ONE NEWS CAPTIONS BY ANNA BRACEWELL-WORRALL AND DESNEY SHAW. CAPTIONS WERE MADE POSSIBLE WITH FUNDING FROM NZ ON AIR. COPYRIGHT TVNZ ACCESS SERVICES 2013 DUE TO THE LIVE NATURE OF SEVEN SHARP, WE APOLOGISE FOR THE LACK OF CAPTIONS FOR SOME ITEMS. Welcome to the show on a day when it was freezing all around the country. What was that all about? Cold, though. But at least you weren't these guys. IT'S ALL GOOD. YOU GUYS WILL LOVE THIS, WON'T YOU? COMMENTATORS LAUGH We will try to find out why we are so passionate about schoolboy rugby. And hypothermia. A rare case of the bark being better than the bite. THIS COULD BE A REAL... REVOLUTION FOR BRAIN INJURY. Incredible story. We also need a really awesome kiwi who doesn't like talking about how awesome he is. NAH, I DON'T LOOK AT MYSELF AS A HERO; JUST A MATE OF THE CHUUK PEOPLE. YEAH. But more than that. THIS IS SEVEN SHARP. It is so cold, we have put the fire on for you. Boyed's hogging it. That's warming (!) Greg is going to toast our digital marshmallows. This will incense Southerners. Us Aucklanders are soft and don't know what cold is. But I was invited to one the great schoolboy rugby games of the year. That was 4 degrees and snowing. Why do we still get fired up about it? IT'S A FREEZING COLD DAY IN CHRISTCHURCH. YOU CAN TELL THIS BY` WELL, JUST LOOK AT THE STATE OF IT. WHAT A BEAUTIFUL DAY (!) ISN'T IT? LOVELY DAY, HERE IN CHRISTCHURCH (!) IT'S REALLY NICE (!) I GOT SOME NICE, LOVELY FOOTWEAR ON TODAY. WE'RE AT RUGBY PARK, WHERE THERE'S A RIVALRY SO DEEP YOU COULD VERY WELL BE AT A LIVERPOOL-EVERTON GRUDGE MATCH. EPIC ORCHESTRAL MUSIC BUT YOU DON'T NEED TO GO OVER TO THE UK FOR THAT. THE HISTORY, THE PRIDE, THE PASSION ` IT'S ALL HERE. OH, AND THE FACT THAT IT'S GETTING DARK AT 3PM. IT'S A SPECIAL DAY FOR THE YOUNG GUYS. THEY WOULD'VE SEEN THEIR FATHERS AND THEIR UNCLES AND THEIR BROTHERS AND A WHOLE LOT OF THEIR FAMILY MEMBERS GO THROUGH AND BE PRESENTED THEIR CAPS AND TURN UP ON THIS DAY TO PLAY THIS GAME. SO IT MEANS A LOT TO THE PLAYERS. BUT WHY AFTER, 121 YEARS OF RUGBY, ARE THESE TWO SIDES DRAWING IN MORE OF A CROWD AND MORE OF AN ATMOSPHERE THAN SOME OF OUR SUPER RUGBY GAMES? SCHOOLBOY RUGBY IS REALLY IT. EVEN AFTER ALL THESE YEARS, I'M STILL COMING. BUT YOU MIGHT NOT GO TO A CRUSADERS GAME IF THE WEATHER WAS LIKE THIS, THOUGH? THIS IS SPECIAL. IT'S EVEN GOT THE BIG-BOY BROADCASTER, SKY, HERE FILMING AND BROADCASTING THIS GAME LIVE. Rugby Park will rock today. CHRISTCHURCH BOYS' HIGH IS A BREEDING GROUND FOR ALL BLACKS, AND THESE YOUNG GUYS SHOW THE GRIT AND DETERMINATION WHICH MAKES YOU UNDERSTAND WHY. Big history behind that. We have won 12 years in a row. IT'S the big one for us.. CHRIST'S COLLEGE IS THE UNDERDOG AND HASN'T WON IN 13-YEARS, AND NOT EVEN A 7-6 LOSS TODAY WILL STOP THAT LONG-STANDING RIVALRY THE HISTORY HAS, UNFORTUNATELY, BEEN FRAUGHT WITH THE ODD FIGHT, AND NOW SPECTATORS ` YOUNG AND OLD ` ARE BREATHALYSED BEFORE THE GAME. ESSENTIALLY, WE HAVE BEHAVIOUR PROBLEMS. WE HAD QUITE A NUMBER OF ARRESTS IN THE PAST, AND THAT'S NOT A GOOD LOOK FOR A SCHOOLBOY RUGBY GAME. NONE OF THAT CARRY-ON TODAY. IT'S