You’re in a battle. Having fought for a full 60 minutes now, your legs are giving out from carrying your weight through hell, your lungs are going over time and your arms are dead from dragging, throwing, lifting and pushing men all over the field.
You grab your rag, wipe the blood from the massive cut over your head, as a medic wraps a strap over it.
So you and the troops rally around the captain. Listening, hanging on his every word, as you wait for the opposition to kick for three.
He says, “We’ve got this boys, stay calm. Trust our systems and it will work”.
He says it in such a calm state that the troops start to calm down. I release a sigh of relief, I look around the team, and I catch the gaze of my fellow warriors, and we know with confidence – we’re going to win, no matter what.
Somebody told me inspiration could be explained by the picture of one person, who in a time of a great challenge, could say one sentence, and bring out the best of everyone around.
And if that is true, Richie McCaw would be the embodiment of inspiration.
An All Black with more achievements in his career than most could only dream of, Richie is a three-time IRB player of the year and the first Kiwi to reach 100 caps for the All Blacks. A team so prestigious its special even to wear the jersey once.
And he’s the most capped All Black ever with 136 and still playing, now closing in on 100 caps as an All Black captain, and many more on a CV full of a achievements that’ll make millionaires jealous.
He’s the ultimate leader. Who to this day is still giving out speeches and one-liners to his troops nearing the end of a Test to be mentally tough. And in those moments, he encapsulates his importance. His men respond the only way they can when their bodies are all but gone. With heart and guts.
In those pressure pit situations during a Test match, when there is still a chance of revival, there is no one more important or valuable to the team than the experienced grizzly old warrior. The team looks to him in these situations because he is so ice cool, task focused and confident in the systems and he inspires them to be the same.
He puts his body on the line, so his troops can learn to do the same. And they do.
At McCaw’s age and at his rugby position, most players would be retired from this level of professional rugby. So we can all marvel at the fact that he’s still punching in 80 minutes of full physical contact as a number seven at 33. Knowing that his position requires a technical mind and an acute sense of how the game is played.
Add onto that the pressure of being the captain, I have mentioned he is an outstanding leader, not because he has to be, but because he wants to be. McCaw knows that’s what he’s good at. He’s always improving, for the betterment of the team. And so he accepts the challenge and knows what’s required on and off the field as the captain.
His mental fortitude is otherworldly, as if he’s a mutant with the ability to put mind over body daily, even during breakfast.
This is shown by McCaw’s evolution and how he adapted his game from 13 years ago after his man-of-the-match debut against Ireland in Dublin. He’s not as fast as he once was but he’s a physical presence on defence, topping the tackle count during this year’s Rugby Championship with 77.
As much as I think how great the man is, I understand McCaw still makes mistakes. And for all the great things he does, we still hold it against him that he missed a tackle, or he’s being penalised a lot, leading to the conclusion that he’s not the player he once was, and Father Time is catching up with him.
Ha! I couldn’t keep a straight face after that paragraph.
The importance of McCaw can be shown by the amount of times he’s been personally attacked on and off the field. On the field when players cheekily elbow or knee him, he responds by immediately getting up as if nothing happened, not giving away any mental edge in confidence. Off the field when critics rave about one missed tackle, he responds with a whopper of a performance the next game.
I like to think of myself as unbiased when it comes to teams in rugby, I love all teams, especially the SANZAR teams. But when it comes to players, specifically the All Black captain, I’m happily biased. I am proud of that, because I’m proud of him and all his achievements and of what he’s brought to this beautiful game. Who wouldn’t? Perhaps an anonymous English rugby critic?
We are wrong to think that much of the success of the All Blacks in this era comes down to one man, even if he’s captain. The All Blacks are mentally the toughest rugby team in the world, and even in situations when all is seemed to be lost, Richie is still calmly rallying the troops to be mentally tougher.
His resolve never falters, and that inspires this team to greater heights. So if that doesn’t show his importance to the legacy of the All Blacks, then go read another article.
Phantom
Roar Rookie
I think the warm ups would stuff me.
ric
Guest
Just one game of test match rugby would seriously hurt most of us if we had the opportunity to participate. To play the number of games he has and still keep performing at such a high level is amazing.
CA3ZAR
Roar Pro
I totally agree, and thanks for sharing that, I totally forgot to add that on my article, dammit! Thanks buddy :-)
CA3ZAR
Roar Pro
Thank you Kia Kaha for reading my article, I'm a huge fan reading your articles, and your a huge inspiration for me too lol Bt I totally agreed with everything you just said! Haha I love those nicknames! Fitzy was an amazing captain he did have it all, and McCaws leadship influences obviously come from that line of All Black elite. I do look forward to an article you would write about McCaw after just reading this comment, I'm like "damn, this could be your article and its still very impressively written!" Cheers bro
CA3ZAR
Roar Pro
The differences between two are huge to me by reading this, thanks for sharing this, I never knew that because I was too young to watch that game, but I do recall hearing stories of how that game was one of the biggest come backs in history, so props to the French because it was just by luck they won.
