RICHIE McCAW

Richie McCaw played the first and second tests against the Lions in the series whitewash in 2005.

“There had been a lot of hype around their pack and we knew it was going to be a big challenge but we cleaned up in the lineouts and didn’t give them a show. It was a pretty damned good performance to get things under way.

“But all the talk about that test was about Brian O’Driscoll getting injured. It was a shame, and I felt for him, it’s not a nice thing for anyone to be injured so early in a test, but all the talk wasn’t about the game and how well we played, it was about him.

“Early on we thought it would go away. We knew Tana and Kevvie didn’t do it on purpose – I know that for a fact. They never intended for it to happen.

“We felt it was unfair that he [Umaga] was copping it for something he didn’t intend to do. It certainly gave us extra motivation to do our talking on the field.”

The All Blacks won that test 48-18 with Dan Carter scoring two tries and finishing with 33 points.

“There’s no way I’d imagined we’d put out the performance we did. It was a pretty cool day to be involved in, and to see Dan [Carter] play the way he did, that was pretty cool too.”

McCaw believes the All Blacks will have too much X-factor for the Lions this time too.

“Our backs, at their best, will cause the Lions all sorts of headaches. It’s what makes us a step ahead of the rest, but you can’t rely on that, you have to earn the right for these guys to show their skills. The Lions will try to stifle us, so that battle up front will again be key.

“As a pack we will have a lot of belief. We always said we had to respect the opposition, but never felt they were better than us and that’s still true.

“Brodie Retallick and Sam Whitelock are superb in all those things you associate Northern Hemisphere rugby with and can do some damage physically, that’s why, from an All Blacks perspective, the Lions will find it tough.”