Newcastle Purple Bull’s new England-qualified arrival is stuffed with surprises.
Let’s begin with Max Hicks’ childhood. He was born and raised in New Zealand. His father, James, is Maori, and his mom, Liane, comes from Cornwall.
‘I grew up in a bit of city referred to as Coatesville, west of Auckland,’ explains the 27-year-old, his lengthy limbs sprawled throughout a settee at Kingston Park. ‘I had a pet eel referred to as Scarface. We had this massive creek that ran via the underside of our property. We had agricultural day at main faculty, the place individuals would herald sheep, calves, bunny rabbits.
‘My outdated man was a builder and we had this outdated bathtub, so we went and caught one of many eels from the creek to take into faculty and I stored it as my pet. I put it again within the river however it will all the time come again. I all the time fed it left-over butter hen. They don’t have good imaginative and prescient so it was one thing to do with the aromatics. It liked it. I’d decide it up and take it across the backyard. I had a ram referred to as Cookie, too. I’d shout his title and he would run over to me. I used to be a fairly bizarre child…’
His sporting journey has been equally unconventional. Whereas the likes of Caleb Clarke and Tupou Vaa’i had been nurtured via the All Blacks age grades, Hicks was usually discovered enjoying hockey or Aussie Guidelines. A profession in rugby appeared like an unlikely path.
‘My dad and mom inspired me to get into all sports activities potential,’ he says. ‘I performed 100 video games of first-team hockey at highschool and performed for the New Zealand Maori hockey group. I began enjoying AFL in my final 12 months of highschool, too, and spent a while with St Kilda (one of many AFL’s most historic sides, based mostly in Melbourne). AFL is such an athletic sport. The large males can all run, soar, kick off each ft, deal with with each fingers.
Newcastle Purple Bull’s new England-qualified arrival Max Hicks is stuffed with surprises
Whereas different rising stars had been nurtured via the All Blacks age grades, Hicks was usually discovered enjoying hockey or Aussie Guidelines. A profession in rugby appeared like an unlikely path
‘I liked enjoying rugby however I used to be by no means the most effective. I acquired invited to some of the Beneath 20s camps however I used to be constructed like a rake. AFL wished me to be tremendous match and to have the ability to run eternally. Rugby wished me to bulk up. I used to be caught between a rock and a tough place.
‘Rugby by no means actually hit me as a correct profession path till I type of left highschool. As soon as I might chosen rugby, I went on this massive bulking journey to placed on some weight. McDonald’s, KFC, ice cream!’
Hicks turned a trainee builder to fund his rugby dream. He upped his calorie consumption and took on an early morning weights routine earlier than going to work. By likelihood, his labouring colleague was school-mate Ethan Roots, the Auckland-born Exeter Chiefs flanker who has been capped by England.
‘We went to the identical highschool and we labored for a similar constructing firm, constructing homes round Auckland.’ he says. ‘We had been setting out slabs, placing standing partitions up, placing on cladding. You’re getting up at 4.30am and also you’re within the health club at 5. I used to be nonetheless making an attempt to make it in rugby however I used to be additionally planning for all times if I did not.
‘I wasn’t a younger famous person who was picked up straight out of highschool and straight right into a rugby atmosphere. I moved all the way down to Tasman (who from 2028 will develop into Tasmania’s first AFL membership). They did not supply me a full contract, however they type of stated, “Hey, should you come down right here, work laborious, you’ll be able to earn your self a spot on the group”.
‘The next 12 months I joined the Highlanders. I bear in mind getting into for the primary time and seeing all these guys I might watched on TV. Guys like Aaron Smith and Shannon Frizell. Ben Smith and Tony Brown had been teaching us. It was fairly surreal. I performed for the Maori All Blacks, representing my dad’s facet, and I used to be actually eager to have an journey, so I shot over to France and joined Perpignan.’
Sporting the No6 jersey final season, Hicks’ turnover haul was second solely to Jack Willis within the Prime 14. With Europe on his doorstep, he had the chance to retrace his household roots.
‘My grandad was within the Royal Air Pressure and he acquired a posting in New Zealand. Mum was born in Truro and so they moved over when she was round ten years outdated. I went to Cornwall with mum for the primary time final 12 months, that was cool. She acquired to point out me the place she grew up.
Hicks has solely performed two PREM video games for Newcastle however he’s already making a reputation for himself
Hicks turned a trainee builder to fund his rugby dream. By likelihood, his labouring colleague was school-mate Ethan Roots (centre), the Auckland-born Exeter flanker capped by England
‘We acquired an Airbnb and spent a while in St Ives. Ethan and Jimmy Roots popped over from Exeter, too. Loads of the household moved over to New Zealand however there shall be a number of family hanging round. I may need to do a kind of Discover My Household mouth swabs!’
Newcastle’s head of recruitment, Gavin Vaughan, discovered of Hicks’ English roots final 12 months. Vaughan beforehand labored for Scotland and unearthed Sione Tuipulotu and Huw Jones, scouring the rugby world for Scotland-eligible gamers.
In his new function with Newcastle, Vaughan has to hit targets of English-qualified gamers, making Hicks a very enticing proposition.
‘I wasn’t actively seeking to depart France however I used to be open to listening to what was on the market. Purple Bull approached me and my agent and it’s such an superior mission. The Purple Bull affect is fairly cool. I assumed, “How cool wouldn’t it be to come back into a brand new atmosphere that is so unknown, with all this expectation, and actually flip a spot round?”
‘You recognize, the Falcons had it robust for a pair years. It might be such a cool story to come back right here as a bunch of individuals from all all over the world and fill the stadium out each week. That is what excited me. Mum was fairly completely satisfied that I moved over. There’s a little bit of patriotism there. I’ve represented my dad’s facet and I suppose now I’m representing my mum’s.’
Throughout Newcastle’s pre-season camp on the Purple Bull HQ in Austria, Hicks had one other shock for his team-mates. He wowed everybody together with his wakeboarding abilities out on the Wolfgang Lake – one other talent he picked up residing by the coast in New Zealand.
Hicks has solely performed two PREM video games for Newcastle however he’s already making a reputation for himself. Throughout final weekend’s defeat by Leicester, Eire legend Brian O’Driscoll in contrast his means to carry a ball in a single hand to NBA famous person LeBron James.
At 6ft 6in and 17st 9lb, Hicks resembles former Saracens flanker Theo McFarland, whose basketball background gave him an athletic level of distinction. His eye-catching performances have thrown him into the combination of England’s World Cup bolters – though there was no contact with Steve Borthwick.
Throughout Newcastle’s pre-season camp on the Purple Bull HQ in Austria, Hicks had one other shock for his team-mates. He wowed everybody together with his wakeboarding abilities out on the Wolfgang Lake
‘It was by no means my purpose for coming over right here however I’d like to play worldwide rugby,’ he says, having represented the Maori All Blacks twice however by no means the total senior facet.
‘I might like to characterize my mum’s facet of the household. If that occurs, it occurs. If it does not, it does not. I’m right here to throw all my eggs into the membership. My purpose for coming right here was to be a part of an thrilling mission with Purple Bull.
‘I do know we have had a troublesome begin to the PREM and we have misplaced two, however the progress we’re making as a bunch has been actually constructive. We’re nonetheless fine-tuning issues, the followers are excited, and the group’s gelling rather well. It is nearly discovering these little connections with gamers you have got by no means performed with earlier than.
‘Some groups have been collectively for a number of years and so they know who’s going to get a weak shoulder and throw an offload. We’re nonetheless figuring that out with one another, however when that clicks, it may be thrilling. We’ll begin getting extra outcomes come our approach.’
