Retallick refreshed
Key lock approaching top form after brief break in time for test series against France
The All Blacks players have yet to focus on the French — that will start on Monday, six days before the first test at Eden Park — but the forwards will know what to expect; a set of very large and powerful individuals who are ruthless in thought and deed.
Combatting that increase in speed and physicality which differentiates tests from Super Rugby takes skill, courage and experience, so it is a good thing lock Brodie Retallick is available and appearing to be approaching the form of his life.
World Rugby’s 2014 Player of the Year is always a key component of the All Blacks pack, or any pack for that matter, and he was missed during the second half of last year when he took time away from the game following the death of his unborn son.
His last test was the 57-0 Rugby Championship humiliation of South Africa at North Harbour in September. He returned to the Chiefs for preseason — a shock to the system as he tried to quickly get up to speed — and is once again leading the way up front for Colin Cooper’s men.
A smooth and injury-free transition to the All Blacks after Saturday’s clash at Waikato Stadium against the Crusaders, who will hope his locking rival Sam Whitelock makes a return from the concussion which has kept him on the sidelines for the past two weeks, will suit Steve Hansen just fine.
Hansen watches every derby before a test series with rising anxiety, and will also be crossing his fingers over the fitness of Whitelock, his new captain. On Friday, the Highlanders host the Hurricanes in another likely high-impact encounter.
Retallick didn’t play for the Chiefs against the Sharks in Durban recently due to an All Black rest agreement, and his absence was keenly felt in the defeat.
Suitably recovered after flying home from Cape Town following the win over the Stormers, Retallick helped turn the match against the Waratahs in Hamilton last Saturday with a physical edge the Sydneysiders couldn’t match.
One turnover, or ‘jackal’, late in the match was crucial in nullifying a late Israel Folau-led attack — the match was a lot closer than the 39-27 score suggests.
“He’s certainly valuable for this team,” coach Cooper said on Radio Sport when asked if Retallick was the most valuable forward in the world game. “When the game was in the balance there, I think it was in the 72nd minute, Folau had just taken that wonderful kickoff and we were under the pump, [Retallick] turns around and gets a jackal like that. He did that against the Stormers as well to get us the win there, too.
“Not only is he leading in ball carrying and tackling, he’s getting right down to steal turnovers also.”
Cooper had put the onus on his rested All Blacks to lead the way for the Chiefs against the Waratahs after their long-haul travel home, and they delivered, none more so than Retallick, who feels refreshed at the right time of the year.
The 26-year-old, who has played 68 tests, many of them alongside the similarly formidable Whitelock, said yesterday: “We’re getting to the tough part of the season — we’re threequarters of the way through, or close to it, so having the break with the enforced All Black rest has been good to freshen up the legs . . . I think it’s paid off.
“It’s pretty much all we need to break up the routine. We live in a routine for six days a week when you’re playing week in, week out, so just to step away and enjoy some family time has been good.”