Ian Foster’s side take on Japan this weekend but flew out of New Zealand minus several star names. The Barrett brothers – Beauden, Jordie and Scott – stayed behind in New Zealand due to a bereavement in the family, while injuries to Whitelock, Will Jordan and Folau Fakatava meant they also didn’t travel.
Whitelock joined the All Blacks in Tokyo after recovering from an ear injury suffered while playing with his children on a trampoline.
After getting off the trampoline after doing ‘some loops’ the lock felt a little dizzy and then spent five days in bed.
“Long story short, there are some little crystals in your ears, in your inner ear, and they all got into a little bit of a weird funk. That’s why I lost a little bit of balance, my vision was pretty blurred, and it took a little time to get right,” he told allblacks.com
“But I had some amazing people help me get it right, people in Christchurch, people in Auckland. Everyone’s given me some space to get it right, and now I’m looking forward to getting back to the team environment and getting into some contact.”
He said former teammate Ben Smith had similar problems a few years ago. Some exercises help to correct the issue.
“From my little bit of knowledge, there are three inner ear canals and each of them affect your balance and sight differently. You have to work out which one it is, and then go through different protocols and exercises to get it right.”
