McCaw: southern hemisphere teams have fitness edge

NEW ZEALAND captain Richie McCaw will end an exhausting and emotional year by making his debut for the Barbarians in tonight’s Olympic centenary clash with Australia at Wembley.

McCaw features in a Barbarians side drawn from the cream of the southern hemisphere and captained by South Africa’s John Smit, who is joined by six of his 2007 World Cup-winning colleagues.

The All Black flanker is relishing the chance to end a high-pressure season playing alongside many of the big names he spent the last nine months bashing from Christchurch to kingdom come.