All Blacks 2025
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@chchfanatic said in All Blacks 2025:
@Duluth that’s not very nice. Why am I a dick. Cause I have good oil.
I’ve been off here for months.Welcome back Mrs Robertson 😉
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Article on Josh Fusitua as an AB prospect matched by one from Waikato on Ollie Norris.
What's pretty interesting is that Ryan appears to have given him a pretty stern message that 124kgs isn't big enough and they want him at 130kgs,
I've posted this old Gregor Paul article before - it's eight years old now - but, it's important - and it's behind the times.
Paul saying that five years ago (around 2012) AB props were 113-118kgs - "now" (2017) they ideally want them to be 118-125kgs. And now (2025) they want Norris at 130kgs.
Happening in other positions as well - McCaw was a big openside for his time - consistently listed at 108-109kgs. Most of the AB contenders there now are bigger than 110kgs. Be interesting to put Ardie on the scales these days.
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@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
Article on Josh Fusitua as an AB prospect matched by one from Waikato on Ollie Norris.
What's pretty interesting is that Ryan appears to have given him a pretty stern message that 124kgs isn't big enough and they want him at 130kgs,
I've posted this old Gregor Paul article before - it's eight years old now - but, it's important - and it's behind the times.
Paul saying that five years ago (around 2012) AB props were 113-118kgs - "now" (2017) they ideally want them to be 118-125kgs. And now (2025) they want Norris at 130kgs.
Happening in other positions as well - McCaw was a big openside for his time - consistently listed at 108-109kgs. Most of the AB contenders there now are bigger than 110kgs. Be interesting to put Ardie on the scales these days.
Power to weight is still more important than just "weight" though. Of the other AB loose forward contenders Wallace Sititi is the only one who remotely measures up to Savea as an explosive ball carrier.
I'd put Ardie at about 105kg or so, in other words comfortably the lightest All Black forward. An unusual thing to say for a guy very likely to play number 8.
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@MN5 Everyone is in the gym though so additional power is coming with additional weight.
That article says Ardie was targeting 106kgs seven years ago and I'd be surprised if he stopped there. But, he's on the short side for a loose forward, so harder for him to effectively carry the same weight on his frame compared with the taller guys.
e.g. Dave Havili said he'd shed a couple of kgs this season and improved his mobility - presumably gone past his "sweet spot" mentioned in Paul's article.
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@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
Article on Josh Fusitua as an AB prospect matched by one from Waikato on Ollie Norris.
What's pretty interesting is that Ryan appears to have given him a pretty stern message that 124kgs isn't big enough and they want him at 130kgs,
I've posted this old Gregor Paul article before - it's eight years old now - but, it's important - and it's behind the times.
Paul saying that five years ago (around 2012) AB props were 113-118kgs - "now" (2017) they ideally want them to be 118-125kgs. And now (2025) they want Norris at 130kgs.
Props are going to have to be the height of locks to carry that level of weight and fitness. I remember Greg Somerville saying how difficult it was to maintain his weight and fitness back then.
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@antipodean Yeah - I see Norris is listed at 1.95m and Big Tamaiti at 1.96m.
Heights of short locks.
Pinetree Meads 1.92m from a different era.
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@youngwill89 said in All Blacks 2025:
hearing that josh jacomb not leaving cheifs , re signing til post world cup , done deal
A lot of that has to do with the Naki coach Barnes , who made no secret he thought for Jacomb's development he was best at Chiefs. Said last year he didn't really think it in Jacomb's best interest to be only 10 to run a team around as he developed his game.
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@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@MN5 Everyone is in the gym though so additional power is coming with additional weight.
That article says Ardie was targeting 106kgs seven years ago and I'd be surprised if he stopped there. But, he's on the short side for a loose forward, so harder for him to effectively carry the same weight on his frame compared with the taller guys.
e.g. Dave Havili said he'd shed a couple of kgs this season and improved his mobility - presumably gone past his "sweet spot" mentioned in Paul's article.
