It's a bird. It's a plane. No, it's ...Super Richie

Flying is Richie McCaw's favourite pastime. On Saturday in Brisbane, it was hard to believe he had not donned a cape to make some of the tackles and cover so much ground at Suncorp Stadium.

His personal contribution was colossal, the sort which had All Black great Colin Meads still shaking his head yesterday in awe and hoping the flanker would be nursed through the rest of the Tri-Nations.

The All Black selectors appeared to have a similar viewpoint yesterday with the message they will rest their captain from one of the final three Tri-Nations tests.

McCaw played with such a fury against the Wallabies, he doubled the next-best tackle count of any All Black and inflicted havoc at the breakdown. He soared for several lineout takes and survived one dangerous dumping when his support let him go.

It was an emphatic riposte to another Wallaby barb in Brisbane when forwards coach Alex Evans suggested George Smith was a better allround player. It was no contest on Saturday as McCaw embellished his reputation as the monarch of openside flankers.

Even the great Michael Jones would have struggled to stay with McCaw's endurance, physical prowess, composure, anticipation and singular ability to pilfer turnovers.

"He can't play any better than that," coach Graham Henry said of his captain.

McCaw's crowning play came after 54 minutes with the All Blacks under the cosh as Stirling Mortlock made a rare break and put wing Mark Gerrard away. Somehow, McCaw clobbered the Wallaby wing and stole the ball.

It was a dazzling play from a virtuoso whose latest evening of excellence coincided, fortunately for the All Blacks, with the defence of the Bledisloe Cup.

Minutes earlier, McCaw had received a final warning from intrusive referee Alain Rolland that he would be sinbinned for his next infringement. There was no backoff in McCaw though.

Gerrard later suggested the Wallabies would have to resort to dubious tactics to negate McCaw in the final transtasman clash at Eden Park on August 19. "It's something we have to work on and if we are going to succeed in the next game in Auckland we really must shut him down and get blokes to hold on to him when he's on the deck," Gerrard said.

The wing could not believe McCaw had chopped him down.

"Anywhere you are, no matter whether you are a winger or even if you are a front rower, he's anywhere and everywhere," he said. "As Chris Latham said late last night it seemed like we were playing four or five of him."

McCaw led the Black Wall of Defence which ultimately won the test for the All Blacks after Joe Rokocoko had motored in for the only try.

It was a handy return for Rokocoko who had not scored in seven tests in the last 11 months but deliberately had play aimed his way at the weekend.

Once more the All Black scrum was too awkward for the Wallabies and once more they struggled to claim their own lineout ball. Eight throws were lost, for a variety of reasons and only the turnover treasure McCaw was able to dig out countered that embarrassment.

The All Blacks should lose a test because of their lineout failings but maybe not if the caped captain is also on the park.