In the end, it was typical of Richie McCaw. He could have waited a week or so in the wake of Jonah Lomu’s tragic and unexpected passing, thus ensuring his retirement announcement would stand alone as the biggest rugby story of the week. Indeed, if he had PR advisors – which, knowing him, would be unlikely – they’d have surely said ‘let’s wait and make your retirement the media event you deserve’.
Many of us would have preferred that delay for if any player deserved a glorious send-off undiminished by this week’s sadness and grieving in the global rugby community, it was McCaw. But no, true to himself as always, McCaw resisted sentiment and called time on his astonishing career without fanfare.
He said he was done and paid tribute to his fallen former team-mate. “I didn’t think we’d get it right [the timing of his announcement] either way really. The last thing I wanted was to be disrespectful or anything to do with that. It was a chance to acknowledge and pass our sympathies on to his family firstly,” McCaw said.
The 34-year-old All Blacks captain, winner of two World Cups, then proceeded to declare an end to the career of the greatest ever All Black – if not the greatest rugby player of all time. He took questions and that was it, he was off – to a different challenge, with a new focus on becoming a commercial pilot.
McCaw’s record as a player and captain are unlikely to be equalled. His numbers are, quite frankly, bordering on ridiculous – and none more so than this particular statistic: of all the All Blacks victories since 1903 – 413 of them to be exact – McCaw has been on the field for 32% of them. That’s 131 wins in the famous black jersey for McCaw. Stop and ponder that for a moment – just one man, his talent, and leadership directly involved in almost a third of the All Blacks’ all-time winning record dating back more than 100 years. It beggars belief.
McCaw’s other numbers are mind-boggling: 148 Test caps, the most by any player in history with 110 of those as captain (another record), and the most Test wins with 131, yet another record. And all of this over a career spanning almost 14 years to day with his debut against Ireland on 17 November 2001.
Modest as ever, McCaw didn’t reel off the international trinkets he’s collected along the way. We’ll do it for him: two World Cups (2011 and 2015), 10 Bledisloe Cups as captain, four Tri Nations titles, three Rugby Championship trophies and three times International Rugby Board player of the year. Indeed, one can’t begrudge McCaw for calling it a day – he said he’d achieved everything he’d wanted in rugby – but it does gnaw slightly that’s he’s still the best flanker in New Zealand. In fact, taking the recently completed World Cup as current form, is there a better all-round openside flanker at international level?
“I’m hanging up my boots having accomplished everything I could have ever dreamed about in the game. Knowing that I was able to end my career by helping the All Blacks win the Rugby World Cup final is a hugely satisfying feeling,” McCaw said. For McCaw, it has forever been about the people of New Zealand. He’s always said that’s what motivated him to perform. He didn’t want to let New Zealanders down. It was that simple. The haul of silverware was just a by-product of that motivation.
Unsurprisingly then, McCaw’s final official words of his retirement announcement were for the people. “I’d also like to thank the fans who have supported me, both here and overseas. Your unwavering and passionate support for myself and the other players has always given us a huge lift, wherever we have played. We play the game to make you proud and I hope I have managed to do that over the years,” McCaw said.
And with that the boy from Kurow, rural North Otago in New Zealand’s South Island closed the book on his magnificent career. He’s off to the clouds, a place he rightly belongs alongside Sir Edmond Hillary as the greatest of New Zealanders who scaled heights nobody thought possible. We can only reflect in awe and gratitude at McCaw’s achievements, one surely never to be diminished by the passage of time.
