Rugby: Kane Hames fitter, stronger but feeling the chill

Bay of Plenty prop Kane Hames is settling into life as a professional rugby player with the Highlanders. Photo/File

Bay of Plenty prop Kane Hames is finding living in Dunedin, far away from his Tauranga home, has its challenges.

Not the least of which is having to put up with a summer of cold miserable weather that has afflicted the deep south.

"Mate this place is cold! People told me it was cold but we have had a really bad summer and that has been the hardest part," Hames said. "When I was back home for that little break I was struggling to get to sleep it was that hot but come down here I need an extra blanket.

"Bay of Plenty is home and I know so many people. I am down here and it is pretty lonely as I know stuff all people here. I am feeling all those 1000 or more kilometres I am away."

But Hames is loving the day-to-day training and is thriving under the guidance of head coach Jamie Joseph.

"It is going really well and I am really enjoying it. I count myself blessed that I am getting paid to stay in shape and be the fastest, fittest and strongest I can be.

"I did well in the strength test the other day and got all PBs in the lifts that we trained. My fitness is going well and just understanding of the smaller details of the game is going well. You can't be in a full-time environment and not get better in all ways, so it has been really good."

Hames has found Joseph a dream coach to work with and reckons he has got an unfairly bad reputation.

"I think there has been some unfair media about him. I heard some horror stories before I came down but he is really helpful, he is knowledgeable and he gets stuff done."

Hames should make his debut for the Highlanders off the bench tomorrow in the pre-season game against the Brumbies in Queenstown.

"I think I will play well because I have prepared well. At the moment I am just looking forward to smashing someone that catches the ball at the first kick-off. That's as far as I am thinking about the game.

"I definitely think I will get a start for the Highlanders in the competition. That is the mindset I have to go into it with anyway, so I will treat everything as a competition. I feel myself getting better in all those key areas, including knowledge of the game, so I will be doing my best to make every single starting team I can.

"That's how you have to treat this environment or else you are going backwards and you are stagnate."