JAMISON GIBSON-PARK on playing rugby against adults at the age of three, saving a cliff-diver’s life and why Ireland are desperate to get revenge on England this weekend

Growing up on Great Barrier Island, the biggest challenge for Jamison Gibson-Park’s rugby team was finding anyone to play against.

It was a four-hour journey on the car ferry to the nearest city, Auckland, so they were usually left to play among themselves.

An unlikely breeding ground for one of Irish rugby’s talismans, yet back at the Currach – one of the island’s three pubs – Gibson-Park’s green jersey hangs on the wall with pride.

‘We only really got off the island maybe once every two years,’ says Gibson-Park, as he begins to retrace his 11,500-mile journey to the epicentre of the Six Nations in Dublin.

‘Going into town was a pretty big occasion for us, hopping down to McDonald’s in Auckland. The only takeaway we had on the island was a fish and chip shop, so if you didn’t like that, hard luck.

‘It was certainly a pretty rural upbringing. There were maybe 700 people living across the island. It was fairly untouched.

‘I remember how my mum would write a shopping list and fax it through, then everything would get sent over in boxes.

‘When the boxes rolled up, it felt like Christmas. People would order food from the mainland but everyone had their own little veggie gardens. There was hunting, there was fishing. It’s a pretty unique place.’

His grandfather was one of the first settlers on the island, which was named by Captain Cook.

The men of the family were road builders, connecting the 27 miles of bays, beaches and rugged hills.

‘My old man was big into diving so we spent a lot of time in and around the water,’ he says. ‘Myself, my mates and my cousins all had bikes so we’d ride to school and then end up wherever.

‘We didn’t sit around watching TV. We were always outside, heading down the beach at weekends.

‘You can see right out into the bay from my grandmother’s house. You can see when the dolphins come in so you can just go out and swim with them. They’re not afraid of you.

‘Things that take your breath away. On the passenger ferry than runs in the summer, it’s the norm to be followed by whales and dolphins. You probably don’t appreciate it until you get older but it’s pretty special.’

The island’s rugby team are the Barrier Bushpigs. So called after the wild pigs that roam the bushlands.

‘They play one game a year, against a team that travel over,’ he says. ‘There were no age grades but we’d get together for a run around on Saturday mornings. I was probably three, four, five and I would have been running around against adults.’

Perhaps it is unsurprising that Gibson-Park was one of the sport’s late bloomers.

His parents moved over to New Zealand’s mainland when he was 10, settling in Gisborne on the east coast.

Instinctively, he was drawn to the water, working as a lifeguard during the summer, spending his time out on the waves. It was his first sporting love.

‘Do you know surf lifesaving?’ he asks. ‘People don’t over here, really, but in New Zealand every beach has a surf club where the lifeguards make sure everybody’s safe to swim.

‘Then there’s competitive surf lifesaving, which my old man really pushed us into. It’s basically a race with different events; swimming, kayaks, paddle boards and inflatable rescue boats. I was better at the land-based stuff, like beach sprints and another thing called beach flags.

‘I would have been doing that in Gisborne for around 10 years, before rugby took over. You would finish school and go straight down to the surf club to get out on the water.

‘In New Zealand, surfing’s just part of growing up. I spent a lot of time around the ocean, into my early 20s, before rugby became the main thing.’

So, was he ever called into action? ‘The only time I had to save somebody was when we were on holiday in 2019,’ he says. ‘We were living in Ireland at that stage and we stopped over in Hawaii on the way back to New Zealand.

‘Everyone was cliff-jumping and this guy, even before he jumped, didn’t fill you with confidence. I kept an eye on him and, lo and behold, he jumped in and could barely swim. He was in a bit of trouble but we got him back to the beach and he was OK.’

Rugby became Gibson-Park’s main sport after secondary school. Much like the days at Barrier Bushpigs, he was often having to punch above his weight, failing to make the school first XV until his final year, missing out on selection for New Zealand Under 20s.

Regardless, Gibson-Park persisted, breaking into the team at Taranaki, eventually working his way up to selection for the Maori All Blacks.

