Greg Pleasants-Tate’s professional rugby career, which saw him play for five different provinces and two Super Rugby teams, has come to an end. Logan Savory reflects with the frontrower on his nomadic rugby journey.
Greg Pleasants-Tate’s rugby journey started in Whanganui, made stops in North Harbour, Auckland, Bay of Plenty, Canterbury, and Dunedin before eventually finding a home in Southland.
Pleasants-Tate just might be New Zealand rugby’s ultimate nomad.
The 31-year-old front-rower announced this week that his time as a professional rugby player is up. He has an ongoing neck injury he struggles to shake, is about to become a father, and has a new job to get his head around.
He feels now is the right time to move on from rugby; in the professional sense at least.
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Greg Pleasants Tate playing for North Harbour against Southland in 2014.
The veteran hooker has no regrets as he reflects on an 11-year professional rugby career that’s seen him bounce around the country playing for five different provinces and two Super Rugby teams.
“I’ve loved my career, even though I’ve been around the block. My career has had its ups and downs, but every team I’ve played for I’ve put my best foot forward. No regrets whatsoever,” he says.
Pleasants-Tate was born in Whanganui, but it was in North Harbour when he attended Takapuna Grammar School where his rugby development took place. He was en route to a spot in the New Zealand Under-20s team which won the 2011 Junior World Championship. It was a team that produced 13 future international players with current All Blacks Brodie Retallick, Sam Cane, Cody Taylor, Brad Webber and Beauden Barrett included.
That same year Pleasants-Tate signed with Bay of Plenty to play in the National Provincial Championship.
While most know him as a wide-running hooker, at that early stage of his provincial career it was at loosehead prop where Pleasants-Tate spent most of his time playing for Bay of Plenty and then North Harbour.
He had been advised by the New Zealand under-20s selectors that to make the team he needed to find his feet as a prop as well. Well-regarded New Zealand scrum guru Mike Cron was the person who oversaw that transition.
Pleasants-Tate thought the versatility of being able to play both prop and hooker would be a huge advantage. The reality, in the modern game, it didn’t turn out to be the golden ticket it might have been made out to be.
“I was told it would help to be both, but technically you really can’t in this day and age. You’ve got to nail your position down.”
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Greg Pleasants-Tate in action for Auckland against Southland during the 2017 National Provincial Championship.
It was his former Bay of Plenty assistant coach Paul Feeney who helped put Pleasants-Tate back on the path of locking down the position of hooker, and hooker only.
Feeney had taken over as Auckland’s head coach and signed Pleasants-Tate as a hooker for the 2015 NPC season.
He played 25 games for Auckland across three seasons before making another shift, joining his fourth province, Canterbury, in 2018.
“It felt like I wasn’t a fit there [in Auckland] at that stage and Canterbury offered me to come down and get me out of my Auckland contract.”
He played five games before a neck injury, which required surgery, threatened to end his career.
“It was always frowned upon for a rugby player and frontrower to get neck surgery. It was a daunting thing, but the surgeon was confident, he felt it was an easy fix to fuse it together.
“I was a bit hesitant about coming back, it took me longer than I expected.”
Kai Schwoerer/Getty Images
Greg Pleasants-Tate receives some attention during a stoppage in play while playing for Canterbury during the 2018 NPC season.
Following surgery, he moved to Southland where his wife Kate has family ties. Pleasants-Tate was unsure of his future. He linked with physio Andrew MacKintosh in Invercargill to work through his injury rehab.
Kate’s family has strong links with the Star Rugby Club in Invercargill, so Pleasants-Tate had little choice but to join the Waverley Park-based club.
It’s something he says helped get him back on the rugby path, but more importantly, it integrated him into the Invercargill community at a time when he knew few people in the deep south.
“There was an opportunity to go back up to Canterbury, but I felt Invercargill was suited to my lifestyle. I love it. It’s one of those places when you travel here as a rugby player you hate the place. But honestly, the people made it so much easier moving down here.
“I had to go to Star because of the in-laws [Brad South], but getting involved with Star was awesome, just getting to meet people.”
