The announcement was made in the country’s New Year’s honours list which was released Thursday, McCaw’s 35th birthday.

After McCaw this year led the All Blacks to World Cup victory, making them the first side to win consecutive tournaments (2011 and 2015), many New Zealanders including Prime Minister John Key believed he was worthy of a knighthood.

However, the champion flanker and three-times world player of year, who has said he would not feel comfortable being addressed as “Sir Richie”, has gone one better.

The Order of New Zealand (ONZ), the highest honour in the country’s system, carries no title but recognises “outstanding service” to the country and is restricted to 20 living members at any one time.

McCaw becomes the youngest holder of the title, eclipsing former prime minister and World Trade Organisation director-general Mike Moore who was 50 when he was made a member. Others on the list include another former All Black captain, Brian Lochore; golfer Bob Charles, and former prime minister and now United Nations Development Programme administrator Helen Clark.

One level below the ONZ are the knights and dames who this year include prominent film director Jane Campion, and in a country renowned for an agricultural lifestyle, champion sheep shearer David Fagan.

McCaw, who retired after the World Cup, described himself as “an ordinary boy … extremely privileged to join the distinguished company of men and women who have been awarded the Order of NZ.”

New Zealand Rugby chief Steve Tew described McCaw as “the most influential player of his generation, if not of all time.”

During a 15-year career, he played a world record 148 Tests and only tasted defeat 15 times.

The boy, identified as 15-year-old Charlie Lines, was thrown to the ground by a security official after running on to the Twickenham pitch following New Zealand’s 34-17 triumph. The 30-year-old Williams played down the incident which also saw teammate and flanker Liam Meesam give the teenager his black beanie hat. AFP

As far as New Zeland captain Richie McCaw was concerned, the All Blacks came into the tournament as world champions and were expected to play like that.

He described his emotion at the end of Saturday’s final at Twickenham as “warm inside and proud of the men I’ve been in battle with”.

Accolades for the All Blacks flooded in as soon as the final whistle went, led by beaten Wallaby coach Michael Cheika.

“New Zealand won fair and square and have been the form team since the last World Cup,” Cheika said. The All Blacks had not only became the first side to win consecutive World Cups, they were also the first team to win the crown three times.

They have been the world’s top-ranked side since 2009 and British bookmakers cannot see that changing soon as they have already installed the New Zealanders as even-money favourites to win the 2019 tournament in Japan.

Steve Hansen made winning the World Cup a focus as soon as he took over as New Zealand head coach after their 2011 success.

But he said after the mission was completed, that win, lose or draw, what mattered most to him was that the team enjoyed themselves.

“I think there’s a lot of people have realised we are not big bad ogres that sometimes we are printed to be in the media,” he said.

“We are just ordinary people who can play rugby reasonably well. Life’s too short not to have fun. If you’re serious all the time it’s pretty boring.”

But Hansen was effusive about the contribution of his retiring stars led by Dan Carter, and possibly 34-year-old McCaw who is undecided about his future.

Test centurions Keven Mealamu, Tony Woodcock and Ma’a Nonu are also stepping away from internationals as is centre Conrad Smith, a veteran of 94 Tests.

McCaw “is the greatest All Black we’ve ever had, and Dan’s a close second,” Hansen said.

“The only thing that separates them is one’s a flanker (McCaw) and shouldn’t play 148 Test matches. As a flanker that’s unheard of.

“There was a lot of talk going into this game about the loose forward trio,” he said in reference to Wallabies David Pocock, Michael Hooper and Scott Fardy.

– Leader –

“Without wanting to be disrespectful to the other guys who I thought played really well, I thought our trio won that battle and Rico was the leader of our trio.”

McCaw, who has indicated retirement is close, is the world’s most capped player and most successful captain, leading his team to a near 90 percent win rate.

He said his major motivation was to ensure when he does leave he has added something to the number seven jersey.

“No person is bigger than what the team is and your job is to enhance and add something to that legacy,” he said.

“One thing I’ve always been big on is it’s not so much being a hero every week, it’s just doing your job as best you can to serve the team.”

McCaw also led the All Blacks to victory in the 2011 World Cup when they beat France 8-7 in Auckland. “It wa just a massive relief four years ago,” he said referring to the national expectation in rugby-obsessed New Zealand to end a 24-year wait for a second World Cup title to add to their triumph, again on home soil, at the inaugural 1987 edition. “This was an opportunity we really wanted to take,” McCaw explained

Ahead of New Zealand’s 34-17 victory, Australian supporters were full of optimism as they watched the match live on big screens as if they were at the game in Twickenham.

