History will be kind to me because I intend to write it

McCAW WARY OF JOHNSON'S "HURT" ENGLAND

All Blacks captain Richie McCaw knows that if New Zealand are to capture their third Northern Hemisphere grand slam in as many years, they will have to defeat a wounded and intense England.

Having witnessed Martin Johnson’s determination first hand, McCaw believes that England’s forwards, in particular, will have a point to prove after last Saturday’s 42-6 defeat to South Africa.

“England will be hurting and will want to come out and get it right and show they're a good team,” said the openside flanker, the International Rugby Board’s player of the year in 2006.

“We've been in a similar situation ourselves this year. We were done by the Aussies and it was a horrible week. When you get a chance to put it right, and luckily they have a chance seven days later, that's what you have to do.

“We're expecting them to throw everything into it at Twickenham and will de desperate. We have to match that intensity or else it will be a long day.

“Their forwards are always tough and if they get some ball then the guys at the back have the pace and ability to use it. They are better than they've shown, but their opponents have been pretty good at stopping them playing.”

The 27-year-old views Tom Rees’s demotion as a shock, after the Wasps No7’s impressive display against the Boks. McCaw continued: “I'm a little bit surprised England dropped Tom Rees. He's a damn-good player.

“I'm sure England have their reasons why they dropped him but the guy who has replaced him is raring to go. I don't know too much about [Michael] Lipman but I'm sure he'll fit in pretty well.”

England manager Johnson was captain when, in 2002, the national team last defeated the All Blacks. In Wellington 13-man England slugged out a 15-13 win – and the former lock showed young McCaw what leadership was all about.

“I remember they had two players in the sin bin and Johnson was the one running the camp,” McCaw, whose side have not yet conceded a try on their tour of the Home Nations, said. “You could see watching him play in the World Cup in the final [which England won 20-17] he was in charge, doing the business himself and setting the example.

"The way he played, going out and produced the goods on the pitch, was inspirational. And he didn't seem afraid to drag other guys to come along with him. If they weren't pulling their weight he would make that known. His influence will start to come through for England now, too.

“I feel like a better captain than 12 months ago after the World Cup [where New Zealand were knocked out in the quarter-final]. Experiences make you stronger. A year down the track you learn to listen to your guts instincts. Confidence builds from there. The other key thing is to keep performing myself. That's the first thing you have to do.

“We can be proud of what we've achieved this year.”

Labels: All Blacks, England, Martin Johnson, Richie McCaw

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LIPMAN LEADING FIGHT AGAINST McCAW’S ALL BLACKS

Michael Lipman has waited patiently for a proper chance in Martin Johnson’s back-row – the openside flanker was given the nod over Wasps’ Tom Rees for the final game of the autumn series against New Zealand. But then again, he has had to bide his time for most of his England career. Indeed his run out against the All Blacks will be only his tenth cap since his international bow four years ago, and is his first start for the national side since mid-March.

The Bath captain, who played in four Six Nations matches earlier this year following injuries to Lewis Moody and Rees in the Wales game, is rated by many as the best out-and-out No7 in the Guinness Premiership. He is relishing the prospect of facing All Black skipper Richie McCaw – an opponent Lipman first pitted his wits against almost a decade ago and currently ranked the best exponent of back-row’s darks arts on the planet.

“I’m looking forward to playing against Richie,” he says. “It is definitely a challenge I need to rise to. I have only played against him once before – for the Australia Under-19s team when he was playing for the New Zealand Under-19s. I don’t think I have played against anyone quite like him before.

“He definitely gets away with everything – all the stuff on the ground! But that is who he is - it is a reputation he has built up over the years and he deserves that respect from referees, so we will have to deal with him. But he is not alone – he has 14 other mates behind him causing chaos.”

Following the 28-14 loss to Australia - the country that London-born Lipman moved to aged five and left when he was 21 for Bristol - and the 42-6 drubbing last week to South Africa, the 28-year-old believes that his leadership skills are precisely what Johnson’s young team require.

“It is a very good feeling to get the No7 shirt back - I have been given an opportunity and I’m happy about that; I will take it with both hands,” says Lipman, who also played for Australia Under-21s but found good friend George Smith an immovable object when it came to the full Wallabies team. Brought up in Sydney, Lipman began his career at Manly and joined Bob Dwyer’s Waratahs in New South Wales – though he never played in the Super 12 – before flourishing at The Memorial Stadium and then, after moving in 2003, on the turf of Bath’s Recreational Ground.

“I was very disappointed to not get a run out when we were on tour in New Zealand in the summer,” he continues. “Especially after a fairly successful Six Nations when I played four out of the five games. It has been frustrating not to start in the past three autumn games too, but I am very, very happy to be starting against the All Blacks at Twickenham.”

Many viewed Rees as England’s solitary performer against the Boks, but Lipman insists that he has other pluses to his game that make him better equipped to face the All Blacks. And, whatever happens against New Zealand, he is looking to a brighter future for England’s rugby team – namely success in the All Black’s back yard at the World Cup in 2011.

“Tom and I have a mutual respect and I think he has been playing very well,” Lipman says. “But I think I have different facets to my game compared to Tom. I am good with the ball in my hands, and a good carrier. I am big on my defensive game too.

“I think I bring a bit of leadership to the team. I will be able to help Steve [Borthwick, a former Bath team-mate] out a lot. I have the ability to read situations and work out what is going wrong and how we can make it better; what we need to change. That is something I am very capable of doing. I am going to help Steve as much as I can.

“It is very important for England to get a result in this final match of the autumn series. We have to put English rugby back on the map. We lost a lot of respect after the defeat to the Springboks, because it was a big loss – there’s no getting away from that. It is hard for any team to come back from that.

