All Blacks legend Sir John Kirwan has urged Dave Rennie to invest in “size” after picking the gargantuan duo Saula Ma’u and Pasilio Tosi in his squad.

The tighthead pair are part of the 36-man group selected for the Nations Championship as New Zealand look to build on their Bledisloe Cup success.

Both props tip the scales at around 22st which means they certainly bring plenty of ballast to that front-row.

Ma’u has been picked after Tyrel Lomax was ruled out due to a neck issue and he will look to put himself in the frame for the Rugby World Cup next year.

Change to impress for the All Blacks

At least one of them will be in the 23 for each of the games in November, which means Rennie will be able to view their Test credentials at the highest level.

Tosi has already played plenty of international rugby but he has had a poor season after a promising 2025, while his new All Blacks colleague has yet to earn a cap.

The Highlander impressed in New Zealand’s tour game against the Lions during Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour, however, and should make his Test debut next month.

“I think the interesting thing for me is what we’re going to do up front, whether we’re going to start playing a bit more size,” Kirwan said on the Rivals podcast.

“In Saula Ma’u and Pasilio Tosi, they’re big men and people have been asking me, ‘what do we need to do moving forward if we’re going to meet South Africa in a game?’

“For me, sometimes we need to look for some size to combat South Africa, especially up front, and some of these young boys – Saula and Pasilio – they’re big men.

“They’re like your South African men, so I’m hoping they’re going to get some opportunities to play and start Test matches up north because I do think we need their size.”

Size and technique

Weight is obviously not the only thing matters for a prop with technique an even bigger factor in the set-piece.

It is why Fletcher Newell and Lomax are ahead of the Tosi and Ma’u in the pecking order at the moment but, for Kirwan, size is very important when it comes to forwards.

“Are they the best in their position at the moment? Possibly not, but I think we’ve got to start thinking about size,” he added.

“The others – Bower, De Groot, Newell – they’re probably better scrummagers than them at the moment, but I just think that there’s this size thing that we need to think about when we’re playing South Africa, and that’s just my amateur look at it.”