Auckland, NZ - - Black Sox veteran Brad Rona never gave up hope of making it back for his sixth world champs
Donny Hale and Brad Rona (R) do a victory jig after winning a gold medal with the Black Sox in Auckland in 2013.
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Not every sporting international gets to play at representative level with two sons, but it's helped helped inspire Brad Rona to win back his Black Sox place.
The 41-year-old has been selected for his sixth world championship squad after being omitted from the Black Sox's campaigns since 2015.
Rona, who has three world series gold medals, never gave up hope of getting back in Mark Sorenson's team for July's tournament in Canada.
Father and son Brad (L) and Pita Rona in 2011 when first selected together in a NZ Black Sox softball team.
He said Sorenson was up front with him about wanting to test younger players in the last two seasons.
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"But he said if I was still good enough, I would be back."
Brad Rona hopes his experience will help a young Black Sox bring back another world title in 2017.
Anyone who has witnessed a spirited Black Sox haka knows Rona possesses a burning passion for the black jersey he has worn since the the late 1990s.
He was philosophical about missing out on the last two seasons, saying his omission "gave me time to spend with my family" and watching his sons Kaleb, a current Junior Black Sox player, and Pita, an ex-Black Sox representative, progress.
"Having those two play with me for North Harbour and for the club [Northcote] has been good for me."
Brad Rona has three world softball gold medals and hopes to add a fourth with the Black Sox in July.
Rona admits he "isn't getting any younger", but he is still one of the most feared hitters in the world.
He won the MVP (most valuable player) award in his last International Softball Congress tournament in 2016.
"And I've been doing well in our domestic season, especially last week at the interclubs [where Rona won the top batter award]."
Rona did not take selection for granted and said it was "always to get the phone call ... it's always an honour."
He hopes a young squad featuring six players at their first world series with the Black Sox will benefit from his and captain Nathan Nukunuku's experience.
"When we first made the team we were coming into a squad that had been together for a while. Now, we've got a very young, inexperienced team, but having me and Nathan back involved, hopefully we bring a lot of experience that will help the younger players out."
Rona said he wanted to exorcise the demons of the 2015 tournament where the Black Sox blew a five-run lead to lose to Canada in the final.
He said "the way we lost" still rankled and it wasn't his happiest series, personally, after "going over there with a couple of injuries in his lower legs, "which stayed with me through that whole competition".
"I feel heaps better now than I did two years ago."
Rona and Nukunuku will join Sorenson, Thomas Makea and Jarrad Martin as the only New Zealanders with four gold medals if the Black Sox win in Whitehorse, Yukon.
When he first burst into the Black Sox infield, Rona was a third baseman noted as much for his agility and speed on defence as he was for pounding home runs out of the park.
He later shifted to the opposite corner, first base and may spend some time there this series, but is more likely to be used as a designated player who bats but rarely fields, or as a pinch hitter off the bench.
Sorenson believes the Black Sox will benefit from Rona's presence on the diamond, or in the dugout.
He sees the North Harbour stalwart having a similar impact on the psyche of opposing pitchers as Makea and Martin had in 2013 when the Black Sox last won gold. They were not always in the starting nine, but made pitchers think twice about what they were serving up, knowing Makea and Martin, two of the world's greatest all-time hitters, could come out to bat at any moment.
Rona has a similar reputation as a slugger and Sorenson said "we could see him coming off the bench in a key situation and doing the job for us".
"He's got global respect from opposition pitchers and if Brad's in the dugout or in the on-deck circle, they may pitch completely differently to the guy at the plate."
Rona accepts his "role with be different" at this stage of his career, but the aim will still be the same as it has been for the last 18 years - to hit the ball as hard and as far as he can at every at-bat.
 - Stuff
