Umaga will be presented with a ten inch tall porcelain figurine of himself in All Black kit as a token of his sporting gesture when Wales last met New Zealand in the summer, when he went to the aid of Welsh skipper Colin Charvis.
Charvis had been poleaxed in a tackle by All Blacks number 8 Jerry Collins and while play continued, Umaga stopped immediately, ensured Charvis did not swallow his tongue and turned him into the recovery position.
This outstanding incident of sportsmanship so captured the public imagination, and the attention of the WRU, that it was agreed to present Umaga with a special ‘Chwarae Teg’ (Fair Play) award.
And the gift that Pickering is taking with him Down Under was made by a Pontypridd-based company who are already supplying models of Welsh players to the Millennium Stadium shop.
“After seeing the Umaga incident on TV in the summer I came forward immediately to see if the WRU felt it would be appropriate for us to strike a special figurine of the player to present to him,” said David Bond, a director of Sportsculpt.
“Umaga looks a fierce warrior on the field, but what he did for Charvis was a great sporting moment. As soon as I heard that David Moffett, the WRU chief executive, said he wanted to thank Umaga I stepped forward.
“It took our designer about six weeks to make the clay mould and get every detail right, we’re pleased with the result and Tana has the honour of becoming the first rugby player we have produced.
“We now have a licence with the WRU to produce similar figures of the Welsh team. Perhaps it will be appropriate for Colin Charvis to be the first Welshman to join Umaga.”
Pickering is set to present the award at the post-match reception following Sunday’s RWC clash between Wales and New Zealand in Sydney.
“We felt we had to mark Tana’s outstanding display of sportsmanship and Sunday’s game gives us the perfect opportunity to honour him,” said Pickering.
“I’m sure he’ll be delighted with the model of him and I know that all the Welsh players will be highly supportive of the presentation.”
