to flee his home in Zimbabwe at the age of seven after after war veterans arrived to claim the property.

“My immediate thoughts were, ‘Oh, Dad is just taking us into the city and we will be back the next day or in a few days’,” he said.

“I didn’t really think too much of it but you know it’s not good because you can see the emotion in your dad’s eyes and the worry.

“I remember getting into the back of the car and I remember Dad saying, ‘Keep quiet’ and turning all the lights off in the car and basically driving in the dark off the farm. I remember looking back out of the back window at home. I never saw home again.”

Negri also spoke of the impact it had on him and of feeling at home in Italy.

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