#NotableKiwis: RICHIE McCAW

DID YOU KNOW? The first time that Richie McCaw captained the All Blacks was on his debut game in 2001 against Ireland.

Richard or ‘Richie’ McCaw was considered (arguably) as the greatest rugby player in the professional era. He was born on the 31st of December, 1980, in Oamaru – a town in North Otago, New Zealand.

As well as winning the New Zealander of the year award in 2016, he also captained the All Blacks for nearly fourteen years before retiring in 2015. He captained two consecutive Rugby World Cups, both in which they won – back-to-back, breaking two world records. McCaw is the most capped rugby player in history – playing a total of 148 test matches.

Now retired from rugby, he has a commercial fixed wing license and is now a pilot in the region of Canterbury. He also released a book and starred in the movie-documentary, “Chasing Great.”

(Ref: Wikipedia; http://en.espn.co.uk/newzealand/rugby/player/13784.html; Photo from allblacks.com and rugbyworldcup.com)