1
Richie McCaw urges New Zealand to be patient
ADVERTISEMENT
As New Zealand prepares to go into a four-week lockdown in a bid to contain the Covid-19 virus, former All Blacks skipper Richie McCaw has urged the nation to try to remain connected as individuals and families around the nation face up to a very different challenge.
Former loose forward McCaw, who played 148 tests and won two World Cups (the first, in 2011, while playing on a broken foot) is regarded as the best captain and one of the best and toughest players to have worn the black jersey.
He and his family are not without challenges themselves. His wife Gemma is a Black Sticks hockey player who is continuing to train for the Olympics in Tokyo without knowing when exactly they will be held. Overnight officials postponed the Games to no later than July next year.
Pay cuts are ‘inevitable’ for New Zealand’s top All Blacks:
McCaw is also an owner and director of a Christchurch-based helicopter business which will be affected by the lockdown and tourist drought as the world comes to terms with a rapidly spreading pandemic.
“You think of businesses, and I’m involved in a business which has challenges ahead, it’s about trying to work out what you can control,” McCaw told Sky TV’s Breakdown show last night.
“People can’t go to work and businesses have lost revenue… some of that is out of your control, but you can control your attitude around looking after your people and your family.
ADVERTISEMENT
“Focusing on the things that are important and what you can have an influence over – whether it was playing rugby or in the context of life – that gives you something to focus on. It may be still tough to figure out how you’re going to navigate through it…
“But the other thing is you don’t want to do it on your own. Everyone – your neighbours, people all around the world – is in the same boat so connecting with them can be helpful. I know sometimes leadership can be lonely but it doesn’t have to be if you share it with people that are going through the same thing.”
The father of Charlotte, who turned one in December, added that sport in New Zealand and rugby in particular could be given a boost in popularity once the crisis is over, even if the bottom lines are badly affected.
“Every sport is in the same situation – you’re wondering what it’s going to look like once things turn around and what sort of damage is being done through obviously missing competitions. In some ways, rather than looking at what the problems might be now, [look at] what opportunities might open up and there might be some good things come out of it if you can deal with the financial hit.
ADVERTISEMENT
“You hear sometimes that ‘oh, people get sick of seeing rugby or sport in general’, but it’s amazing when you haven’t got anything to watch how important it is to everyone’s lives from an entertainment point of view. I think from a rugby point of view in New Zealand, it’s shown how important it is to New Zealand.
“Once that opportunity to get back out there in whatever form it looks like, I think people will get excited to be back playing or back watching and in the long run that might be a positive for our game, remembering how important it is.”
McCaw added of Gemma’s predicament as she waits for more information on the Olympics: “It’s pretty tough on the girls, they’re right in the middle of their training and they’re training pretty damn hard.
“The way it’s looking now, it’s potentially not going to happen and there are a lot of things in the air – whether it’s in 12 months’ time and you’re still going to be involved… it’s a tough one to keep training like the Olympics could still be there when in the back of your mind knowing it may not be, it may be in 18 months.
“It does put it in perspective though – being fit and healthy and around your family is the most important thing and you can put aside those disappointments when you have that because many people don’t.”
The former Crusader said this year’s Super Rugby season, suspended and almost definitely cancelled due to the coronavirus, was shaping up as an extremely close one.
“I’ve really enjoyed the games I’ve watched this year,” he said. “The games I’ve seen have been even; I’ve seen the Blues get up in some games and they’ve shown that a bit of confidence can make a big difference. I was really excited to see what was going to happen – you couldn’t really pick who was going to be there at the end which bodes for a good competition and it’s a shame we’ve missed out on that.”
This article first appeared on nzherald.co.nz and is republished with permission.
Comments on RugbyPass
Really hope Kuruvoli and his partner rock the Canes.
1 Go to commentsI wonder what impact Samson has had on their attack, as the team seems less prone to trundle it up the middle, take the tackle and then trundle it up again. I lost faith in the coach last year as the Rebelss looked like a 2nd/3rd rate South African team. I also disliked Gordon standing back, often ignored as the forward battle went on and on. Maybe its our Aussie way of not getting off our A***’s until the enemy is at the gate.
83 Go to commentsThanks for the write up. Great to see the Rebs winning, I am a little interested in how they will go against the remaining kiwi teams, I think they’ve only played Hurricanes and Highlanders but how great to see these players performing!! I also see Parling has a job beyond June 30! A good move by RA? Also how do you fix the Rebels previously scratchy defence?
83 Go to commentsbe smart - go black
13 Go to commentsNext week the Crusaders hopefully have Scott Barrett back. Will be great to have the captain back. Hopefully he will be the All Black captain as well.
12 Go to commentsExciting place to be for the young fella. I expected he was French Polynesian when I saw him included in the France 6N squad (after seeing him in NZs), and therefor be strong grounds we might loose him to rugby down here. Good, in that he is good enough to warrant such a profile, and from a journalism’s fan interaction aspect, to finally get a back ground story on the fella. Hope he has settled into NZ OK and that at least one rugby country will fit with him to help his development, which, if so, he should surely continue for a few years, and then that he can experience France to it’s fullest with a bit more maturity and less reliance on family than you would have at his current age. A good 3 or 4 years before he would be ready for International duty if he wanted to wait. Of course he already sounds good enough to accept a call up, and to cap himself, in the more immediate future (he’d have to be very very good in the case of the ABs), and he’ll get a great taste of that being with the Canes who have a bunch who are just a few years further into their career and looking likely Internationals themselves.
