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Guest
Guest
Wests Tigers prop James Gavet's triumph over adversity
Date
April 18, 2014
Daniel Lane
Sports reporter & Video journalist
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James Gavet, the terror of the Wests Tigers forward pack, wasn’t joking when he said, had it not been for rugby league, he would probably be in the sewers deep beneath Auckland shovelling muck for a living.
Gavet, 25, has quickly made his name in the rejuvenated Wests Tigers pack. Six years ago, the son of a New Zealand academic proved there was truth in the notion that the dignity of all human labour was derived from the dignity of the human who engages in it when he decided sweating amid muck and stench was more honourable a path than the one he was on.
Before being assigned to the piping and drainage section of a construction company, Gavet's tattoos marked him as a member of the JDK gang from central Auckland. Many of his ‘‘brothers’’ – Parramatta Eels boom boy Manu Ma’u included – were sent to prison as a consequence of the lives they led.
When he turned 19, and had a newborn son, James jnr, Gavet figured his boy would look more proudly upon a father who sometimes worked waist deep in human excrement as a drain layer than a gang member.
With that as his driving force, he bade farewell to harm, donned a pair of plastic overalls and gum boots, gripped his shovel and dug.
‘‘Because people aren't so wealthy where we lived in Mount Roskill you found pleasure in drinking, smoking, drugs, fighting and stuff like that,’’ said the born-again Christian who prays before a match.
‘‘There were fights – bottles, knives and even guns – but I had my son and it was time to grow up.
‘‘I always looked up to my father, George. He’s in the Ministry of Education and, while he had a tough past, dad came good and I admire him. My joining the gang was a problem at home. He looked [at me] with disappointment, but my father knew I’d eventually learn because he snapped out of it himself.
‘‘I got a job shovelling shit but it was honest.
‘‘It wasn’t pleasant. There are different ranks in construction, even in piping. There are those who go down and put their arms in the pipes to clear them of the sewage and stand waist deep in it. I was in the thick of it. We were jealous of the people up on the street holding the lollipop sign [for the traffic], that was the job everyone desired.’’
At that time Gavet, who had shown promise as a rugby union player before he stowed the boots away to focus on fatherhood, was convinced by a relative to play league.
He displayed enough potential in his first few games to be selected for the Auckland Vulcans, the Warriors' feeder club.
‘‘I was raw,’’ he said. ‘‘I hadn't played rugby in 18 months. I was just working, eating meat pies and talking footy to the guys at work. I started playing league and, because I ran different lines to everyone else, I was noticed.’’
His agent, former Kiwi Test player Tyran Smith of Sportsplayer Management, needed only a brief glimpse of Gavet’s full-throttle style to appreciate he was forged from tough stuff.
‘‘I saw raw talent and incredible strength,’’ said Smith. ‘‘I thought, if that could be channelled properly, James would be anything. When he told me he was working in the sewer, wearing plastic overalls and shovelling other people’s waste because it was more honourable than the gang life, I thought, ‘this bloke is a leader’.’’
Two years after being signed to play for the Warriors' under 20s, Gavet became Des Hasler's first recruit when he left Manly for Canterbury. While there were high hopes for him at Belmore, an ankle injury cruelled his chance of playing more than just one half of first grade in the blue and white.
‘‘I never had an injury like that before and It kept me out for so long,’’ he said. ‘‘I played on it the year before at the Warriors and played on with it at Canterbury. When it started to hurt I thought I was being soft, but I had three stress fractures and needed surgery.’’
After slaving in the gym last year and doing extras such as running the ‘‘stairway to hell’’ at Coogee with Smith, Sydney-born Gavet was given his first grade spurs at Wests Tigers and he has battered and bruised some mighty reputations since.
‘‘I haven't ever been one to be afraid of names,’’ he said. ‘‘We have to watch video. Coach tells us to look at certain plays the opponents do but, at the end of the day, they’re just bodies and it comes down to you to do what's right and not to step backwards.
‘‘A lot of people shape up to the challenge and say I have to meet this benchmark this week but I play my hardest against whoever I'm up against every week. Even if I played against my brother Keni [who is at Wests Tigers] in the future, I’ll play without mercy. I’ll play hard.’’
That mindset sets the scene for a torrid Easter Monday battle when Gavet is pitted against his former JDK gang mate and friend, Ma'u, who has added his own starch to Parramatta. Gavet said he and Ma'u shared a common goal to inspire others to abandon the gang culture for a better life.
‘‘We're always texting and talking. Manu’s progress is enormous,’’ Gavet said.
‘‘We were very close growing up and I have nothing but happiness for him and his family. We play similar to each other probably because of how we were brought up.
‘‘I hope the gangs won’t exist for the next generation. I think it’s good NRL teams are realising there are boys who can turn their lives around and who are worth more than what people might think. When you look at our old gang, Manu and me, we were two out of a group of 40 and some were much better footy players than us.’'
It’s because of where Gavet has been, in the gangs and stinking drains of Auckland, that he is grateful for the life rugby league has provided him and his partner Christie.
‘‘It’s been a blessing,’’ he said. ‘‘I could quite easily have have had a so-so life without it but footy has taken me many places. I never thought I’d live in Sydney; never thought I’d leave Auckland or get more money than I was making there.’’
Gavet will again put everything on the line against Parramatta on Monday and, if there was one thing he has proven, it's that, after his time in the sewers, he’s taking shit from no one.
