Collins tribute match: I'm bruised but it was worth it for Jerry

Justin Marshall is tackled by Jerry Collins during an All Blacks training session in 2003. Photo / Getty

I am writing this on the train to Newcastle after a memorable few days in Toulon, where we celebrated the life and rugby career of Jerry Collins.

They were a significant few days and JC was in all of our minds during the game and in all the meetings us Classic All Blacks had.

We shared a few stories and it was great that we could put some footage together which we showed on the big screen beforehand. We made sure we did the haka justice as well.

It is fair to say I was the oldest player at 42, followed by Carlos Spencer, although he's only 39. The fantastic thing was that guys who weren't allowed to play because their clubs refused to release them - such as Piri Weepu and Luke McAlister - also turned up to celebrate Jerry's life, which was taken so abruptly in a car accident.

As for the game, it was great to get out there alongside a few familiar faces and have a run against Toulon, Jerry's old team.

We were up against it - guys like myself and Ali Williams who haven't played for a while up against a professional cup-winning team. They were a bit faster and fitter than us but they entered into the spirit of the occasion in front of a crowd of about 13,000.

Toulon just sneaked it 68-21. We started well but didn't take any kicks at goal and had 12 or 13-men lineouts - funny stuff. And to Toulon's credit they had fun too.

But it was still physical and we spoke about how JC was one of the most physical players the All Blacks have produced so we wanted to make a statement there too. As a result my body is battered and bruised, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

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Bonus points at World Cups - I'm not a fan. It's such a ruthless tournament - and we've seen that already with hosts England failing to make the knockout stages, so for me awarding bonus points for scoring four tries or more and for losing by fewer than seven points doesn't seem right.

They are warranted for long tournaments such as Super Rugby, because it maintains interest and keeps teams in it, but World Cups don't need it, in my opinion. First brought into the World Cup in 2003, I think we should have stuck with the old win/loss and points aggregate system.

It helps guard against anomalies. Did South Africa deserve two points for losing to Japan?

What about weather conditions? We have been very lucky at this World Cup that no game has been affected by bad weather, but the conditions can have a big affect on the number of tries scored in matches.

I'm not sure what other people think about bonus points but that's my opinion.