Devotion comes in many forms. Jerseys worn with pride. Flags waved at stadiums. Tattoos inked permanently. But legally changing your name? That’s next-level commitment that transcends ordinary fandom and enters territory most supporters never contemplate.

Meet Winitana Mororiki, formerly known as Winston Small, a 31-year-old South African who loves the All Blacks so much he legally adopted a Māori name drawn from the indigenous language of New Zealand.

This isn’t a publicity stunt. This isn’t temporary madness fuelled by one too many beers at a Test match. This is genuine, documented, legally-binding devotion to rugby’s most iconic team, and it comes with a family backstory that makes the entire situation even more fascinating.

Small, sorry, Mororiki, plays club rugby for Roses Unity Rugby Club under the Boland Rugby Union, based in Wellington in the Western Cape. On 31 July, he was part of a group of local All Blacks supporters who call themselves the “Cape Crusaders” that turned out to welcome the New Zealand team on their arrival in Cape Town for the Greatest Rivalry tour.

Standing there, legally renamed in honour of the team he’s idolised since childhood, Winitana offered a simple explanation for his extraordinary commitment.

“I’ve been a huge New Zealand supporter since I was a child. My parents were both full-blooded New Zealand supporters,” he told media gathered to document the All Blacks’ arrival.

That lineage matters. This wasn’t a bandwagon jump or fair-weather fandom. This was family tradition, passed down through generations, embedded so deeply that changing his actual legal name to honour the All Blacks felt like a natural progression rather than radical gesture.

The family plot twist

But here’s where the story takes an unexpected turn that adds layers of complexity to Winitana’s devotion.

His father, Willie Small, stepped away from his All Blacks allegiance in 2024 after accepting a position within SA Rugby’s executive council. That’s right – the man who raised Winston/Winitana as a “full-blooded New Zealand supporter” switched sides professionally, joining the organisation that governs South African rugby and, by extension, the Springboks.

Imagine the family dinner conversations. Dad works for SA Rugby, promoting Springbok interests and South African rugby development. Son has legally changed his name to a Māori translation and continues supporting the All Blacks with fervour.

The beautiful irony: Du’Plessis Kirifi

If Winitana’s story represents a South African embracing New Zealand identity through name change, the rugby gods provided perfect symmetry through Du’Plessis Kirifi, an All Blacks player carrying one of South African rugby’s most recognisable surnames.

Kirifi, who plays for the Hurricanes, was named after former Springbok captain Morné du Plessis by his father, retired rugby player Jack Kirifi. The elder Kirifi befriended Morné and admired the name so profoundly that he adapted it, adding an apostrophe for stylistic flair, for his firstborn son.

The 28-year-old All Black has acknowledged he’s likely the only Du’Plessis (with or without apostrophe) he knows of, and that many people struggle with pronunciation upon first meeting. Within the Hurricanes setup, he’s universally known by nicknames “Dupy” or “Dupes”.

So there it is: a South African named for New Zealand, and a New Zealander named for South Africa. Rugby’s greatest rivalry creating identity exchanges that transcend borders and blur the lines between supporter and subject.