2023-09-14 01:50:09
He will become a little more integrated into the pantheon of the All Blacks. Second row Sam Whitelock (34), future Pau player, will honor his 148th selection with the New Zealanders, during the second World Cup match against Namibia, Friday evening in Toulouse. He will join Richie McCaw, another legend of the selection who retired in 2015 and holder of the national cap record. In international rugby, only Welshman Alun-Wyn Jones (158 appearances) surpasses them.
As a symbol, Whitelock will be associated for the occasion with his inseparable friend Brodie Retallick, who has “only” 102 caps. Double world champion, in 2011 and 2015, the tall second row (2.03 m) is playing in his fourth World Cup and was part of the opening match lost against the Blues. Sam Whitelock is one of six players to retain his place in the starting XV, including captain Ardie Savea and fullback Beauden Barrett, for this match against Namibia.
He will join his brother in Pau
Even if the All Blacks go through to the end of the competition, the second row should not surpass Alun-Wyn Jones’ all-time record. The second row, withdrawn from the selection since May and now a Toulon player, has ten more selections, and Sam Whitelock will be able to glean a maximum of five additional ones. He will join the Top 14 and the Paloise Section, where his brother Luke plays, at the end of the World Cup, probably marking the end of his international career.
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