Taniela Tupou is arguably the most important addition to the Waratahs in the Super Rugby team’s history, but the Tongan Thor has opened up about the summer’s afternoon in New Zealand that almost saw the Wallabies giant turn around.
After hitting the gym and slimming down to 143kg ahead of his Christmas break, Tupou, the Waratahs’ new recruit and Australian rugby’s most vital cog this year, took his family across the ditch for a holiday.
The 28-year-old quickly discovered that he signed up for more than he bargained for, as his partner pushed him to the limit by daring him to complete the 43m bungy jump above Kawarau River – a lead that requires daredevils to be under 155kg.
Easy, or so Tupou thought.
“I weighed myself in because I wanted to train hard before I go to Queenstown, because I wanted to enjoy it,” Tupou said.
“I was 143. We had lunch, we had a few beers. We went to the place and I said, ‘What’s the weight limit?’
“They said, ‘155.’
“I was like, ‘Oh, I’m sweet. I’m at least ten kilos lighter.’
“They were like, ‘You have to weigh in anyway.’
“So I jump on and it’s 150. I said, ‘Oh f—k’. I was still under, but in my head, I’m like, have I put on that much weight in three days?”
Taniela Tupou says he can still offer something to Australian rugby. Photo: AAP
Then came the hard part.
“I was that close to walking (away),” Tupou said. “I said to him, ‘Can you push me? Because I can’t jump. I can’t do it.’
“He said, ‘We’re not allowed to push you. You’ve got to do it.’
“Everybody else had the one rope around their legs and then jumped off, I had the full harness on me.
“They said, ‘There’s no way it’s going to break.’
“I was more worried about it breaking, but I’m glad I got it done.”
Although Tupou allowed himself to break into character for a short time, it seems obvious the Wallabies tight-head recognises the most important year of his career has arrived.
It’s not just because Tupou is off-contract – and he needs to perform to command the million-dollar deal he received when he moved to the Rebels.
After a couple of injury interrupted seasons, which came with Tupou rupturing his Achilles in Dublin at the end of 2022, the reality has slowly sunk in that there is more to his game than simply packing down in scrums on a weekend.
It’s partly why the wrecking-ball prop is excited by arriving at the Waratahs at the same time Dan McKellar has popped up.
“I was in contact with Dan McKellar,” Tupou says. “He’s tough. Tough but fair. And I knew he’d help me become a better player. I need to challenge myself and working under Dan McKellar will do that.
“A big thing for me is just to work around the park, trying to move well. If I can lose a few kilos, it’ll make it easier for me to get on the field. And if I can do that, it’ll help my game and help the team.”
Tupou isn’t the only Waratahs player who has been saying that in recent months, with McKellar’s disciplinary style rubbing off on the players after years of struggling on the pitch since Michael Cheika left in 2015.
“I’m just excited to see what we can do as a team here at the Tahs,” said Tupou, who spent two years working alongside McKellar when the coach was a part of Dave Rennie’s Wallabies set up for two years.
“The boys have been working really hard under Dan, and just knowing Dan and how tough he is around the players and what we do here, trying to achieve what we want to achieve, and us coming in, I like the way that he treated us just like everybody else here.
“No one’s a superstar, ‘hey Taniela, come here, you’re just one of us.’
“I’m excited to see what we can do. There’s a lot of talk around us, but I think our main focus is trying to put in a performance that the fans can be proud of.”
Taniela Tupou says he’s prepared to be challenged by Dan McKellar after a couple of injury disrupted seasons. (Photo by Jono Searle/Getty Images)
Once capable of playing 80 minutes, Tupou often came off the bench for the Rebels in 2024 as the Rebels coaching team managed him in an effort to get him back to his best.
But Tupou failed to find his best form and often was seen struggling across the park, with niggles and hits plaguing his season.
So how many minutes does he want to play?
“I remember those days, playing 80 minutes,” Tupou said.
“Obviously there’s always an expectation for me to perform.
“It’s not that I don’t want to perform, it’s not that I don’t want to play for long minutes – it’s that all the injuries, not being able to train, not being able to do a pre-season, has made it hard.
“However long the coach wants me to play whether it’s 30 or 40, or off the bench (I’ll do), that’s why I say this year the main focus was to come in here, get my body right, reset, work hard under Dan McKellar, and start building the metrics again.
“Hopefully (by) mid-season I’ll get back to what it used to be.”
Taniela Tupou in the open against Ireland at Aviva Stadium in 2024. (Photo By Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile via Getty Images)
Despite not being anywhere near his full health and most destructive self on the field in recent years, Tupou will have a huge decision to make in the coming months over whether to stay in Australian rugby.
Indeed, to stay in Super Rugby he will almost certainly have to take a pay cut from his annual $1.2 million deal given Rugby Australia’s desire to reverse the player wage market.
But with overseas clubs still willing to pay massive sums for tight-head props, but also wanting bang for their buck, it’s something Tupou will have to weigh up over the coming weeks, especially with a home World Cup on the horizon.
“I mean, yes, there were offers on the table last year,” said Tupou, who was linked to Leinster and Montpellier. “But I just wanted to stay back in Australia.
“I feel like they can still offer something here in Australia. And again, it comes back to me. For me to achieve that, it’s to look after my game, get my body right, and try and get back to playing consistent footy. If I can do that, it should take care of itself.
“I’d love to play in a home World Cup, but I need to play some good footy to play in a World Cup.”
As for his next extreme sport, you can rule out skydiving.
“My father-in-law tried to make me do it,” Tupou quipped,” but the weight limit was 130, so (I’m) no chance.”
