We were just smiling at each other and not really saying anything, and Dad said to me, Do you want to hang out with her after she finishes work? Of course I was like, Oh yes please! Things happen in your life and unfortunately they can shape you in negative ways. I became very fearful, I was holding it within me. I actually, in my little kid brain, thought that if I was around drugs or the white powder that I was responsible for killing people because of what I'd seen. Yeah, there was a bit of pressure. Probably no one put on more pressure than ourselves,” Tui told him. And so therefore, I do feel a responsibility that the next choice I make is in support of people who see that and understand that.”

The life stuff, all the non-rugby stuff – people from all over the world have related to that. The reaction has been out of the gate, I never thought that would happen.”With Bunnings, she’s helped in the campaigns to have women’s changing rooms built at clubs around the country. With NZR’s Head First campaign, it’s about focusing on mental health. There’s a reason I prefer reading people’s life stories over fiction - sometimes, you just can’t make up what people have actually been through. Reading all the twists and turns of Ruby’s childhood, knowing she ends up as an Olympic gold medallist and Rugby World Cup champ… if that was in a novel, it might seem too much. But in Ruby’s personable and authentic tone, we live those moments with her and realise what she’s been through to arrive where she is now, both on and off the field. So she’s not ready to retire yet; she’s had great advice from the likes of mentor Keven Mealamu and the rugby players’ association.

Currie had an impromptu chat with Tui after New Zealand’s 36-0 victory over Russia in the Olympic quarterfinals. What happens to us, especially what happens to us as children, doesn't need to define who we are as adults. And it's never too late to look into these things that happened to us. Her hand has fended off rugby players around the globe, lifted two gold medals, and – devastatingly – held a knife as she contemplated suicide when she was only 11 years old. I reach out to shake it, but she sweeps my arm aside.Lunch with Shayne, yeah!” she says at one point, grinning. This is the first time we’ve met; she’s treating me like an old pal.

Until just before this book was published, most people didn't know the truth of Ruby's childhood. I'll leave it for you to discover in this book - other than at the end there is just the slightest tinge of bitterness when she says; Tui’s endearing interviews and authenticity have been welcomed by those who say rugby is bereft of characters and charisma.The Welsh were among the favourites at the tournament; they should have made the final at least. Warburton’s card put paid to those hopes. “He spills the tea on that card and how they didn’t make the final. Oh man, I love that because I can put myself in the shoes,” says Tui. I am in awe. I already knew she was a determined rugby player that was happy and enthusiastic but reading her story I am absolutely moved and beyond excited about what her experiences, words and wisdom can pass onto our tamariki. Ruby Tui was reluctant to write this but then she went to a bookstore to find a book by any other woman in sport and eventually found one about Billy Jean King but otherwise it was men everywhere. And take it from me as a specialist on the topic of men’s memoirs - 90% of these men in sport are incredibly mediocre. There has never been a more important time for independent journalism to come to the fore. Newsroom is independently owned and run by journalists. We place journalist integrity above all else. A visit to the male-dominated rugby memoir section of a bookstore was what convinced New Zealand rugby star Ruby Tu i to share her personal story.

This is Ruby Tui. An open, raw and honest account of her journey from a troubled and unstable childhood, searching for a better option in life, to Olympic champion and the world's best rugby sevens player. I’m not ashamed to admit it: I HAVE A HUGE GIRL CRUSH ON RUBY TUI so this review might be a bit bias. Relentlessly competitive on the field, away from the game, she puts people at the centre of her universe. You’re at ease immediately. Hence the hug. Of course, Dad’s an alcoholic, and she was young, so how we bonded was through drinking. I didn’t have the skills to say to her, I don’t need to do this. Honestly, I loved her so much, we could have just sat in a room doing nothing and I would have been happy. But I guess Dad and her were also trying to figure out their relationship, and so drinking was what we all ended up doing. Anyway the conversation between Tui and co-hosts Melanie Bracewell (another kiwi) and Tim McDonald was very tongue-in-cheek. Laugh-a-minute stuff.Ruby Tui: "Nothing I do is mediocre or just for likes. I really like myself; I don’t need other people’s likes, you know." Photo montage / Michael Craig I’m fortunate to have that kind of relationship with myself that I’m not scared of the day that I say no. Yeah, OK. You’re kiwi, you know, I thought that was low key out the gate. Because I felt like we were just having a chat,” said Tui. The World Cup success catapulted women’s rugby into the spotlight in New Zealand like never before. Tui, who was later crowned World Rugby’s Women’s Breakthrough Player of 2022, was inundated with “lucrative” offers to play overseas and signed to play in the Premier Rugby Sevens competition in the United States, for which men and women are paid equally. In what has to be one of the most dramatic World Cup finals of all time, the Red Roses went down to 14 players when Lydia Thompson was shown a red card in the 18th minute and led for most of the game.