Rieko is listed as 103kg and Savea kinda looks shorter and lighter.
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@brodean said in All Blacks 2025:
@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@MN5 Everyone is in the gym though so additional power is coming with additional weight.
That article says Ardie was targeting 106kgs seven years ago and I'd be surprised if he stopped there. But, he's on the short side for a loose forward, so harder for him to effectively carry the same weight on his frame compared with the taller guys.
e.g. Dave Havili said he'd shed a couple of kgs this season and improved his mobility - presumably gone past his "sweet spot" mentioned in Paul's article.
Rieko is listed as 103kg and Savea kinda looks shorter and lighter.
Ioane is a bloody skinny 103kg !!!!
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@MN5 said in All Blacks 2025:
@brodean said in All Blacks 2025:
@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@MN5 Everyone is in the gym though so additional power is coming with additional weight.
That article says Ardie was targeting 106kgs seven years ago and I'd be surprised if he stopped there. But, he's on the short side for a loose forward, so harder for him to effectively carry the same weight on his frame compared with the taller guys.
e.g. Dave Havili said he'd shed a couple of kgs this season and improved his mobility - presumably gone past his "sweet spot" mentioned in Paul's article.
Rieko is listed as 103kg and Savea kinda looks shorter and lighter.
Ioane is a bloody skinny 103kg !!!!
His upper body and upper legs look bigger than Ardies to me.
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@MN5 said in All Blacks 2025:
I'd put Ardie at about 105kg or so, in other words comfortably the lightest All Black forward. An unusual thing to say for a guy very likely to play number 8.
I wonder if/how much Ardie's weight changes when transferring from 8 to 7 and vice versa, or maybe the Super season to test season is a (literally) bigger factor?
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@nostrildamus said in All Blacks 2025:
@MN5 said in All Blacks 2025:
I'd put Ardie at about 105kg or so, in other words comfortably the lightest All Black forward. An unusual thing to say for a guy very likely to play number 8.
I wonder if/how much Ardie's weight changes when transferring from 8 to 7 and vice versa, or maybe the Super season to test season is a (literally) bigger factor?
He could do the old Glen Osbourne trick and put weights in his pockets when hopping on the scales if need be.
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@brodean said in All Blacks 2025:
@MN5 said in All Blacks 2025:
@brodean said in All Blacks 2025:
@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@MN5 Everyone is in the gym though so additional power is coming with additional weight.
That article says Ardie was targeting 106kgs seven years ago and I'd be surprised if he stopped there. But, he's on the short side for a loose forward, so harder for him to effectively carry the same weight on his frame compared with the taller guys.
e.g. Dave Havili said he'd shed a couple of kgs this season and improved his mobility - presumably gone past his "sweet spot" mentioned in Paul's article.
Rieko is listed as 103kg and Savea kinda looks shorter and lighter.
Ioane is a bloody skinny 103kg !!!!
His upper body and upper legs look bigger than Ardies to me.
I doubt that is a major factor, I think he has longer legs but Ardie would have a bigger and longer torso. If Rieko is 1.89m tall (wiki versus 1.88m Blues official stats), then Ardie looks about 1.87 there and he looked shorter than Wallace to me so I'm guessing that's his height.
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@MN5 said in All Blacks 2025:
He could do the old Glen Osbourne trick and put weights in his pockets when hopping on the scales if need be.
I think he is more solid than he looks. Just not very tall without his early career hairdo.
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@brodean said in All Blacks 2025:
@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@MN5 Everyone is in the gym though so additional power is coming with additional weight.
That article says Ardie was targeting 106kgs seven years ago and I'd be surprised if he stopped there. But, he's on the short side for a loose forward, so harder for him to effectively carry the same weight on his frame compared with the taller guys.
e.g. Dave Havili said he'd shed a couple of kgs this season and improved his mobility - presumably gone past his "sweet spot" mentioned in Paul's article.
Rieko is listed as 103kg and Savea kinda looks shorter and lighter.
It's the haircut.
The Waikato Times
ABs' weight evolution: Super-size only
