KEY POINTS:
All Black captain Richie McCaw is running again on his injured ankle and is hopeful of making a return in the Bledisloe Cup test in Auckland in a fortnight.
The pressure is building on McCaw to come back after the All Blacks' crucial 30-28 loss to South Africa last weekend in Dunedin.
Out of action since suffering a ligament tear in his left ankle against England last month, McCaw found watching from the stands tough.
But he was proud of the way his teammates clawed their way back into last weekend's match.
"Playing a good team like the Boks, one mistake can be the difference and that's pretty much what happened. Let a guy through a gap, and he was good enough to score," he said yesterday.
His ankle was feeling "pretty good" and he had been able to start running and doing agility training again.
"I'm looking forward to getting back into it, but when that is, I'm not too sure. [It is] little steps at a time. We go into camp on Sunday and I'll be talking to medical staff and coaches as to what the plan is from there. Hopefully we will have something sorted that isn't too far down the track."
Asked about his chances of playing against the Wallabies in Auckland on August 2, McCaw said: "There's definitely a chance. I'm not ruling that out at all. You don't want to give up hope, but you don't want to be silly about it either."
He will be an interested spectator tonight as Australia square off against South Africa in an important Tri-Nations match.
McCaw will be backing the Wallabies - not because of his links to his former Crusaders coach, Robbie Deans - but "because it's going to keep the Tri-Nations even I suppose".
He felt Australia needed to use the ball, and find space, to beat the Boks.
"If they just go into a physical battle, it's going to be pretty hard for them, I think."
While South Africa would be in the "box-seat" to win the Tri-Nations if they beat Australia, "we'll be doing our best to make sure this doesn't happen".
Meanwhile, McCaw is keen to see the Experimental Law Variations (ELVs) expanded globally in the interests of the game.
"I think even just as a spectator watching the last two Tri-Nations games, it's been a real good game to watch, and I know for the guys to play in. I know there's been a survey of all the players in the Super 14 that gave (the ELVS) pretty much the thumbs up. So if they can get everyone buying into that, it's got to be good.
"The last thing we want is a big split down the middle between the northern and southern (hemispheres)."