ALL GOOD, OLD-FASHIONED SCHOOLBOY RUGBY ` AND PEOPLE TRYING TO AVOID HYPOTHERMIA. AND WITH THAT, WE LEAVE THE SUPER RUGBY COMPETITION WITH SOME FOOD FOR THOUGHT. SCHOOLBOY RUGBY IS BETTER. It is more expensive, I think. They Pass it about more. The young kids are all emotionally connected to the occasion. That makes it such a great event. I wonder whether you need to be connected to the event; whether if it is your boy out there... I would go out there in the freezing cold. I would hate it and where my flowery gumboots. But I would go. Would I be their passionate otherwise? Dan Carter on Twitter today. It was 7-6 to CBHS. I have a theory that I've just made up. It is probably rugby and full of holes. The only sporting event in the southern hemisphere where they are that passionate is State of origin. They come from their state. They have that connection. With super rugby, half the players aren't from the area. There is a real disconnect. This is half baked and going nowhere. They were saying in a piece that super rugby fans can learn from that piece. I don't know whether they will. On Twitter today... Unfortunately, not a great day to bring up that point. 4 degrees at kick-off. What I do wonder is whether there is an equivalent to that saw the game in netball. Girls' schools. Hockey, maybe? There is a big Wellington one as well. Good luck to both the teams playing tomorrow. The schools have been around so long. My theory was rough, but I'm still sort of going with it. AFTER THE BREAK, IN A WORLD OF MIGHTY TOTARA AND TOWERING KAURI, IT'S FRANKLY A BIT SHABBY. BUT THE HUMBLE PINE COULD BECOME A MEDICAL GODSEND. AND THE HUMBLEST OF KIWI HEROES AND HIS LIFE-SAVING GIFT. Welcome back. A small detail in this story shocked us. More common than you realise. The story is about an unlikely fix that could help thousands of Nzers affected by brain injury. It is normally a beacon of Christmas hope. Could be a whole lot more. IT'S EVERYWHERE. THE BACKBONE OF OUR BUILDINGS; BY FAR AND AWAY OUR MOST-PLANTED TREE. CHRISTMAS TREES? CHRISTMAS TREES, DEFINITELY. AND, FOR SOME, AN INVASIVE SPECIES THAT'S NOTHING MORE THAN A PAIN IN THE OLD PROVERBIAL. THIS COULD BE A REAL... REVOLUTION FOR BRAIN INJURY. WHAT? BRAIN INJURY? YEP. THE HUMBLE KIWI PINE, AND MORE SPECIFICALLY ITS BARK EXTRACT, IS FAST BECOMING A SYMBOL OF HOPE FOR MILLIONS OF BRAIN INJURY SUFFERERS, JUST LIKE NEVILLE, ALL AROUND THE WORLD. SOUNDS ALMOST TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE. YES, IT DEFINITELY DOES, BUT WE'RE LIVING PROOF. UPBEAT MUSIC WHILE NEVILLE BOYES (51) LOOKS PRETTY SWEET ON THE SADDLE NOW,... GET A BIT NERVOUS. ...JUST 20 MONTHS AGO, WHEN TRAINING FOR HIS LOCAL AROUND-LAKE-TAUPO ROAD RACE, AN ACCIDENT INVOLVING A CAR ALL BUT KILLED HIM. HE HAD SWALLOWED NINE OF HIS TEETH, RIGHT DOWN IN THE BOTTOM OF HIS LUNGS ` SO HIS LUNGS WERE ALSO COLLAPSING. WE'RE TALKING TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY? YES, EXTENSIVE TBI. HE HAD BLEEDING FROM INNUMEROUS AREAS OF THE BRAIN. NEVILLE, WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER ABOUT THE ACCIDENT? