ESCAPING THE RAT RACE
As the test against the Pumas in Bankstown slipped away from the All Blacks last year, it was impossible not to think how differently things might have been had Brodie Retallick been on the park.
The giant lock is the forgotten man of New Zealand rugby. A rare force of nature whose ability to hurt opponents and transform any game in which he plays has been sorely missed.
Retallick wasn’t available for a single game in 2020 as he was on sabbatical. But the truth is that Retallick has been missed by the All Blacks since mid-way through 2017 when he embarked upon a run of injuries and bad luck that prevented him being the player we all know he can be.
From barely suffering any kind of injury in the first five years of his career, Retallick suddenly fell apart after the British & Irish Lions tour. A body which had once seemed indestructible, was having bits broken off it almost every other test.
He missed the end of year tour in 2017 and then he missed much of the 2018 Rugby Championship with a broken bone in his chest. When his shoulder was dislocated against the Boks before the World Cup it was touch and go whether he would be fit for the tournament.
He made it to Japan