“But in three years time the World Cup comes around and if this is a massive learning curve that gets us to that World Cup Final and wins us that trophy, then it will be happy days and this will be forgotten.”

Labels: All Blacks, England, Martin Johnson, Michael Lipman, Richie McCaw, Rugby Football Union

Posted by Oliver Pickup at 11:25 am | Permalink | Comments

McCAW HOPING TO END ALL BLACK HURT

When Richie McCaw held aloft the Philips Tri Nations trophy following the All Blacks’ 28-24 Bledisloe Cup victory at the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane in mid-September, it went some way to dulling New Zealand’s collective pain, inflicted after last October’s World Cup quarter-final failure against tournament hosts France. But All Black number 1014 knows, in spite of his team being crowned the best side in the Southern Hemisphere for the sixth time in seven attempts, there is still a long way to go before the disappointments of that 20-18 defeat at the Millennium Stadium are fully exorcised.

Post-France, though Graham Henry retained his position as national coach having been handed a two-year extension in December, there followed much bloodletting. Selectors, with eyes on winning the only trophy to have eluded New Zealand’s grasp in 2011, on home shores, ushered aside certain Test veterans in order to blood young talent.

In less than 12 months three-fifths of the side have changed and after some initial teething problems, the new-look All Blacks have made impressive strides in this transitional season - before the Tri Nations success there was a whitewash of touring sides, England and Ireland. Captain McCaw, however, has set his sights on a Grand Slam tour of the Northern Hemisphere in November to cap off what will be an impressive year and reaffirm New Zealand’s position as champions of the world, albeit unofficially.

The 27-year-old openside flanker, whose team take on Australia in Hong Kong before a gruelling schedule in Britain that includes games against Scotland, Ireland, Heineken Cup victors Munster, Wales and England, is in buoyant mood ahead of the tour.

"It will be a very busy month but will be very exciting too," McCaw, who announced himself on the international scene with a man-of-the-match display against Ireland in Dublin seven years ago on a similar tour, suggests. "After the unique Test against Australia we have the four Home Nations, who all provide different challenges. It'll be tough but it will be satisfying if we win.

"Winning the Tri Nations was a big lift - it was something we really wanted to do. After the disappointment of last year there was a lot of negativity about the rugby in New Zealand, so we really wanted to ensure that we did it right. We had some new players and we had two losses in a row, but the guys bounced back from that, and to come out on top on top against two other good sides was pretty satisfying. It’s gone some way to alleviating some of the pain of last year.

"But it is important we have a good tour now. It's been a challenge this year because we have had quite a lot of experience move on. But we still have a good group of guys who have been around a while and have experienced what it is like in the UK.

"The guys that haven’t played in the UK before are excited about it, and the guys that have need to ensure we use that excitement to make sure the team performs every week. If we do that, we’ll hopefully finish off the year really well. It’s been good up until now, but if we don’t have a decent tour it could easily not be so good - we can’t just go into it expecting to win every game."

McCaw has led out the All Blacks in 29 of his 65 appearances and believes that 62-year-old Henry is the right man to build the foundations of World Cup success in three years’ time. The 2006 IRB World Player of the Year, who was mystifyingly overlooked for the five-man shortlist in September (or last month, depending when you go to press), is relieved that the team and the New Zealand public can finally begin to look ahead.

"From October until the first game we had this year, against Ireland back in June, it was all looking back," he continues. "But once we got a couple wins, we could start talking about the next game and the lead up to the Tri Nations. To some degree the issue of the World Cup was put to bed. Now that the All Blacks are starting to win a few games, it looks a lot better.

"A number of the new guys in the side have impressed me too. No6 Jerome Kaino, a big but athletic man, has huge potential. Against Australia in the final game of the Tri Nations, the hits he was putting in were inspirational. Richie Kahui, who’s been playing on the wing, but could play in the centre, is another big man with a lot of skills and one to watch this tour."

He believes the Southern Hemisphere’s mastering of the experimental law variations, which have only come in effect this current season in Britain, might provide the All Black with the upper hand on tour. "It will help," he says, "and it may change our approach a little bit. They improve the game, in my opinion, but I don’t think it is 100 per cent right yet - there are some things that could be done away with. But if the referee is strong at the break down, then you get some good rugby."

McCaw lists Sean Fitzpatrick, who won a record 92 caps for the All Blacks, and his old Canterbury Crusaders captain Todd Blackadder as his greatest idols. He also holds England’s 2003 World Cup winning captain Martin Johnson in high regard, having witnessed first-hand his influence. Five years ago 13-man England defeated the All Blacks 15-13 - the last time they have done so - in Wellington, and one man, who is now in charge of the England team, was central to that.

On the 38-year-old former second row, McCaw adds: "I remember they had two players in the sin bin and Johnson was the one running the camp. You could see watching him play in the World Cup in the final [which England won 20-17] he was in charge, doing the business himself and setting the example.

"The way he played, going out and produced the goods on the pitch, was inspirational. And he didn't seem afraid to drag other guys to come along with him. If they weren't pulling their weight he would make that known. His influence will start to come through for England now, too. I'm sure when we play them in London it will be a hugely different team from the one we played here in June."

McCaw’s team face Johnson’s England at Twickenham on November 29, in the final game of their tour. If things go according to plan the All Blacks, with their new fusion of youth and experience, will be on course for a Grand Slam of the Northern Hemisphere and a year of world domination. And, more importantly for New Zealand, closer to neutralising the hurt of last October.

Labels: All Blacks, New Zealand, Richie McCaw

Posted by Oliver Pickup at 5:43 pm | Permalink | Comments