Ardie Savea is Wellington's new hero in black, and it might not be long before his popularity extends to the rest of New Zealand and beyond. "Ardie, Ardie", the crowd chanted, and the 22-year-old responded. Snakey [Conrad Smith] has gone and no one likes me so Ardie Savea, yeah. "It's natural for the Wellington crowd to try to get a cult figure now that Conrad has gone - it's good that Ardie has taken that. "He's a big man now, and he's developed and matured, and he's a pretty special player."

Source: New Zealand Herald June 19, 2016 05:11 UTC