2019 RUGBY WORLD CUP
In 2018, Whitelock hit his top gear as Crusaders captain, and subsequently earned the opportunity to become the new captain of the All Blacks. Whitelock briefly took over the mantle from Kieran Reid, before the forwards duo shared the honour throughout the run-up to the 2019 Rugby World Cup. An abdominal injury put Whitelock’s World Cup hopes in jeoprady, yet the lock battled on to captain his side to the 2018 Rugby Championship title.
As the injury worsened, Whitelock was forced to miss out on the 2018 Autumn Internationals, with hopes of his return coming in time for the following years trip to Japan. Whitelock made a swift return, and captained the Crusaders to the 2019 Super Rugby title, yet faced an international speed-bump when the Wallabies handed the All Blacks their (of the time) record defeat in a World Cup warm-up game (47-26).
Whitelock then headed to the Far East for his third World Cup, alongside co-veterans Kieran Reid and Sonny Bill Williams. Once again, New Zealand completed a clean sweep of their pool stage opponents, with Whitelock captaining and scoring in the All Blacks 71-9 thrashing of Namibia; Whitelock’s first time leading the side at the Rugby World Cup. Whitelock played the full 80 minutes in the opening pool victory over eventual World Champions South Africa, and in the quarter-final win against Ireland.
Whitelock was with-drawn after 66 minutes in the semi-final defeat to England, as the All Blacks lost their first Rugby World Cup match since the 2007 quarter-final upset against France.
2023 RUGBY WORLD CUP
Now it all comes down to this weekend. As of the time of writing, New Zealand are gearing up to take on South Africa in the 2023 Rugby World Cup Final. Whitelock missed out on the opportunity to lift the Web Ellis trophy for a third time in Japan, and the All Blacks are once again back for their third Rugby World Cup Final, in just four tournaments. This stunning track record has been helped in no end to the side’s experience of winning on the biggest stages, with Whitelock certainly amongst the most respected voices in the changing room.
Whitelock was named by the All Blacks new Head Coach Ian Foster in the 2023 Rugby World Cup squad, and stands as the sole survivor of the team which won the tournament on home soil, eight years ago. The All Blacks had a polarising run of form during their Summer preparations, as they completed a clean sweep of victories to claim the 2023 Rugby Championship, yet were handed their all-time heaviest defeat. The Springboks ran riot on New Zealand at Twickenham, with a 35-7 hammering sending the All Blacks off to France looking to re-claim momentum.
Whitelock played all but 12 minutes in the All Blacks opening 27-13 loss to France, which stood as New Zealand’s first and only pool stage loss at the Rugby World Cup. However, Ian Foster’s men have since found their stride, with Whitelock captaining the All Blacks to the knock-out stages, and making the aforementioned history books in the process. A quarter-final reunion with Ireland had Andy Farrell’s men down as favourites, yet the All Blacks dug deep for the narrow win, with Whitelock finishing the match off with a tempo lifting replacement performance.
New Zealand then decimated Argentina with a 44-6 win in the semi-final stage, sending Los Pumas down to tomorrow’s Bronze Medal match against England. Whitelock re-claimed his spot in the starting line-up from Retallick for the semi-final, and was withdrawn for at the hour mark with the job more than done. The last stop on Whitelock’s journey is Saturday’s Rugby World Cup Final showdown with South Africa, in what will be a blockbuster finale against the number one ranked side in the world.