Richie McCaw wouldn't be the only former All Black to have had similar thoughts on November 5th last year. Dan Carter has often said that the driving force for New Zealand when they played Ireland was a desire to not be part of the first All Blacks team to be defeated by Ireland.
In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, McCaw said that, selfishly, he's glad he wasn't on the Soldier Field turf following Ireland's 40-29 win earlier this season.
In a real selfish way I was relieved I wasn’t out there at the final whistle because that would not have been enjoyable in any way.
Some of the skill and tries that the All Blacks have produced have been a step up from what I was involved in, but Ireland managed to stop those moments and made it tight. When they got one or two chances, they were nailing them.
Ireland's win, along with others for northern hemisphere teams against their southern conterparts during November, is proof for McCaw that the gap between the two is closing.
I think the autumn really showed that there’s nothing between the north and south any more. You look at South Africa losing to Italy, Wales and England, the Aussies losing to England, New Zealand to Ireland. I actually thought there was very little between the teams before but that reinforced that.
When everyone first eyed this year's Six Nations schedule, the possibility of a March 18th winner takes all showdown between Ireland and England in Dublin stood out.
That is a game McCaw anticipates approvingly.
I would be surprised if it didn’t come down to that game. It will be really tough for the English if they get to that point with their record intact. There will be a lot of pressure on them and the Irish would love to knock them over. Wouldn’t that be an amazing day?
