George Bridge says his decision to leave New Zealand rugby for France before the World Cup was "really tough", but he's looking forward to a new challenge and one last mission with Canterbury.
After six seasons with the Crusaders and 19 All Blacks tests, Bridge's move to Top 14 sideMontpellier was confirmed last week, with the winger signing a three-season contract with the French champions until 2025.
The 27-year-old was a key member of the All Blacks between 2018-21, scoring 12 tries, but had since fallen out of favour with selectors.
He says his decision to move overseas was made up for him, with his goal of going to next year's World Cup in France increasingly less likely.
"To be honest, the goal was to be going to the World Cup next year," he said. "Obviously things didn't pan out that way. That's just the nature of professional sport. The decision to head overseas was really tough because of that goal that I wanted to get to, but at the end of the day, you've got to make the best of what you can.
"It was a decision made for me rather than sticking around and potentially putting myself in a worse position next year. It was a really tough decision at the time but soon after I signed and got my head around, it was something to look forward to."
George Bridge in action for Canterbury. Photo / Photosport
Since missing out on the All Blacks squad this year, Bridge says he's been enjoying a rare full season with Canterbury – where the Gisborne product burst onto the scene in 2016 – and hopes to "go out with a bang" with an NPC title in this Saturday's grand final against Wellington.
"I knew the position I was in [with All Blacks]. You can't really dwell on not making teams. The only thing you can do is concentrate on what's next and that was the NPC season with Canterbury. I sat down with Marty [Bourke] at the start of this season and he said that he wanted me to have a lot of fun and really enjoy my season with Canterbury and that's what I've been doing.
"Coming into this NPC season, I knew it was going to be my last season in the red and black. I definitely knew that I wanted to go out with a bang. We put ourselves in a position where we can ... so we're looking to enjoy this week and make the most of it."
Asked about a potential return to New Zealand in the future, Bridge left the door open.
"I'm still only 27 so hopefully I've still got a bit in the legs. I'll get through this weekend and hopefully make the most of this, and then it's the next chapter overseas. Who knows what will happen after that."
In the meantime, he'll need to start working on his French.
"I've tried but it's pretty average," he said about his command of the language. "Might be reasonably tough when I first get over there, but nah I'm not really nervous at all. Once I get through this weekend I think the excitement will start to grow and it's something new."