CA3ZAR
Roar Pro
Wow! Thanks for sharing that! I'm actually gonna look for that book to read !
CA3ZAR
Roar Pro
Totally agreed, it's been an honour to watch him!
CA3ZAR
Roar Pro
Wow I didn't know about that story, thanks for sharing, I think this is an awesome story!
CA3ZAR
Roar Pro
Fully agreed, and then well read articles of "Sir Richie flying over all of the Pacific", it'll still interest me lol
CA3ZAR
Roar Pro
Thank you and I totally agree with you there! I do see though Kieran Read taking the reigns over with some continuity but watching the all blacks with no Richie considering how long I've watched him in the Blackp jersey might need some time for me to get use to it lol
King Edward the Queen
Guest
Tissot Time, can I just say what an interesting quote, however I am amiss to the terms of references to the King’s ethics and values being similar to that of someone like McGaw....well I have never heard of many Kings that have lead from the front except maybe Elvis.......most Kings are usually hiding behind the aprons of the Queen or the bodyguards, dishing out orders from the comforts of their Palace....though I do understand what you mean.....
JMB
Guest
His overall record is phenomenal. One clear highlight is winning a rugby world cup with a essentially a broken foot. His resolve is peerless. Would love to see him send out with another RWC. Could kot be a more fitting farewell but will be hard.
JMB
Guest
Lame Jandal...classic. '99 was hard to stomach. Randell was promoted too quickly did not have respect of senior players. That and some shocking repositionings by Hart and a mental weakness.
Wardad
Guest
We all know of your obsessive need to try and put down the ABS and Richie in particular ,bit sad really like those pommy journalists [Jones the Welshman springs to mind ,he will do for a pom ] Your just seething with envy as always.
tinman
Guest
I feel your pain JJ. If I wasn't an AB fan id get sick & tired of McCaw's awesomness. BUT THANK FARK I AM!! All hail Sir Richie!!
Jibba Jabba
Guest
Yawn - tired now......
Michael from NZ
Guest
I have a feeling tinman that King Richard will fly off into sunset and embark on his second love flying. That's another hallmark of greatness I can't see a man of his calibre coaching and ever worst commentating. What a human being he is.
Kia Kaha
Roar Guru
Good read Julius. He's close to 100 wins as captain. A phenomenal player who has turned himself into a phenomenal leader. Write a similar article about any other player and you'd be criticised for going over the top. Most people outside NZ may grit their teeth at the mention of his name but are prepared to give credit where credit is due. His record and the team's achievements make it impossible to argue against. There is nothing comparable. That's why a small devoted minority espouse the McCheat theory, as they can't pick holes in his record. (How refreshing it was to listen to the Aussie commentary in that last cracker of a game without Phil Kearns bleating on about McCaw every five seconds)The name suggests these people have little in the way of imagination. McFlawed or McWhore at least fit in with his name. When I grew up, Sean Fitzpatrick was the outstanding leader. I wasn't old enough to know first hand about Kirkpatrick or Lochore even though I had photos on the wall with Kirkpatrick's team playing against Oxford University with the old man standing alongside legends of the game. Fitzpatrick, in my mind (as a Cantabrian it was hard to say that when he was wearing an Auckland shirt but when he was in black he was an idol), had it all. He knew how to give but also knew how to take. (An attribute Richie McCaw adopted. The only time I saw him throw a punch was when the pitch invader in SA tried to clock the ref with his beer gut.) He knew how to lead. McCaw started off shakily as a leader. He realised you can't just lead by example. You have to rally the troops with words and you have to inspire. He's lost pace but he hasn't lost his drive and determination and the belief he gives the side, as you mention in the article, is worth points on the field.
tinman
Guest
Jealous much! McCaw deserves all the accolades out there & then some. When his time is done on the pitch I hope he takes up coaching.
Birdy
Guest
What's this weird obsession Kiwis have that 'English rugby critics' or 'poms' in general spend their lives doing down the ABs in general and Richie McCaw in particular? I doubt any 'rugby critic' in England would disagree with a word of the article, but the writer felt the need to randomly stick in this obsessional reference towards the end. A familiar pattern will doubtless be repeated on the current EOYT tour. The ABs will arrive. A sporting media market that is about 20 times the size of the NZ sporting media market will write dozens of articles about the ABs (not because rugby is a majority sport in England, but because the sporting media market is that big). The vast majority of articles will harp on about how good the ABs are and the status of McCaw (and usually Carter) as the best in their positions ever. Then an incident will occur on tour that leads to an article, probably by the Welshman Stephen Jones (or even a paragraph of one article) that suggests the ABs might be human rather than demi-Gods. The Kiwi media seize on this as the 'English media trashing the ABs' and there's wall to wall rabid comment in NZ that begins to look from outside like a therapy session at a hospital for the mentally disturbed. All of which would be easier to take if 95% of comment on English rugby in the Kiwi media were not relentlessly negative to the point of being unhinged. It tends to just make poms laugh, but it does get a bit tedious after a while. The danger is that it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. As the obsessions and general gracelessness becomes obvious so the coverage and attitude towards the ABs will become more negative.