How Wallace Sititi turned time on the sideline into growth

Many would argue that the World Breakthrough Rugby 15’s Men’s Player of the Year Wallace Sititi’s game is naturally trending in the right direction, but after enjoying a spectacular debut season in the All Blacks jersey, the Chiefs loose forward is more motivated than ever.

Sititi’s Super Rugby Pacific season seemed to be over before it started, being ruled out of ‘most’ of the season before a ball had even been kicked.

The Chiefs announced that Sititi needed surgery on a knee injury that he picked up with the All Blacks on the end-of-year tour.

The 22-year-old Chiefs loose forward worked his way back into contention for his Super Rugby franchise earlier than expected and made his season debut off the bench against the Force in Mt Maunganui.

Sititi has now locked down a starting spot after coming off the bench for a while after his injury, something that he admits came ahead of schedule.

“I’m definitely grateful to be back for the Chiefs earlier than expected, I think we sort of looked at it as a chance to work on other stuff on my body,” Sititi told the Sky Sports show The Breakdown.

“I’m pretty lucky to have that time off to work on, I guess my strength and putting a bit of size on and because it was  early in my career, I was able to work on it and ultimately strengthen my game when we when we got back to here.”

The All Blacks star explains that the extra size he put on during rehab has taken some time to get used to, and that there are specific parts of the game where he can notice a positive change.

“It definitely took a bit to get used to, especially those first two games off the bench, we’re still getting used to that extra weight.

“But I can definitely feel it in the contact areas, a lot more power, a lot more control, if that makes sense, being able to use my strength a bit more, especially in the close quarters.”

Ardie Savea’s form at No.7 for Moana Pasifika has sparked discussion about how the All Blacks’ loose forward trio will shape up in 2025 under Scott Robertson. 

In 2025, Sititi admits he’s not too fazed where he plays in the back row and tells The Breakdown that there’s not much difference in the loose forward positions nowadays.

“To be honest, not too fussed, as long as I’m out there, I trust the coaches that put me wherever they think is best for the team, and I’ll try to do the number of the jersey justice.

“Yeah, like I said, as long as I’m out there and playing good footy, I can hopefully do my best in doing the jersey justice.

“Number six is more line out jumping focus, not as much at number eight, but in terms of around the park, there’s a simple carry, hard tackle and hard work.”

Chiefs head coach Clayton McMillan has several high-quality loose forwards at his disposal in Hamilton, which according to Sititi, is great competition for their squad.

“When you’ve got quality loose forwards, missing out, it’s there’s definitely a lot of competition and we’re a really tight group, so we understand that that competition comes from a good place like you said, we’ve been rotating a lot.

“So the boys have been fighting for that starting spot week in and week out, we’ve got a lot of depth at the Chiefs in the loose forward area, you spoke about Simon Parker.

“You also got Kaylum Boshier and Jahrome Brown, who have done a really good job for us, and they continue to bring that competition and it keeps all of us on edge.”