"Hunting the Hat-Trick" Sam Whitelock RWC Career Review Ahead of Rugby World Cup Final

When Whitelock made a 32 minute run-out off the bench, in New Zealand's pool stage demolition of Italy, he surpassed his former captain for his 150th All Blacks cap. McCaw's record had stood since his retirement in 2015, which saw him end his career as a two-time Rugby World Cup winning captain. Whitelock has also since surpassed McCaw and legendary England prop Jason Leonard, to become the most capped player in Rugby World Cup history.

McCaw and Leonard both each accrued 22 tournament caps, with Whitelock hoping to make his 25th Rugby World Cup appearance in this Saturday's final against South Africa. Whitelock already has the most Rugby World Cup match wins (another record he took from McCaw), and would want nothing more than to ride off into the sunset with a third Rugby World Cup winners medal.

Whitelock is expected to leave his beloved Crusaders after the World Cup, with a move to French club Pau lined-up following the tournament. After a career in Christchurch, Whitelock's move away from New Zealand would likely see the 35-year-old step out of the All Blacks fold, for Ian Foster to usher in a new generation of locks for the next Rugby World Cup cycle.

So, with Whitelock's speculated international retirement on the horizon, we took a look back on the iconic second row's history at Rugby World Cup. Here is a run-down on Sam Whitelock's Rugby World Cup career, ahead of this weekend's final against South Africa.

Whitelock could not have timed his international rise any better, as just five appearences after his All Blacks debut he was named in the squad for the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Whitelock marked his New Zealand debut with two tries against Ireland, and quickly stamped his name onto the All Blacks second row. Whitelock sat out the All Blacks' tournament opener against Tonga, but was picked to start in the second pool stage fixture against Japan.

Whitelock made good on his opportunity, and impressed Head Coach Graham Henry in the All Blacks 83-7 demolition of the Brave Blossoms. Following this match, Whitelock held onto the starting shirt for the rest of the competition, which saw New Zealand make it all the way to a home-soil Rugby World Cup Final. Whitelock had surpassed his competiting locks Ali Williams and Anthony Boric to the starting spot, as he packed down the scrum alongside Brad Thorn for the Final at Eden Park.

Whitelock had a solid impact in the narrow 9-8 win over France, and had a key involvement in Tony Woodcock's 15th minute try. The All Blacks had a line-out on the French 5m line, and Whitelock sold the dummy jump at the front of the line-out, drawing the French attention away from Jerome Kaino at the back of the group. Whitelock then turned and legally obstructed the French defenders, with Woodcock sent through a gap in the middle of the line-out to score.

Whitelock pressed on throughout the following World Cup cycle, and established himself as the first choice lock in what was now Steve Hansen's side. Whitelock played his 50th All Blacks test in the 2013 Autumn Internationals, with New Zealand handing England a 30-22 defeat at Twickenham. Whitelock then started in all three of the 2014 Summer wins over Stuart Lancasters men, for a 3-0 clean sweep in the one-sided series.

The All Blacks entered the 2015 Rugby World Cup amongst the favourites, however no side in history had been able to retain their title as World Champions. This formidable New Zealand side is regarded amongst the best ever sporting teams, as Whitelock joined the likes of Richie McCaw, Dan Carter, Ma'a Nonu, Conrad Smith, Tony Woodcock and Kevin Mealamu for one last ride before international retirement. Whitelock played in every single test in England, as New Zealand made light work of their pool stage opponents; Argentina, Tonga, Georgia and Namibia.

The Crusader played the full 80 minutes in each knock-out stage match, as New Zealand despatched France with an emphatic 62-13 win, and wrestled past the Springboks with a much closer 20-18 victory. The All Blacks lined-up against the Wallabies in the 2015 Rugby World Cup Final, in what is amongst the most entertaining iterations of the competition's finale. Whitelock partnered up with Brodie Retallick in the second row, as the boot of Dan Carter led the All Blacks to an epic 34-17 triumph over the Wallabies.

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.

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.