He’s a 29-year-old Aucklander of Samoan and Maori extraction who took a punt on bringing his wife and young daughter to the west of Ireland on a one-year deal. It was a gamble, and it’s paid off, both for Josh Ioane and his family, which has grown, and also for Connacht. On foot of signing a new two-year deal earlier this month, he is now one of the chosen 23 to play in front of Connacht’s biggest ever home crowd.
He and his wife Eloise came to Ireland last summer with their two-year-old daughter Ari. Then, in January, they welcomed a Galway-born baby boy named Abel, hence Irish-qualified. “Yeah, that’s the plan,” Ioane says with a laugh.
His mother, Sheila, and younger brother Ethan have been visiting from New Zealand since the end of February, which provided welcome support. Alas, on Thursday they began their journey home. “They’ll miss the game.”
The game is, of course, Saturday’s URC derby between Connacht and Munster in a 26,000-plus sell-out at MacHale Park (kick-off 2.30pm). “Even previous to this week there’s been a lot of chat among the boys and the environment, and that gave me a feeling of it. It’s the first game Mayo has ever hosted.”
Connacht’s previous record attendance at a home game in its 140-year history was 9,120 for their Heineken Cup tie against the mighty Toulouse in November 2011, a match attended by both the president and the then taoiseach.
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“That’s huge,” Ioane agrees. “Yeah, talking to the boys, it should be a big game. I heard the tickets sold out real quick.”
He appreciates its significance in Connacht’s season too. Ioane had an eye-catching debut against Munster last September at Thomond Park, creating two tries and scoring one in a 35-33 loss. “My first experience playing over here and playing in Thomond Park. It was a great match. We had our opportunities and couldn’t execute, I guess.”
So, how did a once-capped All Blacks outhalf end up plying his trade in the west of Ireland?
“When you play in New Zealand your dream is to play for the All Blacks and then players want to head overseas, and that was always the plan – get some experience playing rugby on the other side of the world.”
At the end of his time with the Chiefs, Connacht called and he has no regrets, save for the coldness of the winter and the wind factor on match nights.
One of his tasks while hosting his mum and brother was to take them sightseeing to Connemara and the Cliffs of Moher. “It’s very similar to New Zealand. A lot of views and a lot of green, and my family were saying the same.”
He admits the move was a gamble, effectively amounting to a six-month trial.
“I had to just go all-in so that we could stay here, and I’m glad we’re staying for at least a couple more years. We’re happy. The people are good. The boys are good. We’ve settled in quite nicely. We’re living out in Roscam. My daughter is in a creche. I get out and play golf with the boys. I’m no good at it but I like to whack the ball.
“This is a new style of rugby. Similar in some ways but very different in others. It’s just been a refreshing experience. I feel there’s a lot of passion around the Connacht team.”
Bundee Aki had showcased the move and Ioane’s aunt (Emma), on his father’s side, lives in Dublin. “She was always trying to get me to play on this side of the world and she said I’d love it in Galway. We knew Bundee was here and I also had a chat with Tim Allnutt, our manager. It just sounded like a place we could enjoy.” An easy-going nature also helps.
[ Cian Prendergast: Connacht captain keeping his cool for big derby with MunsterOpens in new window ]
Like Aki, Ioane has Samoan heritage, and, like James Lowe, another ex-Chiefs player, he has Maori roots too. Ioane played for the Samoan Under-20s in the 2015 Junior World Championship in Italy and has represented the Maori All Blacks six times.
“My dad is Samoan and my mum is Maori. She is from Te Rarawa at the top of the north island in New Zealand. I’m half Samoan and half Maori, and learned things from both my cultures, and it was great to represent both sides of my family. Yeah, that’s me.”
With the Samoan Under-20s, each night they held prayer meetings and sang Bible verses. With the Maori squad, it was haka practice and singsongs to honour their identity and understand their history. “Both teams have unique environments. Not every team does those things. And then we go out into battle.”
There was no rugby in his family, though his dad enjoyed watching games. Raised in the multicultural suburb of Manurewa in south Auckland with siblings Amber, Emma, and Ethan, his parents encouraged him to play touch rugby, rugby league, rugby union and athletics.
