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Josh Ioane first caught the eye of Pete Wilkins when the Connacht head coach was reviewing footage ahead of two matches against the Maori All Blacks as part of the Ireland back room team for the tour to New Zealand in 2022.
Wilkins liked what he saw but it wasn’t until this year that he became aware that Ioane would consider a move to play rugby in Europe. He sought out the 29-year-old outhalf and the upshot is that the Kiwi signed a one-year contract with the Irish province.
Connacht were aware of an issue or two dating back to 2021 when the police were called to a house party he was hosting. The Highlanders stood him down, a lesson that he absorbed as he explained. “Yeah, I think about that sometimes.
“My partner and I, we talk about, ‘ugh, a few years ago we were doing this’ and ‘a few years ago we were doing that’. Now, I barely even drink at all. I think becoming a father has played a big part in that. I love being a father. My daughter’s one and a half now,” said Ioane, with the couple expecting a second child around Christmas.
Ioane continued: “I’ve been through a lot over the last couple of years. I lost my father last year and then I became a father two weeks later. And I think when you go through something like that, you’re forced to grow up pretty quickly.
“So, when I look back on that I feel I’ve learned from that. Like I said, I’ve been through a lot in the last couple of years and I feel like I’m coming out the other side a lot more mature.”
He was superb on a try-scoring debut in Connacht’s narrow defeat to Munster before suffering a head injury in the first half of the game against the Sharks which ruled him out of the province’s win over the Scarlets, but he’ll be back for Saturday’s game against Ulster.
And he’s settled well off the pitch too: “The people here are really nice, and the environment has been really good, they’ve welcomed us in. We’re enjoying it.
“The weather has been good, so I’ve been out with the boys for a few rounds of golf. I’ve been out with Bundee [Aki], Piers [O’Conor] and [Peter] Dooley. Galway’s really nice when the weather’s good.
“I always wanted to go overseas, and I felt like I had been in New Zealand for eight or nine years, I felt like it was a good time for a change. I had a few chats with the coaches and the style of play I really liked. I felt like I was a good fit. I’m happy that I made the decision and I’m enjoying it.”