“Honestly I think our back three are just unbeatable when it comes to the forwards … we’ve got much stronger wings and our field and centres are going to be awesome,” Wallabies fan Daniel Meharg said.
But there were also New Zealand fans in Australian pubs, hoping the All Blacks could clinch back-to-back titles.

“I think the All Blacks have got greater intensity and greater strength off the bench to really take it away from the Australians in the last quarter … so I think that’s going to be the difference up until then,” All Blacks fan Mike Bentley said.

“It’s going to be a tight-fought match.”

At the sound of the final whistle, shattered Wallabies fans contemplated what could have been.

“Obviously I’m very, very, very shattered, but the All Blacks did a great job,” Wallabies supporter Tim Rogers said.

Wallabies fan Paige McLaren said the atmosphere in the pub she watched the game in was “sombre” after the game.

“It’s devastating because we were in a World Cup final, but it’s always hard against the All Blacks and they put up a good fight, but it’s never good losing to New Zealand,” she said.
New Zealand fans were jumping for joy, with their team breaking records by winning three titles and successfully defending a World Cup crown.

“One of the best games I’ve watched them play … that drop goal was just astonishing … and it’s just such a great feeling to win two in a row,” New Zealand supporter Richard Hobbs said.

Philip Fuaivaa, who was born and raised in New Zealand, said it was an “awesome feeling” to have his hometown win the World Cup.

“These are our heroes from childhood … As a Kiwi would know, All Black means everything,” he said.

“With the All Blacks winning, it’s the best feeling ever.” (abc)

The Australian Rugby Union, which reported a Aus$6.3 million (US$4.5 million) deficit last year, badly needs the globe’s second-ranked team to be crowned world champions as it battles bigger and better-resourced football codes across the country.

Australia is often described as one of the most competitive sports markets in the world, entertaining four well-supported football codes, all jostling for media and fan support.

Rugby union ranks fourth and last behind Australian Rules, rugby league and soccer in crowd numbers, participation and media coverage, illustrating the hurdles it faces.

This is despite considerable success on the field, with the Wallabies winning two World Cups and reaching the final on home soil in 2003.

Researcher Gary Morgan said Australians clearly prefer to watch Aussie Rules, which snares about 41 percent of the market, than the other codes.

“The Australian Football League has a clear lead over all the other football codes in Australia,” he noted.

“The National Rugby League is the closest challenger with 6.73 million viewers (35.3 percent), well ahead of soccer — 4.01 million (21 percent) — and rugby union — 3.53 million (18.5 percent).”

Below the Wallabies sit five Super Rugby franchises which all struggle financially, given the expense of constant travel to South Africa and New Zealand for the southern hemisphere provincial competition.

In a sign of the tough times, the ARU last year controversially levied Aus$200 from every junior and senior club in the country to be used towards helping the sport prosper. Although only a small outlay, the move caused rancour among the rugby fraternity.

And while other countries, like Japan, boast record television audiences for the World Cup, the Wallabies matches have not generated the same interest.

Coupled with early morning kick-offs — the final starts at 5:00 am on Sunday, Sydney time — it has contributed to muted support for Australia at the World Cup, despite coach Michael Cheika’s rallying calls for the country to get behind the team.

“We’re really happy that our fans are enjoying watching us play, that’s really important to us. We want them to live it with us,” Cheika said this week.

Australian rugby and the Wallabies can claw back some popularity by winning the Webb Ellis Trophy at Twickenham against an All Black side that enjoys feverish support at home, where rugby union is the dominant sport.

There are plenty of people willing on the Wallabies, with the showyourgold hashtag aimed at drumming up support on Twitter.

“Wallaby fans. Time to showyourgold. Hang your Wallaby flags, scarves, whatever outside,” Green and Gold Rugby tweeted.

The Wallabies official Twitter feed was also doing its bit, saying on Wednesday: “It’s time for young and old to get behind Wallabies”.

AFP

Captain Richie McCaw returns, having recovered from the leg injury that kept him out of the All Blacks final pool game against Tonga.

He is one of four world players of the year, along with Kieran Read, Dan Carter and Brodie Retallick in a side which boasts an impressive 1,295 Test caps in total. “The big boys have to step up to the plate and the team that does this the best will move through to the next round. It’s as simple as that,” coach Steve Hansen said when naming the side on Thursday.

The selection of Nonu ahead of Williams was always going to be a close call as was choosing between Milner-Skudder and Waisake Naholo.

Wyatt Crockett will start at loosehead prop after Tony Woodcock’s campaign was ended by a serious hamstring strain in the All Blacks last pool match against Tonga. Joe Moody, rushed over from New Zealand to replace Woodcock, goes straight onto the bench as a specialist loosehead..