Australian rugby stalwart James Slipper is poised to eclipse Aaron Smith as the second most-capped player in Super Rugby history.
With his 186th cap due to come against the Blues in Auckland this evening, the 35-year-old will notch another in a long list of recent milestones. Last year, Slipper became the most capped Wallaby in history when he brought up his 140th cap in Sydney against the All Blacks.
His longevity, however, is only one aspect of his incredible career. Having debuted for the Queensland Reds in 2010, Slipper is no stranger to success. He followed a 2011 Super Rugby title in Queensland with a Super Rugby AU title here with the Brumbies in 2020.
A World Cup final appearance in 2015 speaks to the calibre of player Slipper embodies. He’s by no means satisfied with his past glories, with the veteran desperate to add to the storied history of the Brumbies.
"It (the milestone) is special, but it's hard to focus too much on it. I'm at that stage of my career, I really want to do well for the Brumbies and get a bit of success here at the club,” he told reporters earlier this week.
And whilst Eden Park hasn’t proved a happy hunting ground for the visitors, Slipper is looking forward to the challenge.
“You always come up against really good teams at Eden Park, whether it's the All Blacks or the Blues. You know you're going to be in a contest from the get-go," he added.
Slipper is the only member of the side to have tasted success at the ground, having emerged victorious with the Reds in 2012. The Brumbies, on the other hand, have fallen short on every occasion since 2013. No Australian side has won at the venue for seven years.
"I think the conditions play into it a bit. It always seems to be a bit greasy, a bit wet, very different to GIO (Stadium) and Canberra. Adapting to those conditions quickly at the start of the game is really important.
"Thinking back to the game (in 2012) specifically, I can't remember what really worked that well. I think we just took our opportunities when they were given to us and that's like in any game.
"Each team gets given opportunities. It's about minimising the ones you give them and that's probably something that's put us in a good stead in the past in any game, so we'll be focusing on that."
The match looms as one of the games of the season, something Slipper is well aware of.
"They're never easy and we're expecting that again. They're defending champs and they've got a good win on the weekend, so they're going to be full of confidence," Slipper believes.
"They've got strike power players all across their team, so it's setting up for a big one.”
For Slipper, milestones seem to form part of his weekly routine. Following this week’s match, the loosehead prop will require 16 further caps to equal Wyatt Crockett’s Super Rugby record (202). That, however, is far from Slipper’s focus at the moment.
“I'm treating the Blues like any other game, and I think I'll probably reflect on all that sort of stuff when I finish.”
