Inspired McCaw leads from the front

IAIN MCGREGOR/Fairfax Media

GLARING ABSENCE: Richie McCaw is widely rated the world's best rugby player, yet after another top performance for the All Blacks in Cardiff it has to be asked - why has he been snubbed for the IRB's player of the year?

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One indelible image from last year's rugby World Cup quarterfinal was All Blacks captain Richie McCaw embracing Ali Williams mid-pitch at Millennium Stadium as French players celebrated.

The scene encapsulated yet another New Zealand failure on the sport's global stage – a Cup curse enveloping a player regarded as the world's best for a second time.

And although coaches Graham Henry, Wayne Smith and Steve Hansen were a focal point for the inevitable public backlash – along with the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) – McCaw was not absolved from blame.

An independent review into the 18-20 loss spread the blame liberally, though it pinpointed McCaw's reluctance to change tack when it became apparent referee Wayne Barnes would not penalise the French in the second half.

A dropped goal was called for only after the All Blacks had moved from a prime position.

All in all, the quarterfinal was an unmitigated disaster.

Thirteen months on the rehabilitation process is under way.

The retention of the Bledisloe Cup and Tri-Nations title relieved the pressure, with Henry yesterday claiming that vindicated his reappointment as head coach by the NZRU.

Hansen and Smith have also spoken of a burden being lifted.

Now McCaw has added to the feel-good factor as the All Blacks prepare for their last test of the season – a Grand Slam defining clash with England at Twickenham on Sunday morning (NZ time).

The 2008 squad are not yet playing with the panache of their 2005 Grand Slam-winning predecessors but there has been no shortage of character and composure on display.

These All Blacks have fought back from consecutive Tri-Nations losses in Dunedin and Sydney to win their last eight tests – often from positions of adversity.

The Wallabies were in control in Brisbane and Hong Kong before the All Blacks finished strongly; Ireland and Wales also watched combative first half performances neutralised after halftime.

Leading into the England test, the All Blacks have not conceded a point in the second half on tour, or a try while in the UK and Ireland.

The leadership group's ability to hold their nerve has not escaped McCaw, who captains the side for the 33rd time this weekend.

"I think that's a positive from the year," he said.

"And with the experiences you go through you'd hope it would improve. We've had to come from behind and although that's not the plan I guess the good thing is when it doesn't happen the senior players have kept believing in what we're doing.

"It would be easy to start making more mistakes when you get under pressure, that's what's been pleasing this year – we've absorbed the pressure and taken our chances."

Naturally McCaw has been at the vanguard of the leadership cartel, and as the team has steadily rebuilt after the standard post-World Cup player exodus, the 27-year-old also felt he had developed as a skipper.

"The experiences you go through definitely make you stronger.

"A year down the track I've learnt to back my gut instinct, what you believe in and stuff like that.

"Hopefully I'm better than I was back then. The other thing that's key is to keep performing yourself.

"If I look back on the year I've been reasonably happy I've done that. That's the first thing you've got to do as a captain."

But McCaw is quick to credit the presence of the senior All Blacks that also stuck around for a difficult season.

"They've gone through another year and played another 15-odd tests as well. A lot of them have 50-60 tests now, that has to make the team stronger,' he said.

At Twickenham the All Blacks will field the most-capped test pack in their history. The starting eight boasts 363 caps – two more than side that played Italy in Marseille last year at the World Cup.

-NZPA