13 Go to commentsI remember towards the end of the original broadcasting deal for Super rugby with Newscorp that there was talk about the competition expanding to improve negotiations for more money - more content, more cash. Professional rugby was still in its infancy then and I held an opposing view that if Super rugby was a truly valuable competition then it should attract more broadcasters to bid for the rights, thereby increasing the value without needing to add more teams and games. Unfortunately since the game turned professional, the tension between club, talent and country has only grown further. I would argue we’re already at a point in time where the present is the future. The only international competitions that matter are 6N, RC and RWC. The inter-hemisphere tours are only developmental for those competitions. The games that increasingly matter more to fans, sponsors and broadcasters are between the clubs. Particularly for European fans, there are multiple competitions to follow your teams fortunes every week. SA is not Europe but competes in a single continental competition, so the travel component will always be an impediment. It was worse in the bloated days of Super rugby when teams traversed between four continents - Africa, America, Asia and Australia. The percentage of players who represent their country is less than 5% of the professional player base, so the sense of sacrifice isn’t as strong a motivation for the rest who are more focused on playing professional rugby and earning as much from their body as they can. Rugby like cricket created the conundrum it’s constantly fighting a losing battle with.
4 Go to commentsOh wow… “But as La Rochelle proved in winning in Cape Town this season, a cross-continental away assignment need not spell the end of days.” La Rochelle actually proved quite the opposite. After traveling to Cape town and back they (back-to-back and current champs) got mercilessly thumped the next week. If travel is not the reason, why else would a full-strength powerhouse like La Rochelle get dumped on their @r$e$ one week later?
26 Go to commentsYou know he can land a winning conversion after the full time siren is up. (Even if it takes two attempts.)
5 Go to commentsA very insightful article from Jake. I would love to know how South African’s feel about their move to Europe. Do you prefer playing in Europe or want to go back to Super Rugby?
4 Go to commentspure fire
1 Go to commentsA very well thought out summary of all the relevant complications…agree with your ”refer the Cricket Test versus 20/20 comparison”. More also definitely doesn't necessarily mean better!
4 Go to commentsMust be something when you are only 19 y.o and both NZ and France want you. Btw he wasn’t the only new caledonian in french U20 as Robin Couly also lived in Noumea until 17. Hope he’s successful wherever he chooses to play.
13 Go to comments“Several key players in the Stade Rochelais squad are in their thirties” South Africans are going to hate the implications of that comment!
5 Go to commentsI know Leinster did a job on La Roche but shortly after HT Leinster were 30-13 ahead of them and at a similar time Toulouse were trailing Exeter. At 60 mins Leinster were 27 ahead but after 67 mins Toulouse were only 19 ahead before Exeter collapsed. That’s heavier scoring by Leinster against the Champions. I think people are looking at Toulouses total a little too much. I also think Northhampton are in with a real chance, albeit I’d put Leinster as favourites. If Leinster make the final I expect them to win by more than ten and with control.
5 Go to commentsHey Nick, your match analysis is decent but the top and tail not so much, a bit more random. For a start there’s a seismic difference in regenerating any club side over a test team. EJ pretty much had to urinate with the appendage he’d been given at test level whereas club success is impacted hugely by the budget. Look no further than Boudjellal’s Toulon project for a perfect example. The set ups at La Rochelle and Leinster are like chalk and cheese and you are correct that Leinster are ahead. Leinster are not just slightly ahead though, they are light years ahead on their plans, with the next gen champions cup team already blooded, seasoned and developing at speed from their time manning the fort in the URC while the cream play CC and tests. They have engineered a strong talent conveyor belt into their system, supported by private money funnelled into a couple of Leinster private schools. The really smart move from Leinster and the IRFU however is maximising the Irish Revenue tax breaks (tax relief on the best 10 years earnings refunded at retirement) to help keep all of their stars in Ireland and happy, while simultaneously funding marquee players consistently. And of course Barrett is the latest example. But in no way is he a “replacement for Henshaw”, he’s only there for one season!!! As for Rob Baxter, the best advice you can give him is to start lobbying Parliament and HMRC for a similar state subsidy, but don’t hold your breath… One thing Cullen has been very smart with is his coaching team. Very quickly he realised his need to supplement his skills, there was talk of him exiting after his first couple of years but he was extremely shrewd bringing in Lancaster and now Nienaber. That has worked superbly and added a layer that really has made a tangible difference. Apart from that you were bang on the money… 😉😂
5 Go to commentsNot sure exactly what went wrong for him at Glasgow but it’s pretty clear he ain’t Franco’s cup of tea. Suspect he would have been better served heading out of Scotland around the same time as Finn, Hoggy and Jonny!
1 Go to commentsBulls disrespected the Northampton supporters and the competition. Decide quickly, fully in or out.
26 Go to commentsI wonder if Parling was ever on England’s radar as a coach? Obviously Borthwick is a great lineout coach, but I do worry he might be taking on too much as both head coach and forwards coach.
1 Go to commentsJason Jenkins has one cap. When Etzebeth was his age he had over 80 caps. Experience matters. He will never amount to what Etzebeth has because he hasn’t been developed as an international player.
2 Go to comments