Date
April 18, 2014
Daniel Lane
Sports reporter & Video journalist
\
\
James Gavet, the terror of the Wests Tigers forward pack, wasn’t joking when he said, had it not been for rugby league, he would probably be in the sewers deep beneath Auckland shovelling muck for a living.
Gavet, 25, has quickly made his name in the rejuvenated Wests Tigers pack. Six years ago, the son of a New Zealand academic proved there was truth in the notion that the dignity of all human labour was derived from the dignity of the human who engages in it when he decided sweating amid muck and stench was more honourable a path than the one he was on.
Before being assigned to the piping and drainage section of a construction company, Gavet's tattoos marked him as a member of the JDK gang from central Auckland. Many of his ‘‘brothers’’ – Parramatta Eels boom boy Manu Ma’u included – were sent to prison as a consequence of the lives they led.
When he turned 19, and had a newborn son, James jnr, Gavet figured his boy would look more proudly upon a father who sometimes worked waist deep in human excrement as a drain layer than a gang member.
With that as his driving force, he bade farewell to harm, donned a pair of plastic overalls and gum boots, gripped his shovel and dug.
‘‘Because people aren't so wealthy where we lived in Mount Roskill you found pleasure in drinking, smoking, drugs, fighting and stuff like that,’’ said the born-again Christian who prays before a match.
‘‘There were fights – bottles, knives and even guns – but I had my son and it was time to grow up.
‘‘I always looked up to my father, George. He’s in the Ministry of Education and, while he had a tough past, dad came good and I admire him. My joining the gang was a problem at home. He looked [at me] with disappointment, but my father knew I’d eventually learn because he snapped out of it himself.
‘‘I got a job shovelling shit but it was honest.
‘‘It wasn’t pleasant. There are different ranks in construction, even in piping. There are those who go down and put their arms in the pipes to clear them of the sewage and stand waist deep in it. I was in the thick of it. We were jealous of the people up on the street holding the lollipop sign [for the traffic], that was the job everyone desired.’’
At that time Gavet, who had shown promise as a rugby union player before he stowed the boots away to focus on fatherhood, was convinced by a relative to play league.
He displayed enough potential in his first few games to be selected for the Auckland Vulcans, the Warriors' feeder club.
‘‘I was raw,’’ he said. ‘‘I hadn't played rugby in 18 months. I was just working, eating meat pies and talking footy to the guys at work. I started playing league and, because I ran different lines to everyone else, I was noticed.’’
His agent, former Kiwi Test player Tyran Smith of Sportsplayer Management, needed only a brief glimpse of Gavet’s full-throttle style to appreciate he was forged from tough stuff.
‘‘I saw raw talent and incredible strength,’’ said Smith. ‘‘I thought, if that could be channelled properly, James would be anything. When he told me he was working in the sewer, wearing plastic overalls and shovelling other people’s waste because it was more honourable than the gang life, I thought, ‘this bloke is a leader’.’’
Two years after being signed to play for the Warriors' under 20s, Gavet became Des Hasler's first recruit when he left Manly for Canterbury. While there were high hopes for him at Belmore, an ankle injury cruelled his chance of playing more than just one half of first grade in the blue and white.
‘‘I never had an injury like that before and It kept me out for so long,’’ he said. ‘‘I played on it the year before at the Warriors and played on with it at Canterbury. When it started to hurt I thought I was being soft, but I had three stress fractures and needed surgery.’’
After slaving in the gym last year and doing extras such as running the ‘‘stairway to hell’’ at Coogee with Smith, Sydney-born Gavet was given his first grade spurs at Wests Tigers and he has battered and bruised some mighty reputations since.
‘‘I haven't ever been one to be afraid of names,’’ he said. ‘‘We have to watch video. Coach tells us to look at certain plays the opponents do but, at the end of the day, they’re just bodies and it comes down to you to do what's right and not to step backwards.
‘‘A lot of people shape up to the challenge and say I have to meet this benchmark this week but I play my hardest against whoever I'm up against every week. Even if I played against my brother Keni [who is at Wests Tigers] in the future, I’ll play without mercy. I’ll play hard.’’
That mindset sets the scene for a torrid Easter Monday battle when Gavet is pitted against his former JDK gang mate and friend, Ma'u, who has added his own starch to Parramatta. Gavet said he and Ma'u shared a common goal to inspire others to abandon the gang culture for a better life.
‘‘We're always texting and talking. Manu’s progress is enormous,’’ Gavet said.
‘‘We were very close growing up and I have nothing but happiness for him and his family. We play similar to each other probably because of how we were brought up.
‘‘I hope the gangs won’t exist for the next generation. I think it’s good NRL teams are realising there are boys who can turn their lives around and who are worth more than what people might think. When you look at our old gang, Manu and me, we were two out of a group of 40 and some were much better footy players than us.’'
It’s because of where Gavet has been, in the gangs and stinking drains of Auckland, that he is grateful for the life rugby league has provided him and his partner Christie.
‘‘It’s been a blessing,’’ he said. ‘‘I could quite easily have have had a so-so life without it but footy has taken me many places. I never thought I’d live in Sydney; never thought I’d leave Auckland or get more money than I was making there.’’
Gavet will again put everything on the line against Parramatta on Monday and, if there was one thing he has proven, it's that, after his time in the sewers, he’s taking shit from no one.
