Gone, but never forgotten – five months on from All Black great Jerry Collins’ tragic death, members of the All Blacks team have visited their former teammate’s grave to make sure he was a part of their World Cup victory too.
Jerome Kaino, Dan Carter, Ma’a Nonu and Liam Messam were seen with the trophy at Jerry’s grave site in pictures posted to social media last night, marking a belated celebration of Jerry’s birthday, which was on November 4.
@maanonu posted this image to his personal Instagram, captioned: “Happy belated bday my uso. We love u JC. Never forgotten our fallen uso! #JC”
The players shared their heartfelt messages on Instagram with their pictures, with many referring to the Kiwi sporting icon as ‘uso’, which means ‘brother’ in Samoan.
Jerry Collins and his partner Alana Madill were tragically killed in a car accident in France on June 5 this year, leaving behind their infant daughter Ayla who miraculously survived. During the course of his career in New Zealand rugby, Jerry played 48 tests for the All Blacks (including three as captain) and was also a star of the Wellington Hurricanes team. Before his death, he had relocated his family to France to play for the Narbonne club.
