Joining Connacht – then coached by fellow Aucklander Pat Lam – proved the launching pad.
In the 2015-16 season, he missed only one game as the side won their first Pro12 title. Aki was named player of the year and, having completed a three-year residency period as per World Rugby rules at the time, he became eligible to represent Ireland before the 2017 autumn internationals.
His inclusion in the Irish squad sparked an intense debate around World Rugby’s three-year residency rule – which was later extended to five – but Aki says he has learned to block out the outside noise.
“It was always there,” he said of the noise surrounding the rule.
“Obviously a lot of people interviewed me about it. I tried to stay away from it because I knew of the noise going around, guys getting angry about it.
“I would lie to say I didn’t see it. A lot of online stuff. It just comes with it. I was lucky having people around me, my partner said, ‘you don’t need to worry about it, you just need to perform and then that’s it’.”
Fellow New Zealand-born backs James Lowe and Jamison Gibson-Park also qualified for Ireland under the residency rule and Aki said they still “get noises about it”.
He added: “I think it’s just part of it. I have no issues with people’s opinions. Unless they come and say it to my face while my kids and wife are there, that’s a different story.
“It’s alright for people to say what they’re going to say. It’s not going to hurt me.”
