Watch out for Big Ben
I must admit that I had very low expectations when Ben Tameifuna was named to make his Super Rugby starting debut for the Chiefs against the Blues in round two. At nearly 140kgs and only 20 years old, things weren’t looking good for a position that usually requires work ethic and experience. He’s certainly taken his chances with both hands, and I’m happy to be proved wrong. Tameifuna has even been named for the All Black training squad. It’ll be a great opportunity for him to see what the requirements are for that level. Even though he’s proven all his doubters wrong, long term it’s probably not good to be carrying that much weight. There have been times when he is clearly struggling with his fitness. Fair play to him though, he’s made it through a few 80 minutes games.
Tameifuna won the Junior World Championship in Italy last year and played for the Hawkes Bay Magpies. The Magpies coach is current Chiefs assistant coach Tom Coventry, so he must have seen something he liked in the big lad. Coventry would be the first to admit that he was expecting to drip feed him into Super Rugby though. However, when the Chiefs two best props went down in the opening game, they didn’t have the luxury of waiting around. The young prop hasn’t looked back. In fact, Toby Smith can’t even dislodge him from the starting position now!
Read more about Ben Tameifuna by reading his RugbyFix player profile. Seriously, you’ll be wanting to keep your eye on this promising young player.
Tameifuna won the Junior World Championship in Italy last year and played for the Hawkes Bay Magpies. The Magpies coach is current Chiefs assistant coach Tom Coventry, so he must have seen something he liked in the big lad. Coventry would be the first to admit that he was expecting to drip feed him into Super Rugby though. However, when the Chiefs two best props went down in the opening game, they didn’t have the luxury of waiting around. The young prop hasn’t looked back. In fact, Toby Smith can’t even dislodge him from the starting position now!
Read more about Ben Tameifuna by reading his RugbyFix player profile. Seriously, you’ll be wanting to keep your eye on this promising young player.
On the Run!
Here's a pic of Big Ben on the run for the Chiefs rugby team