A Tribute Thread To Richie McCaw

[Dixpat]

This weekend McCaw plays his 137 international making him third most capped player behind O'Driscoll & Gregan - a phenomenal effort considering the impact position he plays in

It will be his 100th International as captain.

He has been IRB player of the year 3 times and nominated 8 times for that award.

Was awarded Man of the Match in his debut international against Ireland in 2001.

1st All Black to achieve 100 caps

In the post match interview after the All Blacks v South African Test in Dunedin in September 2012, current South African coach Heyneke Meyer said that McCaw was the greatest rugby player the world has ever seen.

McCaw also holds a referees certificate.

NZ supporters regard his skills with awe while opposition fans believe he cheats but secretly wish he played for their team.

In his non-rugby times he plays the bag-pipes and flies a glider

McCaw is an icon of our great game

:clap::clap::clap:

 

[leaguerefaus]

This weekend McCaw plays his 137 international making him third most capped player behind O'Driscoll & Gregan - a phenomenal effort considering the impact position he plays in

It will be his 100th International as captain.

He has been IRB player of the year 3 times and nominated 8 times for that award.

Was awarded Man of the Match in his debut international against Ireland in 2001.

1st All Black to achieve 100 caps

In the post match interview after the All Blacks v South African Test in Dunedin in September 2012, current South African coach Heyneke Meyer said that McCaw was the greatest rugby player the world has ever seen.

McCaw also holds a referees certificate.

NZ supporters regard his skills with awe while opposition fans believe he cheats but secretly wish he played for their team.

In his non-rugby times he plays the bag-pipes and flies a glider

McCaw is an icon of our great game

:clap::clap::clap:

McCaw is the Lance Armstrong of rugby union.

Just kidding, Richie doesn't hide his cheating.

 

[Ian_Cook]

Add to that,

this will be his 302nd first class match.

He is also the last player to be selected for the All Blacks without first playing a full Super Rugby match, i.e. straight from NPC.

 

[crossref]

a hearty :clap: from me.

 

[Lee Lifeson-Peart]

In his non-rugby times he plays the bag-pipes and flies a glider

:clap::clap::clap:

As a complete smart arse probably at the same time.

He is/was a phenomonal player and I have never seen the like before. JP Rives, Michael Jones and Josh Kronfeld were awesome (like a hotdog) but not year after year after year.

The way he conducts himself on the field is (from where I sit) exemplary and I can forgive the odd bit of cheating by virtue of the fact it's in his job description. I particularly like it when he's playing 6 or 8 and referees penalise him calling Black 7.

What a player! Again from where I sit a fine ambassador for this great game. The people booing him at Twickenham earlier this month should give themselves an uppercut.

McCaw is indeed an icon of our great game.

:clap: x 100

 

[Simon Thomas]

I have complete respect for the great man, both on and off the pitch. He is a true elite sportsman who stands comparison to the "greats" across other sports. One of the best and consistent rugby players of all time.

He is up there with Meads and Kirkpatrick in the NZ Hall of Fame.

 

[SimonSmith]

Can't argue with any of that. I wonder if we'll see his like again? The combination of longevity, skill, and being a role model for anyone to look up to is going to be hard for anyone else to live up to

 

[Dixie]

Happy to add my name to a very long list of admirers. I would take issue with this from the OP though:

opposition fans believe he cheats but secretly wish he played for their team.

We all know that the position requires a player who can consistently occupy the very fine line between legality and illegality, while ideally falling just the wrong side of that line and getting away with it. We also all know that this is exactly where RMC has located himself in the last decade, with extraordinary success. We know he cheats - we love that he manages to do it so well - we hate that he gets away with it against us, but respect him immensely for doing so.

 

[Pegleg]

McCaw is a 7 and a damn fine one at that.

