As veteran halfback TJ Perenara closes off a challenging chapter in his All Blacks and begins a new one, he has expressed his gratitude for the support he received over the past 18 months.
Last seen in the black jersey, he was limping off Twickenham in November 2022 with a torn Achilles tendon, determined to battle back for Rugby World Cup selection, but unsure what his future held.
After 80 tests, Perenara, then 30, could feel the next generation of halfbacks nipping at his heels. His recovery suffered a setback and a second operation ruled him out of the entire 2023 season, further jeopardising any return to play at the highest level.
Selection for Scott Robertson's first All Blacks squad as coach marks the end of those struggles and Perenara has credited the backing that got him back to this point, particularly from wife Greer, who was there when he received the phone call.
"She's been amazing," reflected Perenara. "She had to ride the wave of emotion that I've ridden over the last 18 months through the injury, through the surgeries... through coming back and playing, the highs and lows of that.
"To be sitting with her last night - she had our daughter and I had our son - and I saw her face and the pride she had, that makes he emotional to see that. My wife is my biggest supporter, she allows me to do what I do... she holds down our house, she holds down our kids.
"To be able to make her proud is pretty special."
Perenara admits there were times when he began to doubt his ability to return.
"I'm going to say I was 99 percent sure I would put myself in a position to be an All Black again," he told Newshub. "I didn't know if I would make it, because it's not my decision, but I thought I would play good enough rugby to do it.
"After the second surgery and three months into the rehab, things just weren't progressing how I wanted them to or the way we thought they would, and I thought I might not be back. Within a week or so after that, things started to progress - I got some really good strength going and my ability to move started to increase.
"For the most part, I believed it, but there was that one little moment when I thought I might not play this game again."
Stars have aligned for Perenara's rebirth. During his absence, Hurricanes teammate Cam Roigard grabbed his chance to claim the franchise spot, but also stake a claim for the All Blacks starting position.
The departure of incumbent Aaron Smith to Japan seemingly opened the door for Roigard to step into the NZ No.9 jersey, but a season-ending knee injury to him has given Perenara the opportunity to show he is not finished yet.
He was a major contributor to a breakout season that saw the Wellington-based franchise finish atop the Super Rugby Pacific table, before they were upset by the Chiefs in the semi-finals. His experience has become a valued commodity in a squad that has lost a core of its leadership to offshore contracts or retirement.
"It's massive," said All Blacks assistant coach Scott Hansen. "When you talk about All Blacks 9s and 10s, they're individuals who have to set the team up at the beginning of the week.
"They have to be selfless about preparing the team to do well on the weekend and by the end of the week, they start thinking about themselves. TJ understands that and I'm going to be his biggest supporter in the All Black environment, but also challenge him to give us his best time in the All Black jersey."
True to form, Perenara isn't satisfied to simply come this far.
"I believe that chapter is now closed, getting here" he said. "It was long and there were hard parts to it, but it's a new chapter - it's about what's next for me in this jersey.
"I want to be a great All Black and I want to have an impact on winning in this environment, and that means there's a lot of hard work still to come. I'm excited by that, I want to work as hard as I can to be the greatest All Black I can.
"Yes, there's some cool stuff I've learnt from that experience, but the next chapter starts."
