Will Jordan compares 'magnitude' of fullback role for All Blacks and Crusaders

Will Jordan finally made the transition to fullback in the 2024 international season with the All Blacks after much speculation to begin his international career. Now, with the experience of seven starts in the black 15 jersey under his belt, the 27-year-old is bringing his learnings to Super Rugby Pacific.

The 41-time All Black continued his remarkable try-scoring run at fullback by dotting down in all but one of the end-of-year tour Tests, following up on his four tries in limited minutes in The Rugby Championship.

The speedster was eased back into action after sitting out the entire 2024 Super Rugby Pacific season and the July Series Tests against England and Fiji. However, it didn’t take long for Jordan to find his feet in the international arena once more. He outlined his journey over the past 12 months when speaking with Ross Karl on the Aotearoa Rugby Pod.

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“Unfortunately, I had to have surgery in February on my shoulder. I was looking at five to six months out and wondering what the year was going to look like,” the 54-cap Crusader said.

“It was pretty gutting to miss the Crusaders season; there were some obvious issues there which were tough to be on the sidelines for. But, on a personal level, to be able to come back into the All Blacks and be a part of this group – again, it wasn’t a season that went completely smooth sailing or to plan, but it felt like we got to a good spot around the way we’re playing the game. The way we were able to play on the end-of-year tour was positive for us moving forward.

“For myself, being able to finally play a bit of rugby at fullback was cool. Again, not perfect, but I enjoyed the challenge that brought, and I felt each week I was getting better and starting to learn more about it.

“So, I’m pretty pumped about what this year can bring for me but also the teams I’m involved with, starting off with the Crusaders.”

When RugbyPass caught up with Jordan last August ahead of the All Blacks’ second Test in South Africa – his first start at fullback of the year – Jordan pointed to the depth of the squad as the reason why he hadn’t spent much time in his preferred position up until that point.

Competing with the likes of both Beauden and Jordie Barrett Barrett and Damian McKenzie for the role meant Jordan was used exclusively on the wing under Ian Foster.

Now, the man who backed Jordan for the No. 15 jersey ahead of All Black David Havili at the Super Rugby level is leading him in the All Blacks: Scott Robertson.

With ‘Razor’ at the helm, it was seen as only a matter of time before Jordan was unleashed at fullback. While the position was familiar, there were some growing pains and learnings as Jordan lined up against the most highly rated sides in the world: South Africa, Ireland, and France.

“You’re doing a lot of the same stuff, I don’t think there’s any magic formula to it or anything that you’re required to do differently. I think it’s just the magnitude of it,” Jordan explained.

“At Test rugby level, everything’s amplified so little wrong decisions there and execution there shows up more. I guess what you want to do is bring that increased accuracy or importance you have on your skillset back into the Super game. So, trying to keep your standards up.

“It’s been a while since I’ve played Super Rugby so I’m excited to get stuck in. It’s usually pretty free-flowing rugby, particularly to start of the year so that’s something that excites me. Hopefully, we get a bit of ball in hand and we can start the season off well.”