A cheat? No more than any other 7. Where he is head and shoulders above the rest is his brain. All 7s test a referee's tolerance in terms of the breakdown. McCaw quickly works out what is allowed and what is not allowed. He adjusts his play accordingly. Welsh 7s (and most others) don't learn and keep offending and thereby annoy refs time and time again. McCaw is a coaches dream.

Well done to a true great of the game. Will he be the first international captain to captain his team to 100 wins? I'd not bet against it.

 

[Rushforth]

McCaw is a 7 and a damn fine one at that.

A cheat? No more than any other 7. ... McCaw is a coaches dream.

http://www.theroar.com.au/2012/10/22/is-dirty-play-mongrel-or-thuggery/

(Ignore the picture). I have no problem with players playing on the edge. Not even cheating 7s (and I've never met a 7 that isn't proud to be called a cheat).

Matches can be ruined by a single thug, for the referee. Perhaps one reason Richie "gets away with it" is that he is one of the very rare breed of players who is a genuine captain, and can potentially "un-ruin" such a game to boot.

 

[Ian_Cook]

McCaw is a 7 and a damn fine one at that.

A cheat? No more than any other 7. Where he is head and shoulders above the rest is his brain. All 7s test a referee's tolerance in terms of the breakdown. McCaw quickly works out what is allowed and what is not allowed. He adjusts his play accordingly. Welsh 7s (and most others) don't learn and keep offending and thereby annoy refs time and time again. McCaw is a coaches dream.

Well done to a true great of the game. Will he be the first international captain to captain his team to 100 wins? I'd not bet against it.

He has 87 wins as captain now, and the word is that he will probably retire after the 2015 RWC, esxpcially if NZ wins it, so perhaps he won't get to that mark.

 

[The Fat]

As much as it pains an Aussie to say it, RMC would have to be the best No.7 the game has seen. There may be guys who have had better single games against him and won the points on the day, but are yet to prove they can match the consistency of RMC. I would think that by the time he retires, and I would like to get some good odds on that being at the end of the 2015 RWC, he will have captained the ABs approximately 110 times. That record will never be knocked off.

 

[Pegleg]

He has 87 wins as captain now, and the word is that he will probably retire after the 2015 RWC, especially if NZ wins it, so perhaps he won't get to that mark.

That's a shame, but fair enough. He'll know when it's time to go.

 

[Browner]

Happy to add my name to a very long list of admirers. I would take issue with this from the OP though:

opposition fans believe he cheats but secretly wish he played for their team.

We all know that the position requires a player who can consistently occupy the very fine line between legality and illegality, while ideally falling just the wrong side of that line and getting away with it. We also all know that this is exactly where RMC has located himself in the last decade, with extraordinary success. We know he cheats - we love that he manages to do it so well - we hate that he gets away with it against us, but respect him immensely for doing so.

For me, he's the best ever.

my reasons include most of the reasons stated by others but the main one is the longevity/survival in (+ modern brutality of ) playing position in a country where they could have fielded several international standard 7's over the last decade or so...

We all know captains are unofficially ' licensed' to get away with marginal offending more than other players during a match, referees need them in their To7 , McCaw has been the best at exploiting his advantage in this regard, I often thought he probably knew the law better than the guys with the whistle and even when he didn't - he'd create enough doubt in their mind to avoid sanctions.

I doubt we'll see his like again, and IF we do, I hope it's in a white shirt.

:clap:

 

[winchesterref]

Cracking player. I love watching him, very clever and always just on the brink of what he can get away with - the world's best at playing to the referee. Phenomenal achievements in rugby, great role model, and it would be good if there were more like him. :clap:

 

[Dickie E]

But is he as good as Scott Sterling?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8F9jXYOH2c0

 

[irishref]

100 test matches at captain. In the most competitive team in the world. At the one of the most pivotal and competitive positions in the team.

'Nuff said.

 

[Browner]

Thought this was the best place to drop this

http://www.rugbyonslaught.com/2015/06/finally-its-herethe-richie-mccaw.html