All Blacks star Caleb Clarke has credited Newshub's Patrick Gower for an inspirational teamtalk that resulted in one of the best performances of his young international rugby career.
In 2020, Gower addressed the All Blacks squad before the second Bledisloe Cup test at Auckland.
Anticipation levels for the match had peaked across the nation, with the match the first scheduled for the Eden Park fortress, after COVID-19 restrictions had been lifted.
A full house was expected and nerves were extra high, after a draw the previous week in Dave Rennie's first test in charge of Australia at Wellington, putting the Bledisloe Cup in peril.
Sitting alongside "my man" Gower on The Project, Clarke, 24, relived the tale of his first encounter with the beloved broadcaster and the message he sent.
"Paddy came in and spoke to us in the clubrooms, and it was quite inspirational," Clarke recalled.
"It stuck with me, because Paddy said that we - as an All Blacks team - had the ability to finally give something back, after a year when so many people in lockdown had stuff taken away from them."
Later that day, on the field, Clarke - in just his second test - put on a virtuoso display, terrorising the Wallabies defence with his powerhouse ballrunning to set up two tries and spark a comprehensive 27-7 win in front of more than 46,000 fans, announcing himself as a future star of the game.
"Paddy, it's just so cool getting to see you again, bro," Clarke added.
Blushing with embarrassment, Gower jokingly asked Clarke to "put a good word in" with All Blacks coach Ian Foster to find him a place on the plane to France for the upcoming World Cup.
In the midst of another impressive Super Rugby Pacific season for the Blues, Clarke - who now has 12 tests under his belt - is a near certainty to be on board that plane.
Join Newshub at 9:30pm Saturday for live updates of the Blues v Melbourne Rebels Super Rugby Pacific clash
