ROSEMARY ABBOTT | Sport
JUSTIN TIME
Former All Blacks rugby legend Justin Marshall, who last pulled on the black jersey in 2005, has been spotted whitebaiting along the Waikato River, holding onto hope for a call-up he never thought he’d need to imagine again.
With regular halfbacks Cam Roigard, Cortez Ratima, and Noah Hotham all sidelined due to injury, the All Blacks are facing an injury crisis of near-apocalyptic proportions. Fans and pundits alike have begun speculating about potential replacements, but few expected the return of a player whose greatest claim to fame now mostly lives in highlight reels and punishing people’s ears from the commentary box.
Marshall, 52, and a veteran of 81 test matches, was seen kneeling at the riverbank, net in hand, muttering about the elusive whitebait and occasionally glancing at his phone “just in case” a call from Razor comes in.
Sources close to the former scrum-half say he’s quietly channeling his inner Stephen Donald, the man who famously stepped into the 2011 Rugby World Cup squad amidst a sea of injuries and helped clinch victory.
Our reporters met Marshall on the side of the river.
“Look, I know it’s a long shot… I last wore the jersey in 2005, but stranger things have happened. Stephen Donald got called up in 2011, right? I’m just hoping my turn comes, twenty years later.” Marshall explained with great enthusiasm.
“I’ve still got the hands,” Marshall insisted. “Passing, catching… maybe not sprinting 80 metres anymore, but I can still manage a box kick if I have to. Age is just a number, right?” Marshall said, while glancing at his reflection on the river.
“Razor knows my game well and I’m in the Crusaders club. Plus my hairstyle is still basically the same. Let’s go. Yes boy!”
More to come.
