Nā Shakayla Andrews-Alapaki tēnei atikara.
Ellison returns to lead Māori All Blacks, focused on reconnection and identity.
Tamati Ellison (Kāi Tahu, Ngāti Mutunga, Ngāti Whakaue) leads the Māori All Blacks as head coach, returning to the team he once played for.
“Taku tino waimārie ki te kaea i tēnei kapa, ki te hoki mai anō ki waenganui i te kapa Māori,” he said.
Ellison said his focus as head coach is on reconnecting players to their identity and grounding them in kaupapa Māori beyond the game.
“Ko taku tino tūmanako mō te kapa nei kia ū ki ngā kaupapa Māori, muri ake i tērā ko ngā kēmu,” he said. “Muri ake i tērā, ahakoa haere ki hea, kia ū tonu ki ngā tikanga Māori.”
Ellison’s coaching journey includes time in the Crusaders and All Blacks environments, where he worked in development and assistant coaching roles.
A LEGACY OF ANCESTRY, A LEGACY OF RUGBY
Ellison’s coaching philosophy is shaped by his own journey in the game and his connection to his whānau and heritage. The Ellison family of Ōtākou is well known in rugby, with his tipuna koroua, Thomas Ellison, recognised as the first captain of New Zealand’s first official overseas touring team organised by the New Zealand Rugby Football Union in 1893.
Ellison said understanding his whakapapa has been central to his identity.
“I’m really lucky to learn our whānau stories. I think that’s an important part, to know who you are,” he said. “Ahakoa ngā tāngata rongonui i taku whānau, I think regardless, to be able to know who you are is important”
He said staying connected to home helps keep him grounded in the professional rugby environment.
“I live in te ao whutupōro, so it’s a wee bit of a bubble,” he said. “Consciously, if I’m in the city, like last year when the All Blacks played in Dunedin, I went out to Tamatea. The real benefit for me is being able to know where home is.”
ELLISON’S RUGBY PATHWAY
Ellison began his professional rugby career with the Wellington Lions before playing Super Rugby for the Blues, Hurricanes and Highlanders. From 2005 to 2009, he represented the All Blacks and the Māori All Blacks, and won Commonwealth Games gold with New Zealand Sevens.
As head coach, Ellison’s first priority is reconnecting players with culture, identity and purpose. He said strong relationships across the rugby system will be key to preparation and selection.
“It’s about communication through Super Rugby, making sure players are as fit and prepared as possible when it comes time to select,” he said.
With the first match of the year fast approaching, the Māori All Blacks squad has yet to be named. The team is set to face Japan in June.
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Kua tūātea a Tamati Ellison hei kaiwhakahaere matua mō te Kapa Ōpango, e hoki ana ia ki tōna tīma ō mua.
“Taku tino waimārie ki te kaea i tēnei kapa, ki te hoki mai anō ki waenganui i te kapa Māori,” hei tāna.
Hei tā Ellison, ko tōna aronga hei kaiwhakahaere matua ko te tūhono o ngā kaitākaro ki a rātou ake tuakiritanga me te ū ki ngā kaupapa Māori i waho atu i te kēmu.
“Ko taku tino tūmanako mō te kapa nei kia ū ki ngā kaupapa Māori, muri ake i tērā ko ngā kēmu,” hei tāna. “Muri ake i tērā, ahakoa haere ki hea, kia ū tonu ki ngā tikanga Māori.”
He whēako kaiwhakaako tāna i roto i ngā kapa whutupōro pēnei i te kapa Whatumoana (Crusaders) me te kapa Ōpango. I whai wāhi ia ki ngā tūranga kaiāwhina me ngā tūranga whakawhanake.
HE TĀTAI WHAKAPAPA, HE TĀTAI WHUTUPŌRO
Nā tōna ngākaunui ki te kēmu me tōna hononga ki tōna whānau me tōna tuakiri Māori, i wana ake ai tōna tautake hei kaiwhakaako. Kua rangona whānuitia e te ao whutupōro mō te whānau Ellison nō Ōtākou. Ko tōna tipuna koroua, a Thomas Ellison (Tāmati Erihana), te kāpene tuatahi o te kapa Aotearoa i a rātou e tāpoi ana i te tau 1893. Nā te ūniana o te New Zealand Rugby Football i whakarite te haerenga.
E ai ki a Ellison, ko tōna whakapapa te ia o tōna tuakiritanga.
“I’m really lucky to learn our whānau stories. I think that’s an important part, to know who you are,” e ai ki a Ellison. “Ahakoa ngā tāngata rongonui i taku whānau, I think regardless, to be able to know who you are is important”
Hei tā Ellison, nā tōna hononga ki tōna tūrangawaewae e tū māia ana e ia ki te ao whutupōro.
“I live in te ao whutupōro, so it’s a wee bit of a bubble,” hei tāna. “Consciously, if I’m in the city, like last year when the All Blacks played in Dunedin, I went out to Tamatea. The real benefit for me is being able to know where home is.”
TE ARA WHUTUPŌRO O ELLISON
I timata tōna ara whutupōro i raro i te kapa Wellington Lions. Ka rua, i whakawhiti ia ki te whakataetae Super Rugby, ā, i whakakanohi i ngā kapa pēnei i te kapa Blues, te kapa Haumātakataka me te kapa Highlanders. I waenga i ngā tau 2005 ki te 2009, i uru atu ia hei kaitākaro mō te Kapa Ōpango me te kapa Ōpango Māori, ka mutu, i toa ia i te metara kōura ki te taumahekeheke hoa whenua mō te kapa takiwhitu o Aotearoa.
Ko te kūwata o Ellison kia hono anō ngā kaitākaro ki tā rātou ake ahurea, te paheko ki tā rātou tuakiritanga me te pūtake e whāia ana e rātou i tēnei ara. Ko tāna, ko ngā hononga puta noa i te ao whutupōro te kura huna ki te whakarite me te tīpako i te tīma.
“It’s about communication through Super Rugby, making sure players are as fit and prepared as possible when it comes time to select,” hei tā Ellison.
E kainamu ana te kēmu tuatahi o te tau, ā, kāore anō kia whakaingoatia te kapa Ōpango. Ka tuki te kapa ki te kapa o Hapani hei tēnei Hune.