Former All Blacks prop Kees Meeuws knows the power of his personal story - it has already helped save at least one life.
Meeuws, 47, has returned for his second season on Three's Match Fit, the reality TV show that offers retired rugby stars a chance to reclaim some of their physical and mental health, long after the cheering has gone.
During the opening season, he revealed his troubling past and his motivation for trying to pull his life around, after a career that saw him play 42 tests for the All Blacks, and 80 Super Rugby games for the Highlanders and Blues.
This time round, his reasons are even more poignant.
"Match Fit I was a real eye-opener for me," said Meeuws. "When we got our results back on the first day, that was a big shock."
Weighing in at 145kg - 20kg more than his playing weight - he was given a metabolic age of 61.
"Just under five months ago, I became a grandad," he said. "I lost my mum when I was 10 and I lost my dad to a heart condition when I was 20.
"I want to be around for my grandkids."
Cornelius Meeuws' passing also put a dampener on his son's artistic aspirations.
"I used to draw a lot when I was younger," said Kees Meeuws. "When I left school, I got into the Elam School of Fine Arts.
"I was playing rugby and making rep teams, but also a father at 18 and trying to be a dad. It was a pretty full-on time and then I lost my father, so I got stuck into rugby and being the toughest guy out there - it got me through the grieving process."
After Match Fit I aired, Meeuws was interviewed about his life on radio - a conversation that changed at least one life.
"Afterwards, a phone call came in," he reflected. "I didn't hear it, but I got told about it by a mate of mine.
"A guys was contemplating taking his own life and after seeing that show, he booked in to see someone about it. For me, if it helped that one person, it was worth exposing my fat guts on TV and being vulnerable."
Second time round, Meeuws has already shown a glimpse of his glory days, with a powerful display in a mid-season hitout against East Coast at Tokomaru Bay.
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Catch up on Match Fit season two on THREENOW and watch every week Wednesday’s 7:30pm on THREE