‘It’s fair to say I was a late bloomer,’ he says. ‘I always loved rugby and I always felt I was decent at it, but I was pretty small and I played at a time when everyone was looking for a big nine.

‘In New Zealand, it was around the time of Byron Kelleher, Justin Marshall, Piri Weepu, Jimmy Cowan.

‘Things changed a little bit when Aaron Smith came along. He created a new role through his passing ability.

‘I was looking at going to a couple of different universities and then I just got the chance from Taranaki, thankfully. They asked if I wanted to go and have a crack, so there was nothing to lose.’

Out of the blue, Leinster came calling in 2016, when Gibson-Park was playing second fiddle at the Hurricanes, coached by Chris Boyd. It was his unlikely ticket to a new life in Ireland.

The 5ft 9in scrum-half, with his sharp passing and ability to knit together punchy phases, made the ideal candidate for the Irish province.

‘I wasn’t looking to move but the offer just came that Leinster were looking for nines,’ he says. ‘We had a pretty good year at the Canes, but I wasn’t really playing.

‘I was second fiddle to TJ Perenara and he was going great guns. This chance came along and, you know, the rest is history.

‘I know they say I was signed as a project player but playing for Ireland was probably the furthest thing from my mind at that stage.

‘I just wanted to get settled in at Leinster. Playing for Ireland didn’t really become a reality until I was actually qualified, but then it was still another year before I was even in the reckoning.’

Gibson-Park started out on the bench for Leinster and Ireland but his rise has been exponential.

He has established himself as a conductor in the high-phase gameplan of Irish rugby, no doubt one of the first names on Simon Easterby’s teamsheet for this weekend’s game against England.

He is central to the smooth transition between club and country.

‘On most match days, a good few of us would have been in Leinster playing in a similar system,’ he says. ‘All four provinces are playing a similar brand of footy, so that certainly makes things easier when we come into camp.’

The biggest selection issue facing Easterby is whether Jack Crowley or Sam Prendergast will wear Johnny Sexton’s old No 10 jersey, and partner Gibson-Park in the half-backs.

‘We’re blessed with the talent coming through,’ he says. ‘Sam and Jack are serious talents and they’re piling the pressure on each other.

‘In the long run, it’s going to be good for them. Johnny still comes in and helps them out. When I’m not at Leinster, me and Johnny go to the same gym.

‘It’s cool to see him around and he’s got so much to give in a rugby capacity. He trained with us on one of the days during the autumn and he was carving it up.

‘He’s tipping away with a corporate gig now but he’s still got it. He’s playing a bit of five-a-side football… competitive as!’

This weekend, as far as the Irish are concerned, revenge is on the cards. Marcus Smith kicked a last-minute drop goal to clinch victory in the final play of the 2024 edition at Twickenham and Irish wounds remain open.

‘They obviously tipped us up last year,’ says Gibson-Park. ‘Certainly for me, that adds a bit of motivation. If someone gets the better of you, it lays down a pretty good challenge for next time.

‘They were good that day. It stings a little bit when someone kicks a drop-goal to beat you. It sticks in the memory, for sure.’

This year’s tournament will be loaded with Lions debates and, as things stand, Gibson-Park is leading the chase for the No 9 jersey in Australia this summer.

‘Everyone who thinks they’re in with a chance is going to be doing everything they can to get on that plane,’ he says. ‘It’s exciting, man. It’ll make the Six Nations even more competitive.’

It could be the next chapter in his long and winding career, which is reaching its peak later than most.

Now 32, this could be his best year yet. His family have been granted Irish residency, his children were born in Dublin, and his name is being written into the country’s rugby folklore.

‘It was a big deal when we got our residency,’ he says. ‘A moment of reflection on the journey you’ve been on. It gives you ties to a place.

‘It’s far out, how everything’s happened. It might not be the journey that everybody goes on but it shows there’s always a way.

‘It shows that it doesn’t always have to be smooth sailing. It shows you can make your way from wherever.’