Tupou Vaa’i’s evolution: Menace, muscle and rugby intelligence
Friday, 17 July 2026
Ross Karl is a co-host of Aotearoa Rugby Pod.
ANALYSIS: All Blacks lock come blindside flanker Tupou Vaa’i has a keen eye for detail. He watches, analyses and integrates.
His try in the Chiefs’ 2026 season opener against the Blues is a prime example.
During the 2025 British & Irish Lions tour of Australia, Ireland hooker Dan Sheehan caused a storm by launching himself over low defenders to score an NFL-style try.
The debate was fuelled by a law that’s up for interpretation. Players are permitted to dive for the tryline, but can’t jump or hurdle a tackler to avoid contact. Fans were divided on which one fit for Sheehan’s action. Kiwi ref Ben O’Keeffe awarded the try, treating it as a dive.
Vaa’i was watching. He headed to Eden Park in February, knowing O’Keeffe was again in charge.
He recognised a similar opportunity, launched himself over the line, as well as the defenders, and was awarded the try. The Chiefs left with a 19-15 win.
““During the Lions series, Dan Sheehan was the first one,” Vaa’i told the Aotearoa Rugby Pod.
“He was saying it was a diving motion. I kind of took that in, tried my luck.”
Super Rugby released a statement the following week, clarifying that “Vaa'i's actions constituted leaving the ground to avoid a tackle, rather than simply diving forward to score a try.'
However, the win was in the bag and Vaa’i’s understanding of O’Keeffe’s interpretation was a major factor in securing the win.
As the All Blacks prepare to face Sheehan’s Irish side this weekend, Vaa’i’s had his eye on their innovation.
Sheehan helped secure Ireland’s come from behind win over the Wallabies two weeks ago with a quick tap move. He looked to be running low at the line then flicked up a pass to Josh van der Flier to score.
“You learn off watching footy, and Ireland are pretty world class at that move. I’m sure we’ll have a plan coming in the next couple of days to try to stop that.”
The try against the Blues isn’t the first time Vaa’i has exploited loopholes in the laws.
Along with Scott Barrett, Vaa’i disrupted South Africa’s renowned lineout drive to win at Eden Park last year. They legally worked their way into the Springboks' side of the maul to create turnovers. Because they did not break their binds, they were allowed to disrupt the play from what’s generally considered an offside position.
The South African Union was so unhappy it lobbied World Rugby. It eventually issued a strict new law application saying defenders that get past the ball and out of the initial contest are now deemed to have left the maul.
These examples offer an insight into the quality player Vaa’i has become. With Barrett injured, the 46 test veteran has been the All Blacks lock this year, on top of preparing to switch to blindside this weekend.
He says he’s now taking greater responsibility for detail behind the team’s lineout and forward play.
“It’s a bit of a weird feeling, to be honest,” he said.
“I’ve always been a younger lock the last few years, and I guess it’s just something down here to get out of my comfort zone and actually go bone deep with my prep.
“That’s something that I’m enjoying at the moment.”
It can be easy to overlook Vaa’i’s rugby IQ, given the way he also loves to ruffle opposition feathers.
The 26 year passionately celebrates small victories on the field. He has developed a reputation for being in opponents’ faces, having plenty to say and rubbing their heads. He did it so passionately in that win over the Boks in Auckland that he drew criticism from South African pundits and even cricketer Kevin Pietersen.
He points to former team mate Brodie Retallick, a chief instigator in his time at the Chiefs and All Blacks, as a key influence in his competitive evolution.
Rather than distancing himself from the perception, Vaa’i embraces it.
“It’s those in-the-moment sort of things that help me get into the game. I think I perform at my best when I’m at that kind of stage.”
He jokes that he’s seen as a bit of a menace around camp, with halfbacks and room mate Samisoni Taukei’aho often copping the worst of it.
The key is balancing his high rugby IQ with his competitive nature.
Plenty is expected of Vaa’i and his fellow locks on the pitch, doing the dirty work like ruck cleanouts, alongside lineouts, scrums, ball carries and defence.
Those demands have increased under Dave Rennie, with a lift in fitness needed for his high tempo approach.
Through the opening two Tests of 2026, New Zealand’s locks have averaged 20 carries per 80 minutes, up 29 per cent on the Robertson era.
Their total ruck arrivals are up 18%. The greatest change isn’t just how often they reach breakdowns but how frequently they perform meaningful upon arrival. They’re in the first three to a ruck 37% more and clean-outs are up 46%.
Locks are expected to repeatedly get off the ground, arrive early and remove defenders before the next wave of New Zealand’s attack can begin.
A two-Test sample is possibly too small to establish a definitive long-term trend. Nonetheless, the physical output means conditioning is key.
Vaa’i says every player’s statistics are measured, published and assessed when the group reconvenes.
“There’s no hiding anymore. It comes out on a Monday and it’s pretty strict, but in a good way.”
Vaa’i says he was amongst the players tapped for additional fitness work.
It’s not necessarily a declaration that a player is unfit. It may mean he has fallen short in a specific high-intensity category required for his position. For locks, those requirements are now inseparable from the game the All Blacks want to play.
“The game is only going to get even faster,” Vaa’i said.
“The more that we can stay on top of our fitness, the more we can get back up off the ground and get back into play.”
It means Vaa’i has plenty on his plate, balancing two positions, as well as tactical and physical preparation.
But you only have to look at his menace to understand he’s passionate about being the best all of them.