ARE THERE ALL BLACK CRACKS?
No chance says Richie McCaw, who lifted World Cup in 2011 and 2015
In the taxi ride to his hotel in toranomon hills, Richie McCaw’s face pops up on the tV screen built into the headrest of the drivers’ seat.
It is an advert for a bank, with footage of him lifting the World Cup in 2015. In the convenience store besides the hotel, they sell All Black ice cream. Brand All Blacks is big business here.
Beating the world champions is hard enough — and the task for the Springboks today in a blockbuster opening weekend group clash — will not be made any easier by the idea of them being the host nation’s second team.
‘the brand is bigger than any individual,’ McCaw says. ‘We used to get a lot of Japanese people coming over to new Zealand to watch games. things like the haka is so foreign to them so they’re really intrigued to understand that. every time I speak to the Japanese media they want to know something about the haka.
‘It baffles them a little bit. I guess it’s the history of years gone by — and the success of the last few years has really added to that. So people do pick you out, yeah.
‘I got one or two coming through the airport! If the Japanese are going along and supporting new Zealand then it could feel a bit like a home game. that’d be great, wouldn’t it? I’m not sure it was the same with the english in 2015!’
A video of Japanese school children performing the haka has had millions of views on social media this week. Staff had to pull out additional chairs for the packed team announcement press conference ahead of today’s eagerly anticipated clash.
A common line of questioning was the All Blacks’ decline since 2015 — losing experience as well as their no 1 ranking — and Steve hansen’s retort was how everyone said McCaw was too old four years ago. ‘It’s a hell of way to kick things off, isn’t it?’ says McCaw. ‘there was always that talk around us.
‘It’s people filling airwaves, to be honest. It’s easy to have a crack. We always said that it’s way better to have people being critical than to have no one interested at all. At the end of the day, the coaches have faith in you. I never had any doubts. that noise is irrelevant, it just fades in the background. You hear it and think, “Yeah, whatever”.
‘What happens a month before or a year before counts for zero. It’s what you do from here that counts. Sometimes, not being at your peak leading into it is not a bad thing. It keeps the guys working.’
Unlike 2015, the All Blacks starting XV no longer picks itself and mischievously, Springbok coach Rassie erasmus pointed out that they do not get the favouritism they enjoyed from referees when they had their unbeatable aura.
the All Blacks have a new-look, young, back-three while South Africa have made just one change to the team which drew with the Kiwis in July.
‘You don’t want to play your peak game at the start but the All Blacks will need to be pretty damn good this weekend,’ says McCaw.
‘the Springboks have built a bit of belief over the last few months and that goes a wee way. not all is lost if one team does trip up, but they won’t go in thinking that. As a player, you’ve got to deal with whatever’s in front of you. there’s talent now that can do some things better than we could in 2015, but you won’t know until it really comes down to a highpressure knockout game.’
For McCaw, it will be an entirely new experience watching from the sidelines.
‘It’s hard to believe that four years have gone by,’ he says. ‘In 2015, I didn’t want it to end. After the final we spent a few days going around the country — really cool, pressure off — and then, bang! It was done. I knew deep down that was probably the last time I was going to play so I just wanted to enjoy the moment.
‘You can never get enough of that winning feeling, but do I wish I was out there again? Probably not!’