George North: Wales star prepares for 100-cap magical milestone

George North admits it is has been worth coming through the "dark days" to create history when he achieves his 100th Wales cap against England.

Aged 28 years and 320 days, he will eclipse Australia captain Michael Hooper by four weeks as the youngest player to clock up 100 appearances for their country.

"To be able to sit here now and have 100 caps, it's been amazing.," said North.

"It's an honour just to have one cap."

North becomes the sixth player to hit 100 for Wales after current captain Alun Wyn Jones, Gethin Jenkins, Stephen Jones, Gareth Thomas and Martyn Williams.

"It is all worth it," said North.

"Even in those dark days when it's tough, it is worth giving everything. I'm getting old now! I think it gives me the right to look back a little bit. Along the way, rugby has given me so much.

"To be able to sit here now and have 100 caps, it's been amazing. It's an honour just to have one cap, if you told me I'd hang around long enough to get another 99 I'd have laughed. It you give so much so. I'm pretty chuffed."

North made his Test debut as an 18-year-old wing in 2010, scoring two tries against South Africa in November 2010.

"I will cherish that day," said North.

"My biggest goal in life was to play for Wales, it's every boy's dream.

"The path I took was always going to be tough and different to everyone else along the M4 corridor, through my parents and the great coaches I had around me it was just a case of "keep going," and hopefully the opportunity would come my way.

"It was a boyhood dream, just the magnitude of it, 80,000 people and the guys I was playing with.

"Players I'd watched when I was growing up, players I thought were legends, and I was like "oh my god they're shouting my name, I don't know what's happening!"

North has achieved so much in more than 10 years at international level with two Grand Slams, two World Cup semi-finals and three British and Irish Lions test appearances on two tours, including a 2013 series win in Australia.

The 28-year-old has scored 42 Wales tries with only Shane Williams above him in the national charts with 58.

There have also been challenges with much publicised concussion issues with North battling back to prove his worth with a recent switch to centre from wing.

"There's always injury and external pressures that are out of your control," said North.

"The media pressure, the expectation, you never get a warning of how much that has an effect on you.

"Wales is such a goldfish bowl for rugby and the pressure that comes with that.

"And it's just the hours that you put in, of rehab, in the ice baths, the things no-one else sees that's taken as a given at this level.

"Everything you have to give just for the 1% that everybody gets to see, you have to give so much before that. It's tough but it's worth it, every single day."

North has also been given a fresh perspective on life following the birth of his baby son Jac last year with his wife and Olympic cycling medallist Becky.

"Life changed very quickly," said North.

"Jac is a lockdown baby, he came during the first lockdown. Luckily I was at home for the first nine weeks.

"That's time we wouldn't normally get as sports people with newborn babies.

"We go from being what you have to be, which is a very selfish, professional person who has to take care of themselves to deliver, to then wonder if we should get more nappies, have we got enough wipes?

"I've realised he's the most important thing in my life now. I can't really describe it, he's wicked."

George North was talking to former Wales captain Sam Warburton. See the full interview on BBC One from 16:00 GMT on Saturday, 27 February.