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The All Blacks who inspired Will Jordan’s incredible rise
By Finn Morton
All Black wing Will Jordan has taken the Rugby World Cup by storm. Jordan sits among legendary giants of international rugby as a try-scoring phenom on the cusp of unprecedented greatness.
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If you ask aspiring All Blacks in New Zealand who their favourite players are, chances are they’ll rattle off names like Ardie Savea, Beauden Barrett, Jordie Barrett and of course Will Jordan.
Jordan, 25, has drawn level with legends Jonah Lomu, Bryan Habana and Julian Savea for the most tries scored at a single Rugby World Cup with eight.
But the All Black can go one step further in this weekend’s final against the Springboks. The electric outside back can surpass all-time greats by becoming the most prolific try scorer in a single tournament.
Jordan can make history against the Boks, and some may consider him to be the world’s best player if the All Blacks go on to hoist the Webb Ellis Cup on Saturday evening. But just like those kids back in New Zealand, even Jordan has heroes.
“As a young man, Dan Carter was probably my main idol growing up. To get to know him a little bit over the past year or so has been pretty cool,” Jordan said on Sunday.
“From a back-three or wing point of view, guys like Joe Rokocoko, Ben Smith, Jules [Julian Savea], Daggy [Israel Dagg] are all guys I have taken a lot from.
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“It’s cool to be able to follow in their footsteps and achieve a few things because certainly, the wing position over the years for the ABs has been pretty prolific, with some great players. So it’s humbling to be alongside those guys.”
Playing in a Rugby World Cup semi-final for the first time last Friday, Jordan stole the show with a glorious hat-trick against a valiant Los Pumas outfit.
The first two tries were pretty simple, but Jordan’s third and final score was anything but. From a set-piece play inside New Zealand’s 22, Jordan broke through the Argentine defence with blistering speed.
With plenty of work to do, Jordan finished off the incredible solo score with a clever chip-and-chase. The wing beat two Pumas defenders to score the All Blacks’ seventh and final try of the night.
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“I ended up getting drug-tested last night actually so there was a bit of a process involved with that, which took a bit of gloss off it. But on the bus on the way back, the music committee was on fire playing some good tunes. The boys were singing along, enjoying the bus trip back to the hotel,” Jordan added.
“We certainly took last night to reflect on where we are at the moment and how we are going. It’s nice to be able to have a day to do that and then later this afternoon, tomorrow and Monday, really start switching into the English or the Boks.”
That third and final try was a historic score for Jordan in more ways than one. It wasn’t just a significant World Cup score in the context of the tournament of history.
Incredibly, Jordan has scored 31 tries in 30 Tests for the All Blacks.
“I’m not one to check numbers. I’ve always liked the support play, being in the frame and reading the game scenarios. Being able to do that is what I review on and hold my hat to. It’s not so much linked to scoring tries because you get a few like last night where you just catch it and dive over.
“It is more about involvements in the game, trying to pop up and give us an extra number in attack. It’s always cool to dive over and score tries but it is not the main marker I use around how I’m going.”
