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Tialata grateful to be in France

Written by Emily Groves
Monday, 03 September 2007
Neemia Tialata (NZL) is aware of how close he came to missing out on making his world cup debut in France. The 25-year-old was severely concussed after receiving a knock to the head during a provincial match in New Zealand's domestic competition on 4 August and has spent the past month getting back to full strength and confidence. "I didn't do physical training for two weeks. It was quite a bad knock. I spent most of the first week in bed and wasn't allowed to watch TV, listen to the radio or read books. Things were sort of blurry," Tialata said. One thing is for sure, the giant prop hasn't lost his sense of humour. "A good thing was that I lost about four kilograms. The nutritionists and trainers were quite happy." He was grateful for the support he received from the All Blacks staff to ensure he could play in two matches before the team's departure to France, even though the final decision to travel rested with him. "I wouldn't be here if I hadn't played in those games." Perhaps the victim of a team initiation prank, prop Tialata was forced to wear a T-shirt under his suit for the official team welcome to Marseille on Sunday. "My (dress) shirt got lost somewhere between the washing and the reception." Now that he is in France, Tialata is focussing on breaking into the All Blacks line-up to take on Italy in their opening match on Saturday. !
Last Updated ( Monday, 03 September 2007 )