As far as All Black landmarks go, there is something unique about Beauden Barrett's 100th test this weekend, against Wales in Cardiff.
Beauden Barrett in the All Blacks v Fiji test match in Dunedin in July. Photo: Photosport / Andrew Cornaga
Over the past decade 10 other players have become All Black centurions, with Richie McCaw the first to crack a ton during the 2011 World Cup.
Of course, there was no doubt McCaw was going to start for that test against France at Eden Park. Nor Keven Mealamu for his 100th against the Wallabies a year later or Owen Franks, Samuel Whitelock, Kieran Read, Ma'a Nonu, Dan Carter and Aaron Smith as well when they ran out for their big days. Barrett can't really put himself in that category, the battle between him and Richie Mo'unga for the starting first five spot has been raging for the better part of three seasons now.
There's only one other All Black whose century wasn't simply a case of a guy punching his card as if it's another day at work. Mils Muliaina's 100th test was also his last, coming to a premature end in the first half against Argentina in the 2011 World Cup quarterfinal. The circumstances around that game and who was playing fullback is a unique and well-trodden story in itself, but not in the same category as Barrett finds himself in after almost 10 seasons in the black jersey.
It's sometimes easy to forget that Barrett was once thought of as a guy who was going to play his entire test career off the bench. From 2012 through to the 2015 World Cup he was a super sub - playing a supporting role to Dan Carter and then Aaron Cruden. Barrett provided the last highlight of the World Cup win, running away to score the clinching try in the final, but it turned out to be much more of a torch passing moment than it first appeared.
The following year, the 10 jersey was still Cruden's, until a season ending knee injury in the second test against Wales in Wellington. Had it not been for that, things may well have taken a very different path. Cruden's absence saw him turn on the majestic form that we now associate with Barrett, which saw him lock in the starting spot and eventually win World Rugby player of the year. In 2017, the writing on the wall was so bold Cruden cashed up and left for France, which was a good idea as Barrett promptly won another player of the year award and was being seriously compared to Carter as not just the best first five, but one of the best All Blacks ever.
That still is a very healthy conversation, but it's safe to say that period was the high water mark of Barrett's career so far. In 2018 goal-kicking yips crept in, contributing an awful lot to a shock loss to the Springboks in Wellington, but it was another injury that sent things off in a different direction. Damian McKenzie blowing his knee out during Super Rugby set in motion the events that would lead to Barrett and Mo'unga sharing the field together, which culminated in ultimate failure at the 2019 World Cup.
Ever since, it's been hard to get a gauge on just where Barrett is at. His shift to the Blues hasn't reaped any great highlights yet, mainly because he skipped an entire season for a payday in Japan. Those circumstances haven't endeared him much to his new fanbase (to say nothing of how Hurricanes fans feel), so as we enter his third year in Auckland it still very much feels like he has a point to prove to justify the hype.
This season has again provided Barrett with a twist that was out of his hands, with Mo'unga unavailable due to paternity leave. Would he be playing his 100th test tonight if that wasn't the case? Probably not, as Ian Foster would likely have gone for Mo'unga in the big tests and left Barrett out of the match day squad for at least a couple of them. Even this game was a toss up as to whether he'd start or be in the stands, because it's presumably not the done thing for an All Black to play his 100th test by coming off the bench.
Barrett will undoubtedly go down as an All Black great and there is no doubt that he fully belongs in the very esteemed centurion club. He is an incredible player, from an incredible family. But what is also without doubt is that the way he's got to that 100 mark is unlike anyone else.