“I guess you could say we grew up in a strict household. My parents were real big on education and sports, so that was driven into me from a young age. I played a lot of sports with my friends outside. We had no social media and phones back in those days.”
He was one of the pupils at his primary school, Hillpark, to earn scholarships to the famed rugby academy at Kings College after his parents put his name forward.
“I owe my parents a lot, taking me to all those trainings and sports. Especially now that I’m a father I can see once they get into sports it’s going to be a hectic life.”
In the All Blacks environment they talk about ‘nothing is given’. The jersey comes first. I understood that
— Josh Ioane
He alternated between 10 and 12 in school, and for the Samoa Under-20s, before moving to Dunedin University and the Otago academy, while playing for Southern Magpies. That year ended with a missed call from the former All Blacks outhalf Tony Brown, then the Highlanders coach and now the Springboks attack coach.
“I thought it was a joke. ‘This can’t be right.’ Because I hadn’t even played for Otago yet. I rang him back and it was Tony. That was my lucky break. He saw something in me.
“I was hungry and a few years out of school and thought ‘this is my only chance’. I knuckled down and put my best foot forward. I didn’t play any Super Rugby games but stayed in the squad as injury cover, and I must have done enough or they saw something in me, because they offered me a contract for 2018.”
After Lima Sopoaga’s move to Wasps, Ioane’s career took off in 2019. He made 13 starts and was called into the All Blacks squad for the Rugby Championship, when an unused sub away to Argentina. “That was tough. I flew my parents over. I guess it was just one of those days. In the All Blacks environment they talk about ‘nothing is given’. The jersey comes first. I understood that.”
His international debut came against Tonga that September in Hamilton. “It was a memorable day. It was always the dream and I think it’s the dream for most boys growing up in New Zealand.”
Ioane was told at half-time he was replacing an injured Beauden Barrett. “It happened very quickly, and I guess the rest is a bit blurry; running out and just trying to execute my job.”
His first action was a kick-off which George Bridge caught and scored from. “That took the nerves away.”
He was third-choice behind Barrett and Richie Mo’unga, but missed the cut for the World Cup. “You get a taste of international footy and you want more. But I knew there were other boys who could cover. They were looking at TJ and Jordie as [outhalf] options. So, I was hopeful but I understood.”
He played another 17 Super Rugby games for the Highlanders, including the 2021 final loss to the Blues at fullback. In August 2021 he was signed by the Chiefs a day after being released by the Highlanders.
“I ran into a little bit of trouble,” he admits in reference to police being called to a house party he hosted. “There was that and I wasn’t getting much game time. A lot of it came down to my off-field decisions. I definitely made some silly choices. It affected my rugby.”
The Chiefs was a fresh start. Ioane started five of nine games in 2022 before Damian McKenzie returned from Japan, but enjoyed his time there. “It still hurts we lost the final,” he says of the 25-20 defeat to the Crusaders in 2023. “Things didn’t go our way. I was off the bench. That was a tough one.”
His coach at both the Maoris and Chiefs was Clayton McMillan, now Munster-bound, and known as a stern ex-policeman not to be crossed. “Yeah, I think that’s pretty accurate,” Ioane says with a chuckle. “If the boys have a bad game, they’ll know about it. But he’s a good man. Fair.”
Ioane has illuminated Connacht’s attack with his probing and distribution. Their 48 tries are just three shy of last season’s URC total with five games to go and no Irish outhalf possesses his running threat, while adapting to new surroundings, weather and strategies.
“Every week is a different challenge. Scottish teams hold defenders up. Others kick. South Africans have big forwards and quick wingers. It’s been refreshing, playing different styles. I enjoy the way Connacht play. If it’s on to go, have a go. If not, turn them with your kick.”
He’s also embraced the Connacht mentality.
“Connacht is always the underdog punching above their weight. A few boys said at the start of the season they wanted to win silverware in their careers.”
And at 29, he still has his goals.
“Winning silverware would be nice. I’ve learned from losing two finals. I want to do well, be a good example, provide for my family. But I also want to win something.”
It’s been a circuitous journey and more than any other position, with experience comes knowledge. Connacht may just have unearthed a gem whose best years are still ahead of him.
