Christian Cullen is convinced he is too old to be playing rugby again.
But the All Black great will be back in black on Sunday when he plays for the Classic All Blacks against the French Classics in Queenstown.
Cullen said he was pleased to be at fullback, as he thought it was the ideal spot for a 35-year-old retiree.
"We're getting a bit old now to bash each other up," he said.
" I'll be about trying to look after the body and just going out there trying to have fun. At fullback I'll be able to keep out of trouble."
While the body might be tiring, the mind is still fresh, and Cullen thinks the competitive streak in his team will be as fierce as ever.
"I've lost a bit of speed, but they've all lost it as well, so it evens out."
Cullen officially hung up his boots in 2006, but this is not the first time he has grabbed them back off the shelf.
Earlier this year, the "Paekakariki Express" played in the Classic All Blacks' encounter against the Classic Wallabies in Brisbane.
He was more than happy to come out of that match with only a few bruises as the match was raising money for the Christchurch Earthquake fund.
Cullen, who lives on the Kapiti Coast, said the All Blacks were good in their opening match against Tonga last Friday, but struggled a little in the second half.
"There's still a long way to go in the tournament and, as time goes on, they'll improve."
He said the home side was the tournament favourite, but the likes of England, Ireland, France and Wales could come up with an upset at any time - something past All Black teams knew all too well.
Like many, Cullen is wary of the Australians after seeing the damage they could do over the last two months.
There will be three games on Sunday, starting at 11am with the Wakatipu under-18 team playing The Grange School from Chile.
At 1pm, the Wakatipu Basin plays Maniototo, before the Classics game at 3pm.
