TOKYO, 17 Sep - Sam Whitelock is determined not to get ahead of himself and start believing that he is about to establish the most elite group in rugby along with his New Zealand teammates Kieran Read and Sonny Bill Williams - the three-time world champions’ club.

"It would be awesome to achieve that but I think if you start thinking that way, you potentially get into a lot of trouble," said Whitelock, pictured above left with prop Joe Moody, as he looked forward to the trio launching their bid for a third successive title against South Africa in Yokohama on Saturday.

"I’d love to get there but there are so many things along the way that we have to nail first."

Yet the All Blacks’ most capped lock and his old friend Williams did take an emotional moment to reflect on their quest as they attended the welcome ceremony for the champions at the ancient Zojoji Temple in Tokyo.

"I get along with Sonny and Kieran really well and at the welcoming for us, we have to line up alphabetically so Sonny and I were standing next to each other and shared a couple of moments where we just said how awesome was it to do this in New Zealand, England and now.

"Each opening ceremony has been completely different, capturing the different cultures of the last three World Cups so it was quite cool to have those 20 seconds where we reflected on what we’d done. But it was just that - reflection."

Whitelock and Williams played in all 14 matches the All Blacks won on their march to the twin titles, while Read played in 11. But no one notched up more than the 13 starts the tireless Whitelock enjoyed and he remains a pillar of the New Zealand challenge and a potential captain at the age of 30.

Even though the All Blacks have a devoted following in Japan, Whitelock can hardly credit how different the 2019 edition feels.

"It was all new for me in 2011, I didn’t know what I was coming in for, especially with the tournament being at home in New Zealand.

"For me, it was 'ooh, hang on, this is different from previous test matches I’ve played in'. I remember before the first game, my roommate Ben Franks and I just didn’t go out of the hotel because of the buzz of the tournament. You just couldn’t go anywhere. It sank in that World Cups were different."

Some things never change, though. The pressure on the champions remains suffocating and Whitelock has never forgotten how his team’s two triumphs came on the back of a host of disappointing exits.

"In 2007, I was living in Australia," he recalled. "I remember Australia were knocked out first and the All Blacks were knocked out after (on the same day) and the front line of the paper in Australia was 'All Blacks Gone'."

Since then, it has only been 'All Blacks Won' and, as he gets set for his 113th cap against the Springboks, Whitelock smiled:

"It's one of those test matches that every kid growing up wants to play. Some of my greatest memories when I was a little fellow was waking up and watching those games against South Africa in the middle of the night. There’ll be a knot in the stomach."

RNS ic/rl/ajr