McCaw poised for Super Rugby return

[The InnFORCEr]

AAP
Updated July 16, 2013,
6:50 am

All Blacks captain Richie McCaw is anticipated to make his return to top level rugby off the bench for the Crusaders against the Queensland Reds in the home Super Rugby qualifying final on Saturday.

The 32-year-old loose forward, who is yet to play Super Rugby this season after taking time away from the game, turned out for his Christchurch club side last weekend and played 80 minutes.

Coach Todd Blackadder, who watched some of the club match, said McCaw was in line to feature against the 2011 champions.

"He got through the weekend all right and he's really keen to be involved so that's encouraging," Blackadder told reporters. "But it would be silly to compromise the team.

"He's a quality player - he's Richie McCaw, of course. But we've still got to put the team first."

Blackadder said it was a difficult decision for him to make, but one he was glad to have.

"You've got to weigh things up and make sure you do right by the team," Blackadder said.

"We've got a game we've got to win - bringing a guy like Richie back into the team is fantastic and makes our selection even harder.

"There's also loyalty to the guys who have done the job. You can't under-estimate the work they've put in to give us the opportunity. These decisions are never going to be easy."

The Crusaders, seven-time winners of the competition, have not faced the Reds this season.

http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/spo...-rugby-return/

[WFDom]

Look out Quade!!!!!

[hertryk]

Has anyone read McCaw's book? It is a really good read...

[Sheikh]

... The Crusaders, seven-time winners of the competition, have not faced the Reds this season. ...

I've looked into which teams didn't play which other teams this season:

The Chiefs didn't play the Bulls or Brumbies
The Bulls didn't play the Chiefs or Rebels
The Brumbies didn't play the Chiefs or Cheetahs
The Crusaders didn't play the Reds or Cheetahs
The Reds didn't play the Crusaders or Kings
The Cheetahs didn't play the Brumbies or Crusaders

For four of the finalists, both of the teams they didn't play are also in the finals, and for the other two (Bulls and Reds) one of the teams they didn't play are in the finals.

[bunter]

Bloody good research Mr Sheikh.

[Sheikh]

Just think it's interesting that only the Rebels and Kings managed to not play teams that are in the finals.

Obviously, if the teams you don't play are good, that's more likely to benefit you, but for it to be so marked that so many of the finalists didn't play other finalists suggests that either:
a) the schedule was an amazing coincidence
b) somehow the schedule was rigged (which is ridiculous, as if you were rigging it before the season started, the Cheetahs wouldn't be there!)
c) not playing other good teams provides an amazing benefit (one less hard match during the season, fewer injuries, more chance to rest players, etc)

Conspiracy theory anyone?

[The InnFORCEr]

Pretty sure it is a 4 year cycle so you miss one team from each other country each year so after 4 years everyone will have played everyone the same amount of times (internationally speaking).....I think....

[jargan83]

McCaw must have finally got his cloak of invisibility back from the dry cleaners
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[PeterM]

Would it be wrong to hope that the crusaders get knocked out as early as possible so he has to go back to playing club rugby making him ineffective for the bledisloe tests later on this year?

[westies man]

Won't happen ,the crusaders won't be knocked out early, they will win the whole thing and McCaw is never ever ineffective

[GIGS20]

Pretty sure it is a 4 year cycle so you miss one team from each other country each year so after 4 years everyone will have played everyone the same amount of times (internationally speaking).....I think....

that doesn't stop it being a bloody debacle and a completely pointless restriction bought about by inferior and unprofitable competitions
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