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. NEVILLE FOUGHT FOR HIS LIFE FOR WEEKS, THEN SPENT MONTHS AT A BRAIN INJURY CLINIC BEFORE RETURNING HOME TO TAUPO, WHERE A NEW FIGHT ` THIS TIME AGAINST FATIGUE ` WAS FOUGHT. I WAS COMING HOME; HE WAS ASLEEP. I WAS COOKING TEA; HE WAS ASLEEP. I WOULD WAKE HIM FOR DINNER, AND HE'D GO BACK TO SLEEP. THERE WAS NOTHING THERE. MY WHOLE LIFE'S PLAN HAD JUST DISINTEGRATED IN FRONT OF ME. I HAD TO DO EVERYTHING FOR HIM ` YOU KNOW, HELP HIM SHAVE, HELP HIM DRESS. HE HAD NO BALANCE. HE HAD TO BE SHOWERED. KAREN BECAME DESPERATE AND NEEDED HELP WITH HER HUBBY. SO, AS WE DO NOWADAYS, SHE GOT ON THE NET AND DISCOVERED A KIWI PRODUCT CALLED ENZOGENOL ` A PRODUCT MADE FROM PINE BARK EXTRACT. # ...TO THE NEW AGE. # TO THE NEW AGE. # AFTER SIX WEEKS, I NOTICED A MARKED IMPROVEMENT. HE WASN'T ASLEEP WHEN I CAME HOME. HE WOULD STAY AWAKE UNTIL AFTER DINNER, AND THEN HE'D TROT OFF TO BED. I DO WHAT SHE SAYS AT THE MOMENT. IT'S A SMART MOVE. IN MOST THINGS. HOW DO YOU KNOW FOR SURE IT'S ENZOGENOL THAT'S HELPED IN NEVILLE'S RECOVERY? I DON'T THINK THAT YOU CAN EVER KNOW. BUT I THINK IT'S BEEN A HUGE CONTRIBUTING FACTOR. AFTER JUST SIX MONTHS, NEVILLE WAS BACK AT WORK PART-TIME; FULL TIME WITHIN A YEAR; AND BACK ON A NEW BIKE, WITH THE WIFE FOLLOWING CLOSE BEHIND, TRAINING FOR THAT RACE ` ALL MILESTONES THE EXPERTS SAID WOULD TAKE FIVE OR SIX YEARS. I'VE GOT TO SAY YOU'RE PRETTY BRAVE ALLOWING HIM TO DO THIS. I... DON'T THINK I CAN STOP HIM. I BELIEVE HE... AT THE ACC'S SEVERE INJURY CONFERENCE, NEVILLE WAS THEIR POSTER BOY, BECAUSE HE'S BEEN SUCH A SUCCESS STORY. IT'S SUCCESS THAT'S EVEN GOT THE SCIENTISTS AMPED UP. AUT UNIVERSITY HAVE RECENTLY COMPLETED A PILOT STUDY ON ENZOGENOL INVOLVING 100 PEOPLE. IT FOUND THE PRODUCT'S ANTIOXIDISING, ANTI-INFLAMMATORY PROPERTIES TO BE VERY EFFECTIVE. THE MOST STRIKING DIFFERENCE THAT THEY SHOWED IN EVERYDAY MEMORY IMPROVEMENT. THERE'S MORE TESTING TO BE DONE, BUT IF ENZOGENOL PROVES TO BE EFFECTIVE... IT COULD BE A MAJOR BREAKTHROUGH IN THE TREATMENT OF TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY. ARE YOU EXCITED? ABSOLUTELY. THAT'S THE GOOD THING ABOUT SCIENCE. BECAUSE OF THIS PINE BARK EXTRACT, THIS COUPLE SAY THEY ARE NOW EXCITED ABOUT LIFE AGAIN TOO. IT'S FANTASTIC. A YEAR AGO I WAS THINKING, 'PLEASE,' YOU KNOW, 'LET'S JUST GET ON A YEAR 'SO I CAN SEE WHERE HE'S AT.' YOU KNOW, YOU THINK... I'VE NEVER BEEN ONE TO WISH MY LIFE AWAY, BUT I REALLY WANTED THAT YEAR TO COME FAST. I DON'T THINK I'LL EVER GET TO THE STAGE WHERE I CAN SAY, 'THAT'S IT. I'M THERE. I'M BACK TO WHERE I WAS.' I'LL HAVE TO KEEP PUSHING FOR MORE. ARE YOU GONNA BE ON THE SIDELINES AS YOUR HUSBAND FINISHES THAT ROAD RACE NEXT SUMMER? ABSOLUTELY. I WON'T BE RIDING, I CAN ASSURE YOU, SO I HAVE TO BE ON THE SIDELINE. (LAUGHS) > Nice story. It was the swallowing the teeth. That is probably more common than you would think. It is in a trial stage. Pretty successful so far. That sort of improvement after six weeks is pretty promising stuff. Willow bark is the guts of aspirin. I know that. Pivotal in its invention. Can you say the name of