All Blacks: Tough love works magic

All Blacks coach Steven Hansen talks with All Black Richie McCaw at the All Blacks training game ahead of the first Tri Nations test match against Australia. Photo / SNPA

It was in September that All Black coach Steve Hansen administered the giant proverbial kick to what, at the time, was Charlie Faumuina's literally giant backside.

Tough love isn't much used in the Hansen repertoire of motivation but it was deemed necessary with Faumuina, who had lost sight of the fact that his outrageous talent wasn't enough in itself to sustain an All Black career.

Throughout June and the early part of the Rugby Championship, Faumuina wasn't scrummaging well. He wasn't playing well and the root cause of both shortcomings was his lack of fitness.

"The coaches put a challenge in front of me," says Faumuina. "They wanted me to show that I still wanted to be here. And if I did, they wanted me to show them."

He has done that - proved beyond any doubt that he's heavily into being an All Black. The first sign of the turnaround came in Johannesburg, when his impact off the bench was significant.

He made one huge tackle where he drove a handful of Springboks a good five metres back over their tryline to force an attacking scrum. Against the Wallabies in Brisbane there was more big ball carrying and defensive grunt; in Chicago he was probably man of the match and at Twickenham his first test try was testament to his level of involvement and contribution.

Tough love worked its unorthodox magic and now Faumuina's considerably smaller backside is in no danger of being kicked by anyone.

Faumuina is an increasingly important part of the All Black operation.

The traditionalists still see rugby as a starting XV and a bench, but the All Blacks don't. They have come to see the squad's two specialist tighthead props - Faumuina and Owen Franks - as a combination, with the former, given his mobility and ball skills, more suited to playing off the bench, when there is typically more space.

When he wasn't fit enough, the frustration for the coaches was considerable

"I was probably eating too much, I think," says Faumuina. "I think I just got too comfortable. And when you get too comfortable, you don't sacrifice things. You don't push hard enough at training and stuff like that."

Speculation has surfaced that he may not be playing in the black jersey beyond next year, with reports linking him with a move to Racing Metro in Paris.

"No ... that's the first I had heard of it," he said when asked whether it was true that he had already signed.

"I'm enjoying my time with the All Blacks and playing for the Blues. We will see how it goes when the time comes [to extend his contract]."