{"id":112304,"date":"2025-09-02T03:58:09","date_gmt":"2025-09-02T03:58:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/112304\/"},"modified":"2025-09-02T03:58:09","modified_gmt":"2025-09-02T03:58:09","slug":"centurion-to-be-savea-has-revolutionised-loose-forward-play","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/112304\/","title":{"rendered":"Centurion-to-be Savea has ‘revolutionised’ loose forward play"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Ardie Savea is one game shy of a milestone 100 Test matches in the black jersey, a milestone, health permitting, he is sure to achieve this weekend at Eden Park against the old foes, the Springboks.<\/p>\n

In a game with so much on the line \u2013 a 31-year unbeaten record at the All Blacks<\/a>\u2018 spiritual home ground, the Rugby Championship, and the Freedom Cup \u2013 Savea\u2019s accomplishment adds even more weight.<\/p>\n

That notion was affirmed in no uncertain terms by Savea\u2019s loose forward running mate, Wallace Sititi<\/a>, after training on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s been a mentor for me in my short time in the All Blacks,\u201d Sititi said. \u201cNot only myself, but a lot of people that are in this squad currently, and boys that have gone before us.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a special human being, a special member of our squad. He leads our forward pack. It\u2019s a big occasion in its own right, a big occasion for Ardie and his family, and we\u2019ll build into the week.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 2024 Breakthrough Player of the Year labelled Savea\u2019s Tests to date \u201c99 of the best\u201d before reflecting on Savea\u2019s legacy in the game.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe sort of revolutionised the loose forward position, I think we\u2019re seeing that this year as well. He\u2019s somebody I model my game by, bits of it, and also somebody that I take inspiration from.\u201d<\/p>\n

The team celebrated a new centurion in their last game, a 29-23 defeat to Argentina, when Codie Taylor<\/a> clocked his 100th Test cap. The loss inevitably soured the occasion, something the team want to avoid repeating at all costs.<\/p>\n

Savea himself is a man who leads through positivity, though, and his words of wisdom will keep Sititi and his teammates grounded ahead of the big Test.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis favourite term is \u2018just have a jam\u2019. That\u2019s what footy is, that\u2019s why we play. We love watching the footy. As much as there\u2019s pressure, at the end of the day, it\u2019s just going out there having a jam with the boys. Living the dream.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fixture<\/p>\n

Rugby Championship<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

New Zealand <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

South Africa <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Also helping the All Blacks prepare for the Test this week is New Zealand<\/a> icon Sir Wayne Smith, a coach who has helped shape the All Blacks\u2019 identity over the past two decades.<\/p>\n

Head coach Scott Robertson<\/a> told reporters on Monday that it was always the plan to have Smith join the group this week in Auckland, answering the unspoken question of whether his presence is a response to their recent loss in Buenos Aires.<\/p>\n

Regardless, Sititi and the players have been hanging on every word from the man known as \u2018The Professor\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a legend in his own right, someone who\u2019s been there and someone who\u2019s gone through these moments in these times. So, we really lean on him as well, and the little gold nuggets he\u2019s thrown around are something special and something that we\u2019ll take very seriously.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ardie Savea is one game shy of a milestone 100 Test matches in the black jersey, a milestone,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":112305,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[567],"tags":[64,63,760,85],"class_list":["post-112304","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-rugby","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-rugby","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112304","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=112304"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112304\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/112305"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=112304"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=112304"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=112304"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}