All Blacks: Big Brother leads the way

George Whitelock has three younger brothers all aiming to follow in his footsteps. Photo / Getty Images

It was only a short trot from the bench to the field that enabled new All Black flanker George Whitelock to make his test debut. The path he travelled to the Cake Tin was anything but straightforward.

The oldest (23) son of dairy farming parents, Whitelock left the family farm at Linton, on the Manawatu River, to live in the original Big River town, Balclutha, to study at Telford, a farm training institute.

From there it was on to a farm at Middlemarch, where he made the Otago NPC team in 2007, playing all but two of their matches that campaign.

From there he was convinced to go north to Canterbury, where he is now one of three Whitelocks plying their trade in red and black.

Adam, a centre, joined George in the Crusaders squad this year and many are picking third brother Sam, a lock and New Zealand under-20 rep, to be close behind.

"My youngest brother, Luke, is a good player, a No 8. He's on a gap year in Europe at the moment," Whitelock said. Luke is already contracted to Canterbury in anticipation of his return next year.

So backyard footy games at the Linton homestead would have been fairly hard-fought affairs? "There was definitely a fair bit of wrestling that went on," said George.

Adam and Sam were in Wellington last night, as were parents Caroline and Braeden. To say the Whitelocks are steeped in rugby tradition would be to say the French love their food.

Father Braeden was a lock during the great era of Manawatu rugby, when names like Gary Knight and Frank Oliver struck fear into opposing packs. Whitelock's maternal grandfather, Nelson Dalzell, a Canterbury lock, played five tests for the All Blacks in 1953-54.

Graham Higginson, another Cantabrian and six-test All Black, is an uncle.

So genes pretty much dictated rugby would be in Whitelock's blood; talent, and an encounter with All Blacks assistant coach Steve Hansen, took him the rest of the way.

"I was always a No 6 or No 8 growing up," Whitelock said. "But I was in South Africa with the under-19s a couple of years ago and Steve Hansen was there watching as well. He approached me and said he would be keen to see me at No 7 and thought I should focus my efforts on becoming an openside. "

At Canterbury he found two guys willing to share their vast knowledge with him.

Richie McCaw was full of praise for Whitelock early this month, earmarking him along with Tanerau Latimer as two who could take the mantle of All Black openside flanker.

"Moving to Canterbury from Otago, I saw it as an opportunity to learn from the best," Whitelock said. "He's been a huge help, great support."

Just as important has been Angus Gardiner, a long-serving Canterbury breakaway.

"He's been a mentor to me. He's really good at reading the game and passing on his knowledge as to where I can improve my game."

Of course, having McCaw in the same team as you is a double-edged sword. Someday, surely, Whitelock is going to have to move out of McCaw's shadow and move to one of the other four Super 14 franchises.

"I'll cross that bridge when I come to it," he said.