Nadene Lomu: ‘Jonah would be so proud of his boys’

In many ways, Brayley and Dhyreille Lomu are typical teenage boys. They love music, sport and fast cars, they’d rather not do schoolwork if they can get away with it, and they can put away an impressive amount of food between them. Dhyreille especially has inherited his dad’s sweet tooth, grinning with delight at the prospect of devouring a chocolate fish, while both eagerly eye up the sandwiches and delicious baking that await them after our interview.

But sadly, the boys have had anything but a normal childhood since their dad, rugby legend Jonah Lomu , died on November 18, 2015 from a heart attack linked to his kidney disorder. It’s left Jonah’s widow Nadene, 45, a solo mum of two energetic kids, both of whom share their late father’s sporting prowess. But while Jonah’s passion was on the rugby field, Brayley, 15, and Dhyreille, 14 are courting a different type of ball – the tennis type.

The boys’ dream of becoming professional sportsmen spurred a change three years ago from traditional schooling to correspondence school Te Kura so they can fit in as much training as possible. That’s something else they rely heavily on Nadene and Nadene’s dad Mervyn for, as he coaches the boys, and they often travel across Auckland to get affordable access to the tennis courts..