That’ll do Richie; that’ll do.
Richie McCaw played his 148th and what could well be his final Test match for New Zealand at Twickenham on Saturday.
Being an All Black and a teak-tough legend, that final game happens to be the World Cup final.
And if it is the end for the player many argue is the greatest to ever play the game then it was a fitting one – as he claimed his second World Cup winners’ medal, following the 34-17 victory over Australia.
Pre-game, the New Zealand Herald crunched some numbers in an effort to explain just how stellar the Oamaru man’s career has been.
Like a 800-watt beacon, one statistic grabbed our attention, which we’ve updated to reflect Saturday’s win.
Of the All Blacks’ 413 Test wins, since 1903, McCaw has been on the pitch for 131 of them. That is 32% of ALL of New Zealand’s Test wins.
Given the All Blacks history of near-invincibility, appearing in one-third of all the team’s Test wins, over a century of rugby, is plain incredible.
Here are some other stats that had us agog.
- 36 previous encounters with Australia. He has beaten the Wallabies 28 times and drew with them twice.
- McCaw has won a Test match at EVERY major rugby stadium on the planet.
- 14 Tests against Ireland and 14 wins.
- 21 major trophies with Canterbury, Crusaders and New Zealand. He also won four Grand Slams on European tours and helped New Zealand to a 3-0 Series win over the Lions.
- Voted World Rugby Player of the Year 3 times – 2006, 2009, 2010.
- 89% winning percentage in Tests. In the 27 Test matches has has missed, New Zealand had a 68% win percentage.
