Rugby: Richie McCaw reveals match day diary from 2011 Rugby World Cup final

All Blacks captain Richie McCaw holds the William Webb Ellis Cup aloft after victory at Eden Park in 2011. Photo / Photosport

Former All Blacks captain Richie McCaw has shared his diary entry from the day he helped his team win the 2011 Rugby World Cup.

Ten years on from an evening at Auckland's Eden Park, when the country held itself in a collective crossing of every finger and toe and breath for an agonising 80 minutes as the side ground its way to an 8-7 defeat of France, McCaw posted the timely piece of nostalgia on his social media pages.

"Ten years ago since the Rugby World Cup Final and I still remember it like it was yesterday," McCaw wrote, before going on to share a rare insight into the mind of an All Black captain and game-changing flanker.

"Here were the words I wrote on game day. These are the same words I wrote every week but there's no doubt there was a lot more at stake for this test match."

The image McCaw posted accompanying the post contains hand-written notes about the approach he would take to the match; a mix of the tactical and technical, as well as how to deal with the emotions that were bound to flow in front of more than 60,000 entranced fans.

His practical advice to himself is both simple and a remarkably accurate description of the way he played that day: "Start game again, get involved early. Work rate, keep getting up, make it count ... tackle, hit with shoulders, bounce up ... steal, pick my time, fully committed ... demand ball, run hard, expect to bust."

When it comes to the emotional side of McCaw's approach, his words once again capture a recognisable list of on-field personality traits.

"Just play, back my gut. Be cold, clear and decisive - huge presence. Enjoy."

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Perhaps the most remarkable thing about McCaw's notes that day is what is not written down on paper.

Once the dust had settled on the side's victory, it emerged McCaw had played the match with a broken foot.

He later described getting on and off the field for the semifinal against Australia as "complete agony".

McCaw hid the extent of the injury from everyone. He bypassed an x-ray and played on painkillers, gritting his teeth during the week so as not to alert the team, media and public.