McCaw pays tribute to 100-up star

– New Zealand captain Richie McCaw hailed Dan Carter, right, as “one of the greats” after presenting the star flyhalf with a special silver cap to mark his 100th Test appearance.

Carter reached the landmark when he took the field for the world champions’ eventual 30-22 win over England at Twickenham on Saturday, but went off injured just 26 minutes into the game.

“Having him in the team certainly makes your job really easy,” McCaw said of the outside-half while he conducted a post-match presentation ceremony in front of the bulk of a crowd of nearly 82 000, including Carter’s father, Neville.

“You will go down as one of the greats of world rugby,” McCaw said of Carter, the Test game’s world-record points-scorer.

Carter, who made his debut against Wales in 2003, became the fi fth All Black to win 100 Test caps, joining McCaw, Keven Mealamu, Tony Woodcock – who all played – and Mils Muliaina.

However, his recent career has seen him miss several matches through injury, including New Zealand’s 2011 World Cup final win over France in Auckland.

And he could now be ruled out of next week’s Test against Ireland in Dublin. –