This week’s chat is going to be a bit different. It will be about the DHL Stormers, but they are secondary to the storytelling because I am using a New Zealander to illustrate ambition, achievement, awe and how the fight to turn the lowest of moments into the most magnificent memory.
Many players would not have recovered from those lows, given that McCaw’s career started with a Test win and player of the match award against Ireland in Dublin on debut when he was 20 years old and had never played for the Crusaders in Super Rugby. I read a story the other day that only four players in the history of Test rugby have played in more internationals than McCaw won!
Make no mistake, he enjoyed the successes, and it was made more possible because some of the sport’s finest players featured in the All Blacks during McCaw’s career, but what defined him as a leader and an individual was that he gave each opponent the same amount of respect, whether they were ranked two in the world or 20th.But he and his team proved week after week that it was possible to win away from home and that rugby is a game played on a field with similar markings.
We’ve had to manage playing in two competitions simultaneously and we have had to do so without many of our current Test Springboks, but we’ve seen every match as an opportunity