Club rugby to test match<\/p>\n
Green\u2019s rise has been rapid. In a short span, she went from club and provincial rugby to putting on the black jersey.<\/p>\n
She was starting tests, coming off the bench, and adjusting to the pace and physicality of international rugby.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe biggest adjustment was looking after my body,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople take it for granted, but without your body you can\u2019t play. Recovery became everything \u2013 ice baths, stretching, compression, eating properly. Just doing all the little things.\u201d<\/p>\n
Test rugby, she says, is a different beast entirely.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s hard to explain, but it\u2019s faster, more physical, and it takes everything out of you,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou finish a test and there\u2019s nothing left in the tank. But we\u2019re conditioned for it. Our management and coaches prepare us really well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Staying grounded<\/p>\n
Since the international window closed, Green has returned to sevens and club rugby around the North Island, a move she says helped reconnect her with why she started playing the game in the first place.<\/p>\n
Vici-Rose Green celebrates with her bronze medal after the Black Ferns win against France in Twickenham, England, in September 2025. Photo \/ Peter Nicholls, action press<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes when you\u2019re playing at a higher level you forget the pathway,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cGoing back to club footy, playing with your mates, chucking the ball around, that\u2019s why I fell in love with rugby.\u201d<\/p>\n
Whether under the lights of iconic stadiums or playing on a grassroots field, Green says the joy of the game remains the same.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was lucky enough to even step foot at Twickenham. But honestly, playing with your mates is just as special.\u201d<\/p>\n
Life as a fulltime athlete<\/p>\n
Green is now a fulltime professional athlete, with training being her job.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat part is awesome. Less awesome when you\u2019re doing pre-season in 30-degree heat, running straight lines and tackling each other. But that\u2019s the mahi.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fitness testing is no longer about the dreaded beep test or yo-yo runs, though the infamous bronco still features.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you train it, it\u2019s fine. Like anything, the more you practice, the better you get.\u201d<\/p>\n
For those who watched Green come through age-group rugby, her rise has been as much about personal growth as about on-field success.<\/p>\n
From a talented teenager overcoming injuries to an international athlete wearing black, her story is one of resilience, patience and perspective.<\/p>\n
As she heads into a crucial year of preparation, one thing is clear: Green\u2019s journey so far is only just beginning.<\/p>\n
Graeme \u201cMintie\u201d Mead is a sports commentator, the host of the radio show Waikato All Sports Breakfast and a Newstalk ZB overnight host. He is also a Hamilton City councillor.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Club rugby to test match Green\u2019s rise has been rapid. In a short span, she went from club…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":218626,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[74,24752,36671,103334,7022,17909,131928,31787,8473,10541,71,2518,15258,1564,3234,111,139,69,90,89060,77617,1435,48886,1436,6327,49963,213,2737,1361,18937,61,25809,131927,131926,6923],"class_list":["post-218625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-after","tag-ago","tag-always","tag-ambitions","tag-black","tag-chiefs","tag-derail","tag-doing","tag-done","tag-ferns","tag-from","tag-green","tag-injury","tag-manawa","tag-months","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-on","tag-province","tag-quietly","tag-rapid","tag-rebuilding","tag-rise","tag-rugby","tag-setbacks","tag-sports","tag-star","tag-that","tag-threatened","tag-to","tag-turning","tag-twelve","tag-vicirose","tag-what"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/218625","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=218625"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/218625\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/218626"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=218625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=218625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=218625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}