Richie McCaw has lost a bit of bulk since he retired from Test rugby but he’s still an imposing character with an oven-mitt handshake.
The former All Blacks captain hung up his boots after leading his country to a second successive World Cup trophy in 2015. He is still on the corporate dime, for AIG and Air New Zealand, and in Chicago to sell rugby to the masses.
The city is enthralled with the Chicago Cubs’ World Series exploits but the All Blacks are definitely getting noticed. It’s hard to miss these lads.
SportsJOE caught up with McCaw in Chicago this afternoon and we asked him about the unique pressure of never having lost a Test match to the likes of Ireland and Scotland. He said:
“Deep down, you don’t want to be that first team to lose [to them] but you never really talk about it. You’re definitely aware of the record.
“That never helps but each of the games I ever played, especially against the Irish, was extremely tough. The last time we played, three years ago, was probably the toughest of the lot.
“The physicality of that match was right up there with the toughest game I’ve ever been in, and we were on the receiving end for the first 30 minutes. That’s what Test matches should be, you know, they’ve got to be tough.
“Unfortunately, some team has got to lose but the Irish played particularly well. I was proud of the way we hung in there to get back into the game.”
We asked McCaw about the relatively new faces [in Test terms] in the Irish back row, and the fact that Sean O’Brien and Peter O’Mahony were surplus to requirements. It has been a long morning of media and fan duties but McCaw’s eyes glaze over.
He knows Ireland and he knows New Zealand. There may be the likes of Stander and van der Flier involved but McCaw expects the same old heart and grunt. He comments:
“Aw yeah, there’s still some experienced guys there. I haven’t, to be honest, seen a lot of the Six Nations or anything this year but, like all the Irish teams I’ve played against, they’ll get into it. It’s going to be intriguing with the two Tests this month.”
Same fire, different year.
Richie McCaw hasn’t seen much of us this year but he knows exactly what we’re bringing to Soldier Field pic.twitter.com/P1J14l1YYD
— Patrick McCarry (@patmccarry) November 4, 2016
Liam Squire, Sam Cane and Kieran Read make for a serious unit. Ireland’s answer are three men that helped turn over the Springboks only five months ago in Cape Town.
McCaw may not know their names off hand but he knows exactly what to expect.
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