Chiefs captain Liam Messam is taking a hands-on approach to keeping young Maori out of trouble.
Waatea News reports he and fellow flanker Sione Lauaki have been taking time from their Super 14 rugby duties to help at the South Pacific Islands Institute in Hamilton.
The private training establishment's Kool 4 Kids programme is aimed at rangatahi who have dropped out of school.
Mr Messam, who's from Ngai Tuhoe, says that growing up in Rotorua he saw how easy it was for young people to go off in the wrong direction, so he's happy to show them positive alternatives, while "being a normal guy - not a rugby player."
