Giant prop ‘Big Ben’s’ awkward interaction with Richie McCaw as All Blacks were ‘best for a reason’ and the two PREM clubs he almost signed for

Bordeaux-Begles prop Ben Tameifuna has revealed that he would “love” to experience the Gallagher PREM, and has named the two English clubs he once considered signing for.

Now a Tongan international and revered as one of the most devastating props in world rugby, there was once a time that ‘Big Ben’ was considering an entirely different rugby route.

After initially learning his trade in rugby league, Tameifuna made the switch to union, eventually signing with hometown club Hawke’s Bay as a teenager.

His impressive performances soon led to Super Rugby success with the Chiefs, but not before the giant prop was called up to don the black of New Zealand. At 130kg at the time, Tameifuna was the heaviest member of the All Blacks training camp, and remembers the intensity which came with the badge.

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“You’re an All Black now; you wear black boots

Speaking on the For The Love Of Rugby podcast, Tameifuna revealed his “most vivid memory” from his time in camp, saying: “When you arrive, Adidas gives you all the free stuff. So I got a pair of black boots and a pair of white boots.

“We had our first scrum session, and I was coming down to do our forwards warm-up, and I just see Richie [McCaw] meeting me halfway.

“He pretty much stopped me from going down to the field like, ‘you’re an All Black now; you wear black boots’.

“I was like, ‘okay’; went back up, changed my boots from my white ones to my black ones.”

“All right, that’s how it is. I guess that’s the rules,” he told himself at the time.

“If you’re a forward in the All Blacks, you gotta wear black boots. And I learned that pretty quick,” he said with a reflective smile on his face.

“From then on, I was like, wow, they’ve got rules, and they’re the best for a reason, and if that’s how it is, that’s how it is.”

Big Ben never did make the Test squad, but his international dream wasn’t over. Since his time as a young man in camp with the then-World Cup holders, the 34-year-old has made almost half a century of appearances for Tonga.

“I would love to try England as well at some point”

At club level, he hasn’t done too poorly either, winning the 2025 Investec Champions Cup final with Bordeaux and being a hugely important player in this year’s tournament.

But for all his success, he could well have ended up in England if Bordeaux hadn’t come knocking.

“I would love to try England as well at some point, but Bordeaux came to the table, and I made the jump.

“We were talking to Harlequins at one point, and we visited the training centre at Wasps at one point,” he claimed, admitting that, in future, an arrival in England wouldn’t be off the cards.

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