this drug? It's a kiwi invention. A very cool thing to be done here in our country. AFTER THE BREAK, THE STORY WE ALL CAN'T WAIT TO SHOW YOU ` A KIWI FIREFIGHTER WHO ANSWERED A EMERGENCY CALL FROM 6000KM AWAY. Are your savings gathering dust? DING! Then give them a chance to really grow, because there's a new millionaire created every month. Visit bonusbonds.co.nz to invest now. Welcome back. I have a two-year-old girl, and I have another baby due on Friday. One of the things that regularly stresses me out is what sort of life advice I will give these children. What I can tell them about the world? How the style story intro miles out and still have land perfectly. Let's see it now. When you do something for yourself, you feel good, but when you do something for others, you feel really really good. ALL: Ah! If that's true, this next guy must be the happiest in NZ. His latest good deed was 6000km away. A tiny little island called Chuuk. THE STROKES' 'YOU ONLY LIVE ONCE' HE SIMPLY CAN'T HELP HIMSELF, HIS SMILE AS INSTINCTIVE AS HIS DESIRE TO HELP ` IT'S PART OF THE, UH, RECIPE FOR SUCCESS, ISN'T IT? (CHUCKLES) A SMILE THAT'S STRETCHING THOUSANDS OF MILES INTO THE FAR-FLUNG WESTERN PACIFIC,... THE STROKES' 'YOU ONLY LIVE ONCE' CONTINUES ...TO A STEAMY ISLAND HIDEAWAY NAMED CHUUK, WHICH MAKES UP... ...ONE OF THE FOUR STATES OF THE FEDERATED STATES OF MICRONESIA. KEITH NORTON, THE HERO OF CHUUK. (CHUCKLES) NAH, I DON'T LOOK AT MESELF AS A HERO ` JUST A,... YOU KNOW, MATE OF THE CHUUK PEOPLE. YEAH. AND IN KEITH'S WORLD, MATESHIP MEANS CONJURING AN OLD FIRE TRUCK FROM THE WEST COAST, GIVING IT A SPIT AND POLISH WITH HIS CHRISTCHURCH-FIREFIGHTER COBBERS, AND THEN CONVINCING THOSE WITH THE ONLY BEAST CAPABLE TO GIVE HIM A RIDE. MAN SHOUTS KEITH IS THE CLASSIC KIWI, IN MY MIND. HE REALLY IS THE STAR. BIT OF PATIENCE; A FEW NICE EMAILS TO PEOPLE; AND, UH, KEEP SMILING AND KEEP... KEEP, UH, HOPIN'. KEITH'S FIRE-TRUCK-TO-CHUUK MISSION CAME FROM A VISIT TO THE ISLAND LAST YEAR, WHEN HE WAS WEARING HIS VOLUNTEER'S HAT FOR ST VINCENT DE PAUL. I DID ASK THE QUESTION WHY THERE WAS ALL THESE BUILDINGS BURNT DOWN. AND THEY SAID, 'OH, WELL, WE'VE GOT A BIT OF A PROBLEM HERE. 'WE'VE HAD NO FIRE TRUCK FOR THE LAST', UM, YEAH, 'COUPLE OF YEARS'. I LET THE CAT OUT OF THE BAG AND SAID, 'WELL, LOOK, I'M A FIREFIGHTER.' WELL, 10 MONTHS LATER, AND ONE OF OUR HERCS HAS A BELLYFUL OF HINO. THIS ONE'S DONE ITS, UH, TIME AT RUNANGA ` GOOD OLD WEST COAST, SOUTH ISLAND. FROM THE WEST COAST TO A HOT, STICKY TROPICAL ISLAND. YEAH. WHAT A HOLIDAY, EH? BOTH CHUCKLE YOU DON'T HAVE TO HAVE THE FLASHEST FIRE TRUCK WITH ALL THE ELECTRONICS ON IT. THIS IS A BASIC FIRE TRUCK. IT WILL DO THE NEEDS OF THESE PEOPLE ADMIRABLY. PEOPLE SING IN LOCAL LANGUAGE SAFELY ON THE GROUND AFTER A MARATHON 12 HOURS VIA THE SOLOMON ISLANDS, AND OUR MAN'S SHOWING A HINT OF APPREHENSION AS HE'S GIVEN THE HONOUR OF INCHING CHUUK'S NEW PRIDE AND JOY DOWN THE RAMP. BRAKES SQUEAK IT'S, UM,... YEAH. I FEEL GOOD. I COULD DANCE AND SHOUT. BOTH LAUGH YOU NEED THIS. OH, VERY MUCH. VERY MUCH NEEDED. UH, WE'VE HAD PAST INCIDENTS ` A SITUATION WHERE