England backs Ben Te'o and Jonny May to unpick North Korean politics after Principality test against Wales
- Ben Te'o and Jonny May have put England's trip to face Wales into perspectiveÂ
- Pair have proposed a trip to the demilitarised zone in North Korea's PyongyangÂ
- Te'o has played in many hostile environments including State of Origin
- 30-year-old scored the fastest try by a Six Nations debutant against FranceÂ
Pyongyang, not the Principality Stadium, is on the minds of England backs Ben Te'o and Jonny May this week.
Away from plotting how to destabilise the Welsh defence on Saturday the pair have been trying to unpick North Korean politics.
The hostile territory of Cardiff will be nothing compared to their proposed trip to the demilitarised zone.
Ben Te'o has played in many hostile environments and has put the Wales trip in persepective
Te'o and Jonny May have been following the political unrest in North Korea's Pyongyang
'We've had quite a few chats and coffees about how we can fix the situation there. There's a lot that needs to be done,' said Te'o.
'Jonny and I have been watching a lot of documentaries on North Korea. That's what he's quite interested in. I sent him a few links on some documentaries that I thought he might be interested in.
'He said: "We need to go before things get really bad." I said, "I don't know if it's worth it, it's quite dangerous" but he said, "I'm pretty keen on it." Maybe we'll be reporting to you live from North Korea in the summer!'
For Te'o these sorts of off-the-wall chats with his new teammates are key, forming relationships on and off the field.
May has been bonding with Te'o and the England backs have similar interests outside of rugby
Te'o had the perfect impact off the bench to score the crucial try in the win over France
'There are some interesting characters,' Te'o added.
'Jonny May, James Haskell ... they're all quite different. But the best thing about a team like this is that everyone's different but everyone feels comfortable being themselves in the environment.'
As a man who was born in Auckland, New Zealand, has represented Samoa in rugby league and played most of his career in Australia, Te'o will have to learn about the Anglo-Welsh rivalry too.
But when it is suggested that Wales versus England in Cardiff may be like nothing he has experienced before, Te'o disagrees with a confident shrug of the shoulders.
'I've played against plenty of teams, plenty of rival games, and been to plenty of hostile environments. It's rugby isn't it? I'm going to go out on the field and play.
Te'o - pictured celebrating a try for the South Sydney Rabbitohs - feels ready for WalesÂ
'State of Origin (the Australian rugby league series) is quite hostile! If you're going down to Sydney to play the Blues in a decider, it's full-on. Just really intense. Nice loud crowd – I'm not foreign to it.
'NRL finals: there are some big games there. I've played in some big European Cup games in France – Toulon was very hostile. I haven't really chatted to anyone about Wales. I'll find out for myself… if selected.'
The 16st 9lb battering-ram does need to be patient though. All Te'o's four caps have come from the bench – although in his last he scored the fastest try by a Six Nations debutant, 93 seconds after his introduction. His proud English mother stayed up all night in New Zealand to watch him perform the role of one of Eddie Jones' 'finishers'.
'I understand that strong teams are more like strong squads, and that you need depth,' said the centre.
'It's not about me trying to say, "I want more minutes, I want to start". It's about doing what's right for the team. The team's going in a really good direction; it's about contributing to that.'
The 16st 9lb Te'o has found his calling in Test rugby having starred for the Irish province
At 30 years old, Te'o has had a rich rugby life. He came to Europe in 2014 and had a conversation with Stuart Lancaster after joining from the South Sydney Rabbitohs. Sound familiar? When Sam Burgess went to Bath, Te'o chose Leinster — but those two were not on similar paths.
In fact, Te'o did not have ambitions to play Test rugby at all, only realising he could make it when starring for the Irish province.
'I wanted some variety in my career. I had felt stale,' he said.
'I came because I wanted to give it a go.' And if his improving EyeGym results in sessions led by vision expert Dr Sherylle Calder are anything to go by, he could make the starting team soon.
'Look, I was down the bottom, I'll admit it, but I'm slowly climbing,' he said.
'I had a dodgy keyboard on the first day and then my mouse was playing up! I think I'm in sixth place but that's having started in 14th. It's all about improving.'
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