Family ties: father and son facing off in Otago v N’land game

There is another Leslie in the No 12 jersey scoring tries for Otago.

And Jack is the spitting image of his father, John.

"It’s a bit spooky, I suppose," Jack said when asked about his striking resemblance to his father.

The 23-year-old has been named to start at second five for the game against Northland at Forsyth Barr Stadium tomorrow.

His father, John, coaches the Taniwha and is charged with trying to engineer Otago’s demise.

Jack’s mum, Carmel, will not be around to "mediate" when the pair sit down for dinner tonight either.

But there will not be any tension. Both men are on each other’s side even if, for the next game at least, they are in opposite corners.

John played more than 120 games for Otago and 32 games for the Highlanders during the 1990s. He went on to play international rugby for Scotland.

He is a beloved figured in Otago but had to head north for a coaching opportunity with Northland this year.

Watching his son play for Otago, and in the same position he made his own, has been a great thrill. 

"He has been working so hard for it for a long time. I’m very proud of him and it is a lovely thing to see happening," John said.

The Leslies teamed up to deliver a Dunedin premier grade title for Southern in 2022. John was the coach and Jack was at first five.

But tomorrow’s game will mark the first time John has coached against his son. His loyalties are clear.

"What I’d like to see happen is for Northland to play well and win and for my son Jack to have a good game at the same time. That would be a great day for me."

The other interesting element to the clash is John has previously expressed interest in coaching Otago. He told the Otago Daily Times earlier this year he was surprised when the position was not advertised following last year’s disappointing campaign. 

Asked if that provided a little extra motivation he responded "not overly". 

"All the games we play we try to play at our maximum, so there is no additional edge to this match."

Jack’s focus was firmly fixed on making the most of his opportunity for Otago rather than any family bragging rights.

"I don’t see it as a father versus son kind of thing. It is more just an opportunity to play for Otago and Dad is coaching the other team," Jack said.

"It is just how it is. But I’ll look forward to having a yarn with him after the game. And it is only a game at the end of the day."

John has had an enormous influence on Jack’s career.

"He has always just been really supportive. He’s never put any pressure on me, and I’ve always made my own decisions but asked him for any help when I’ve needed it. He’s been great and so has Mum.

"She is off in France [at the World Cup] so it will just be me and Dad at the house on Saturday night. There will be no-one there to mediate," he said with a chuckle.

"We’ll have a few steaks and it will be all good."

NPC

Dunedin, tomorrow, 4.05pm

Otago: Sam Gilbert (co-captain), Josh Whaanga, Jake Te Hiwi, Jack Leslie, Jona Nareki, Ajay Faleafaga, James Arscott, Christian Lio-Willie, Sean Withy (co-captain), Tom Sander, Josh Dickson, Will Tucker, Saula Ma’u, Henry Bell, Rohan Wingham.

Reserves: Ricky Jackson, Abraham Pole, Jermaine Ainsley, Fabian Holland, Sam Fischli, Kieran McClea, Finn Hurley, John Tapueluelu.