If Richard Hugh McCaw lifts the Webb Ellis Cup up to the London skies tonight in his final act as an All Black, it would do more than reinforce his claim to being rugby’s ultimate gladiator, the best player the game has seen.

New Zealanders have been fretting just a little about this emotional Carter and McCaw farewell storyline. Is this World Cup one tour too many for the pair of them? Ian Chadband finds out

He is the greatest rugby player of his generation — perhaps of all time.