McCaw was the first All Black to reach 100
caps, and the first rugby union player to win 100 tests. He was the most-capped
player in rugby union history with 148 caps, having overtaken Brian
O'Driscoll's record in 2015 and losing the record to Alun Wyn Jones in 2020.
McCaw has also equaled the record for most appearances at the Rugby World Cup,
with Jason Leonard.
McCaw predominantly played in the openside
flanker position for the New Zealand, Crusaders and Canterbury teams, but also
played as a blindside flanker and no. 8. During McCaw's career, Canterbury won
the NPC (later Mitre10 Cup) five times, and the Crusaders won four Super Rugby
titles. In addition to winning two world cups, the All Blacks won seven
Tri-Nations titles, completed three successful Grand Slam tours and won the
Bledisloe Cup eight times.
He made his debut in 2001 for the Crusaders, and was selected for the All Blacks' 2001 end-of-year tour, despite having played only eight minutes of Super 12 rugby. His debut for New Zealand was against Ireland, where he was awarded man-of-the-match. McCaw became a regular selection for New Zealand, only missing a few games due to recurring concussions. In 2004 he was appointed captain of the All Blacks, whom he led at the 2007 Rugby World Cup. After their elimination in the quarter-finals, his captaincy came under criticism, but he was retained and eventually led the team to consecutive Rugby World Cup titles in 2011 and 2015, becoming one of only 21 players who have won the Rugby World Cup on multiple occasions.
The Crusaders (Māori: Whatumoana; formerly
Canterbury Crusaders and BNZ Crusaders due to sponsorship by the Bank of New
Zealand) are a New Zealand professional rugby union team based in Christchurch,
who compete in the Super Rugby competition. They are the most successful team
in the competition's history and have won 11 titles (1998, 1999, 2000, 2002,
2005, 2006, 2008, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2022), as well as two regionalised
titles in 2020 and 2021.
Formed in 1996 to represent the upper South
Island of New Zealand in the Super 12, the Crusaders represent the Buller,
Canterbury, Mid-Canterbury, South Canterbury, Tasman and West Coast provincial
Rugby Unions. Their main home ground since 2012 is Rugby League Park (known for
sponsorship reasons as Orangetheory Stadium). They formerly played out of
Lancaster Park prior to it being damaged beyond repair in the 2011 Christchurch
earthquake.
The Crusaders struggled in the first season
of the Super 12, 1996, finishing last. Their performance improved in 1997 and
the team finished sixth (out of twelve teams). The team went on to win three
titles from 1998 to 2000 despite each final being played away from home. They
again won the competition in 2002 after going through the season unbeaten. In
the following two seasons, they again reached the final, although they were
beaten on both occasions. 2005 was the last season of the Super 12 before its
expansion. After finishing top of the table in that season, the Crusaders went
on to host the final in which they defeated the Waratahs. As a result of
winning their fifth Super 12 title, the Crusaders were given the trophy to
keep. In 2006, the Crusaders hosted the Hurricanes in the inaugural Super 14
final and won 19–12. In 2008 the Crusaders hosted the final at AMI Stadium
against the Waratahs, and won the match 20–12 to claim their seventh title.
Their eighth championship came in 2017 against the Lions. The Crusaders hosted
the Lions in the 2018 final and won 37–18, securing their ninth title. The
Crusaders won their tenth Super Rugby title at home against Jaguares in 2019.
The Crusaders have won their 11th and 12th title in both editions of Super
Rugby Aotearoa in 2020 and 2021. They have won their 13th title(Their 11th Full
Super Rugby Title), by winning the inaugural Super Rugby Pacific Grand Final in
2022.
The Crusaders have been led by only three CEOs throughout their 27-Year history; former New Zealand Rugby CEO Steve Tew, Hamish Riach and incumbent Colin Mansbridge.