Rodie Retallack and Sam Whitelock are the most experienced locking Combination in New Zealand history and according to all blacks coach eve Hansen, also the best.
It's often the case that the true value of certain players isn't fully appreciated until they are not there.
That's certainly true of Brodie Retallick and Sam Whitelock. Everyone knew they were great players, but at the end of 2016, when the All Blacks lost to Ireland without them, just how critical they are to New Zealand's test aspirations was hammered home.
The All Blacks, on an 18-test unbeaten run coming into that test in Chicago, were just not the same team without Retallick and Whitelock who were both injured.
They wobbled at the lineout, were loose around kick-offs, lacked grunt in the scrum and without the ball-carrying carnage of Retallick in the middle of the field, they didn't rock Ireland back on defence and generate the momentum from which their attack flows.
Two weeks later in Dublin, with Retallick and Whitelock back in the starting side, the All Blacks won 24-9 – a victory built on their superior physicality.
Maybe it wasn't that simple to say the return of Whitelock and Retallick changed everything, but then again, maybe it was.
The All Blacks have lost four tests since that defeat in Chicago and Retallick missed two of them.
Since Retallick made his debut in 2012, the All Blacks have lost eight tests and he has missed four of them. The All Blacks have a win ratio of 90 per cent since 2012; yet Retallick, who has played 75 of those tests, has a win ratio of 93 per cent.
Whitelock has missed two, which means that five defeats have come when one or both have been unavailable and the statistics are the undeniable proof of what sort of influence these two thunderous locks have within the All Blacks.
They have started a record 50 tests together and lost just three times as a combination and it is no wonder that All Blacks coach Steve Hansen is already prepared to say that Whitelock and Retallick are the greatest locking combination in All Blacks history.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der Issue 201, August - September 2019-Ausgabe von NZ Rugby World.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der Issue 201, August - September 2019-Ausgabe von NZ Rugby World.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
The 20 Most Memorable Rugby Acts Of 2020
2020- Most Amazing Rugby Acts
RUGBY ROYALTY
FRANS STEYN’S IMPACT AT LAST YEAR’S WORLD CUP ADDED MORE PRESTIGE TO A DECORATED CAREER THAT ISN’T OVER YET. CRAIG LEWIS FROM SA RUGBY MAGAZINE REPORTS.
WINGING IT FOR LONGER
TYPICALLY POWER WINGS DON'T LAST LONG IN THE ALL BLACKS. BUT CALEB CLARKE AND RIEKO IOANE ARE HOPING TO BUCK THE TREND.
TOUGHEST JOB IN THE WORLD
NZ RUGBY WORLD EDITOR GREGOR PAUL HAS A NEW BOOK OUT CALLED THE CAPTAIN'S RUN. IN IT HE EXPLORES WHAT IT TAKES TO LEAD THE WORLD'S BEST RUGBY TEAM, HOW THE JOB HAS CHANGED AND HOW THE VARIOUS LEADERS HAVE DEALT WITH PRESSURE, FAILURE AND SUCCESS.
WOW FACTOR
SCOTT ROBERTSON IS UNORTHODOX BUT HE'S ALSO BRILLIANT AND WANTS A JOB WITH THE BRITISH & IRISH LIONS.
RUGBY REBORN
COVID BROUGHT ECONOMIC CARNAGE IN 2020 BUT RATHER THAN BEING SEEN AS A WRECKER OF FORTUNES, THE PANDEMIC WAS ACTUALLY A GIANT BLESSING.
BATTLE FOR THE BLEDISLOE
THE UNPRECEDENTED CONDITIONS OF 2020 SAW THE INTERNATIONAL CALENDAR HASTILY REDRAWN AND IN A UNIQUE TWIST FOR THE PROFESSIONAL AGE, THE ALL BLACKS PLAYED FOUR CONSECUTIVE TESTS AGAINST AUSTRALIA.
PACIFIC POWER HOUSE
FIJI HAVE NEVER QUITE BEEN ABLE TO FULFIL THEIR ENORMOUS POTENTIAL. BUT THEY MIGHT NOW FOLLOWING THE APPOINTMENT OF VERN COTTER AS HEAD COACH.
THE PEOPLE'S CHAMPION
ON AND OFF THE FIELD, SPRINGBOKS WING CHESLIN KOLBE CONTINUES TO MAKE AN INSPIRATIONAL IMPACT.
DEFENCE FORCE ONE
THE BLUES WERE A RADICALLY DIFFERENT TEAM IN 2020 AND MUCH OF THAT WAS DUE TO THEIR VASTLY IMPROVED WORK ON DEFENCE.