Former All Black Stephen Donald faced massive backlash from the media in 2010 after a costly loss to Australia in which he copped much of the blame.
Turned on by some vociferous rugby fans, Donald found himself out in the cold. But he gained face again after a campaign to ‘Bring Back Beaver’ and a phenomenal personal performance in the famous 2011 Rugby World Cup final.
Donald spoke with Mel Homer on Sunday Cafe about the pain of the highly judgemental media at the time and his recall into the All Blacks.
"I knew the rest of the country was blowing up that this idiot was getting called back into the All Blacks," said Donald.
"I just couldn't keep going to the supermarkets at 10 o'clock at night to get my groceries.
"People to this day think I must be incredibly mentally tough to be able to brush all that off.
"But I think a lot of it was a bit of a front and in the end, it got to me, that’s why I signed with Bath.
"I never want to tell the media they won, but they kind of did.
"We used to always fly out of Hamilton Airport and for two months straight, right beside the five-buck counter was this big picture of me with ‘the weakest link’ on top of it."
Despite the dejection and criticism, Donald picked himself up again after much hardship and took coach Steve Hansen's advice to take up dance classes to get light on his feet for a chance to get back into the All Blacks.
"I talked to my trainer in Hamilton and he organised a dance studio.
"I used to go to a salsa studio every day at about 10 o'clock during the middle of the day.
"I paid over and above to go private and to go in the middle of the day, so no one would see me."
Listen to the full interview between Stephen Donald and Mel Homer above.
You can also download the full interview on the Sunday Café podcast, and listen on the go. Download the rova app on apple or android to listen to this podcast on the go, or anywhere else you get your podcasts.
