Wellington ¨C All Blacks coach Steve Hansen¡¯s hopes of winning a third successive World Cup have been boosted by flyhalf Beauden Barrett¡¯s decision to commit his immediate playing future to New Zealand Rugby until after the 2019 tournament in Japan.
The 25-year-old has been in career-best form this season, helping the Wellington Hurricanes to a maiden Super Rugby title and settling any arguments about who would succeed Dan Carter in the All Blacks¡¯ No. 10 jersey.
¡°It¡¯s great news for the team and great news for Beauden,¡± Hansen said in a statement. ¡°He¡¯s fast becoming one of ¡®the¡¯ players in the world.
¡°He¡¯s been a world-class player coming off the bench for some time, he¡¯s now graduated into starting test matches for us, and this year he¡¯s been nothing short of spectacular.¡±
¡°He¡¯ll continue to grow ¡ª he¡¯s not the finished product yet, by any stretch of the imagination ¡ª but as he does, I think we¡¯ll see something pretty special, so it¡¯s nice to have him signed up and secure.¡±
Barrett, who is the eighth player to sign through until the global showpiece in Japan, will also remain with the Hurricanes until 2019.
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