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Sam Whitelock reveals why he doesn't want to keep that incredible record

Sam Whitelock spoke to Johnnie Beattie in the latest episode of Fresh Starts on RugbyPass TV

Having recently announced his retirement from international rugby, Sam Whitelock has taken some time out to reflect on his record-breaking Test career, and look to the future of New Zealand rugby.

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A farm boy at heart, the most capped All Black of all time recently told Johnnie Beattie that he still finds it hard to believe when people refer to that phenomenal record.

And he now wants someone to break it.

Speaking to Beattie on the latest episode of the new RugbyPassTV show Fresh Starts, the 153-cap second row wants to have left the future of New Zealand rugby in good hands.

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      “It was something I actually spoke to the guys about after I played my 150th. I talked around, I want that record to be broken.

      “Richie [McCaw] also spoke around it too, because it means we’ll set up the next generation. We’ll set up the guys that might have played two or ten Test matches at the moment, because we were breaking down barriers, it’ll actually encourage them to do the same.

      “What we’ve achieved will hopefully set the mark high for people, so then it’s going to be challenging to get there, but when they do break it, how awesome will that be?

      “Taking that step back and actually helping other people, you probably get more enjoyment than achieving it yourself.”

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      The former Crusaders lineout ace went on to speak about the best coaches he’s had, as well as sharing his amusing thoughts on coach ‘Razor’ Scott Robertson, and spoke about the Rugby World Cup final that ‘got away’ from New Zealand.

      Watch the full Fresh Starts episode on RugbyPass TV now

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      Comments

      1 Comment
      J
      Jen 355 days ago

      I really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.

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      f
      fl 9 minutes ago
      Why Les Kiss and Stuart Lancaster can lead Australia to glory

      “He made history beyond the age of 50. History.”

      He made history before the age of 50, why are you so keen to downplay Pep’s early career achievements? In 2009 he won the sextuple. No other manager in history had achieved that, and Pep hasn’t achieved it since, but here you are jizzing your pants over a couple of CL finals.


      “If continuing to break records and achieve trophies isn't a metric for success”

      Achieving trophies is a metric for success, and Pep wins fewer trophies as he gets older.


      “He's still competing for a major trophy this year. Should he get it, it would be 8 consecutive seasons with a major trophy. Then the world club cup in the summer.”

      You’re cherry picking some quite odd stats now. In Pep’s first 8 seasons as a manager he won 6 league titles, 2 CL titles, & 4 cup titles. In Pep’s last 8 seasons as a manager (including this one) he’s won 6 league titles, 1 CL title, & 2 (or possibly 3) cup titles. In his first 8 seasons he won the FIFA world club cup 3 times; in his last 8 seasons he’s won it 1 (or possibly soon to be 2) time(s). In his first 8 seasons he won the UEFA super cup 3 times; in his last 8 he won the UEFA super cup once. His record over the past 8 seasons has been amazing - but it is a step down from his record in his first 8 seasons, and winning the FA cup and FIFA club world cup this summer won’t change that.


      Pep is still a brilliant manager. He will probably remain a brilliant manager for many years to come, but you seem to want to forget how incredible he was when he first broke through. To be clear - you said that Pep had gotten better with age by every metric. That was false!

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