“At least I’ve the balls to do it.”
Simon Zebo and Bundee Aki are getting most of the headlines in Irish rugby this week. The Munster man is heading to France next summer and has been axed from the Ireland squad. The Connacht centre has satisfied World Rugby’s residency rules and will join a growing list of Kiwis to represent Ireland in the coming weeks if he makes his debut in the Guinness Series.
Both men were in action at The Sportsground, in Galway, and Aki’s Connacht ended up on the winning side. The westerners came back from a 10-0 deficit to defeat their inter-provincial rivals 20-16.
Aki and Zebo had fine outings and one of the big shames, watching the game from The Clan Stand, was that the two men may probably never play together in the same Ireland backline.
Following the match, Zebo spoke with RTE about his decision to leave Munster next summer. The entire four-minute interview was heartfelt and considered, and a few of the Cork native’s comments were remarkable.
Zebo revealed he had already spoken with Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt about his omission. “You know that could potentially happen, but it’s never easy when you’re not involved,” he said.
“If I wasn’t able to compete or didn’t think I was good enough it’d just go over my head, but it’s a level I should be at and I’ve proven I should be at it and that’s why it’s disappointing.
“I wouldn’t say [I’m feeling] regret, because I decided to be in that position. Playing for Munster is a dream of mine since I was a child, playing for Ireland was a dream and playing for the Lions and so has playing in France.
“I’ve French family, I’m half-French and I like the way the rugby is played there. So it was an obvious fit for me to go and experience. It’s a very short career, so I wasn’t going to let it go by without doing it.
“At least I’ve the balls to do it and I won’t shirk away from a challenge. I won’t look back on my career with any regret.”
Zebo also stated that he is not giving up on playing for his country again and adding to his 35 Test caps. Schmidt has not commented publicly on the matter but he is expected to address the media at an awards ceremony in Dublin on Tuesday.
Racing 92 coach, and former Munster teammate, Ronan O’Gara had noted in his weekly column with the Irish Examiner that a deal for Zebo is not finalised, despite the club very much desiring his capture.
Zebo did not shed any further light on what is expected to be his eventual switch from Munster to Paris.
“I know where I’ll probably end up, but until something is in place or announced I can’t really comment on it.
“It was one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make in my life, I want to attack and experience it.”