HOUSES AND EVEN GOVERNMENT FACILITIES ARE BURNT DOWN BECAUSE OF THE LACK OF A FIRE TRUCK. HAPPY MUSIC THE ENGINE'S ARRIVAL WAS HERALDED BY THE CHUUKESE CUSTOM OF THROWING CANDY. YOU GONNA BECOME A FIREMAN ONE DAY? WOULD YOU LIKE TO? GOOD BOY. WE LOST OUR TUNA CANNERY, WITH, UH,... NO HOPE OF ANY FIRE TRUCK THAT'S ON THE ISLAND TO COME AND PUT THE FIRE DOWN. SO ALL WE DID WAS JUST WATCH IT... BURN DOWN. HAPPY MUSIC CONTINUES CHILDREN CHEER BUT IT TOOK THE FANTASTIC EFFORT OF THE ROYAL NZ AIR FORCE TO GET IT HERE, AND FOR THAT, I AM DEEPLY INDEBTED TO YOU GUYS FOR YOUR EFFORTS, AND I THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART AND FROM ALL THE PEOPLE OF CHUUK. THIS IS, UM, THE CHUUK PUBLIC MARKET. AND IT BURNED DOWN. UH, ELECTRICAL FIRE TOO. IT BURNED DOWN, NOTHING TO CONTAIN OR PUT AWAY THE FIRE. AMAZING GUY. HE'S COME THROUGH ON HIS PROMISE, AND HE'S ACTUALLY, UH, DELIVERED A FIRE TRUCK, WHICH IS QUITE AN AMAZING FEAT, REALLY. I RECKON YOU'LL SPEND THE NEXT WEEK DOING NOTHING BUT TAKING KIDS FOR RIDES IN THE BIG RED. YEAH, PROBABLY WILL BE. YEAH. CHILDREN CHEER KIDS LOVE FIRE ENGINES. EVERYONE LOVES A FIRE ENGINE. AND IT'S NO DIFFERENT HERE IN CHUUK. ALL WE DO IS JUST KEEP SMILING. WE ARE JUST VERY THANKFUL. YES. HE SMILES A LOT AS WELL. OH YES. WE WILL BE SMILING MORE THAN HIM. (LAUGHS) HARD TO IMAGINE ANYONE COULD OUTDO THIS. THANK YOU, NZ. ONE MAN, ONE MACHINE AND EAR-TO-EAR SATISFACTION. ALL: THANK YOU, NZ! What a cool man. He's one of those guys where even when he's not smiling, he looks like a smiling. At some point, he would have gone to the fire station and asked the figure a fire truck for free. Then asked for a really big plane. That somebody had to do that. He had the get up and go to do it. Keith Norton. If he seems familiar, he was one of the faces of urban search and rescue and Christchurch and Japan. He's still in Chuuk, teaching the locals how to operate a fire engine. We have more about Chuuk on our website. It is a great diving spot. 40 Japanese ships were there in WWII. They sank to the bottom and created one of the best diving spots in the world. TOMORROW ROSE MATAFEO WALKS THE TALK FOR SAMOAN LANGUAGE WEEK. I'VE GOT TO ADDRESS THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM. I HAVE A SAMOAN LAST NAME ` ROSE MATAFEO. MM-HM. CAN'T EVEN SAY IT. AND YOU CLAIM THAT YOU'RE A BAD SAMOAN. BUT I HAVE TO SAY I AM WORSE. I CAN'T SPEAK A SINGLE WORD OF THE LANGUAGE. HOW ABOUT YOU? SEE, I THOUGHT I WAS PRETTY BAD, BUT AFTER TALKING TO YOU, ROSE, I'M PRETTY GOOD, MAN. I'M ACTUALLY RIGHT UP THERE. I'M... WHATEVER. YOU ARE ON THE SAME LEVEL AS MY NEARLY-3-YEAR-OLD SON. HEY. THAT'S A PRETTY GOOD LEVEL. BUT... BUT... I CAN'T EVEN SAY MY LAST NAME. She doesn't even know how to pronounce her name. She is a really bright girl too. It is one of the most spoken languages in NZ. Can you guess the top three? English, Maori number two and Samoan number three. Samoan is number two in Auckland. We will see how they go tomorrow. Until then, goodnight. CAPTIONS BY RICHARD EDMUNDS AND CONOR WHITTEN. CAPTIONS WERE MADE POSSIBLE WITH FUNDING FROM NZ ON AIR.