Kavinda Herath/Stuff
Greg Pleasants-Tate on the run playing for the Star Rugby Club against Woodlands in a Southland premier club rugby fixture.
From there came an opportunity for Pleasants-Tate to train with the Southland Stags and by the 2019 NPC season he was debuting for his fifth province, Southland.
He has remained part of the Stags’ setup since, although missed the entire 2022 campaign after breaking his ankle playing club rugby. His final provincial destination seemed to be a good fit.
“It’s been amazing, there is a lot of history with that [Southland No 2] jersey, the amount of good players who have pulled on the jersey, Rutledge, Crazy [David Hall], and the likes,” he says.
“It makes it better that we’ve got such great fans down here, always supporting you and when you are out in the community they always say hello. We do have the best fans in the country.”
Interestingly Pleasants-Tate’s first connection with Southland rugby actually took place in 2017, in Japan of all places.
The Stags spent some time in Japan before the 2017 NPC season where it played a game against the Panasonic Wild Knights under the Highlanders Bravehearts banner.
Pleasants-Tate and Malakai Fekitoa were also in Japan on that trip representing the Highlanders on promotional duties. Pleasants-Tate ended up pulling the boots on and playing for Southland against the Wild Knights.
“I was contracted to Auckland then… We were doing promo work and also training with Southland [in Japan]. Then they had a few injuries over there and asked if I wanted to come off the bench and play looseforward.
“I still remember the boys at Southland were a bit hesitant about us Auckland boys being around them knowing the moves and the likes, because we were playing them that season.”
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Greg Pleasants-Tate runs out prior to a round four 2018 NPC match between Canterbury and Manawatu a in Christchurch.
Pleasants-Tate admits he’s had plenty of ups and downs during his career, which probably explains bouncing around five different provinces in the space of 11 years.
But there’s a rather large plus side to having such a big jersey collection.
He has met a lot of people during his playing career and says that is what he treasures most as he enters the next stage in life which isn’t dominated by rugby.
“Rugby makes you money, and you do it because you love it. But the mates and the people you meet along the way, it’s crazy. The people you meet, they stay forever.
“I’ve met some wicked people in my time, a lot of great rugby players and people on and off the field.”
While Pleasants-Tate might be best known for his contributions to five different provinces at NPC level, he did also spend time with both the Blues and Highlanders Super Rugby organisations.
He recalls his first training with the Blues as a young pup.
“I still remember the first lineout training. Obviously being a hooker you are staring down the lineout and you can see the whole forward pack. You’ve got Tony Woodcock, Jerome Kaino – even Josh Bekhuis was there – I remember I just had this mental block and couldn’t even let the ball go. My legs were jelly and my legs were shaking, I was throwing to all of these superstars. It was a bit daunting.”
Pleasants-Tate joined the Highlanders in 2016 and remained there through until 2018. It was in Dunedin in 2017 where he believes his career rugby highlight probably took place.
He was part of an understrength Highlanders team which upset the British & Irish Lions team 23-22.
“That was amazing.”
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Greg Pleasants-Tate on the charge for the Highlanders against the Waratahs in a game played in Queenstown.
While his days as a professional rugby player are done, Pleasants-Tate hasn’t officially called time on rugby altogether, just yet at least.
At this stage, he plans to still play for his Star club in Southland’s premier club competition in 2023.
That though is dependent on an upcoming scan on his neck.
If he requires surgery again, Pleasants-Tate might have already played his last game.
Given he’s about to become a father and has started a new job he’s got more than enough to keep himself occupied as rugby takes a backseat.
He’s happy to remain in Invercargill as he and his family tackle the next chapter in life.
“I think I’ll settle here…. I tend to not tell people I’m from Auckland, I’ve only just made it into the community,” Pleasants-Tate jokes.
Three weeks ago he started a job with Breen Construction managing its Southland branch which focuses on Specialised Structures Sheds.
“I tell you what, it’s a lot more mentally draining than professional rugby, I’ll give you the tip,” he says about his new employment opportunity.
