Richie McCaw lands his chopper at Kimi Ora Community School in Flaxmere, for a Fontera milk in schools promotion.
An ever-familiar face stepped off the helicopter to the cheers of more than 100 pint-sized adoring fans - although this time it was not with a rugby ball in hand but instead two boxes of Fonterra milk.
Two time World Cup winner Richie McCaw paid Flaxmere's Kimi Ora Community School a visit, after their entry, from a pool of 25,000 around the country, caught the eyes of the judges.
It was the video that captured the hearts and minds of the nation, propelling not only the kura into the spotlight, but also 11-year-old star Blaze Petuha.
McCaw was welcomed with a pōwhiri and haka, and answered four questions about his rugby career and his life since retiring, including 'what are you doing now?,' 'what was the hardest part of being in the All Blacks?' 'what advice would you give to aspiring sportspeople?' and 'who do you look up to as a leader and what qualities do they have?'.
The two-time Rugby World Cup winner arrived with boxes of milk. Photo / Duncan Brown.
In the two hours that he was at the decile one school, McCaw handed out milk and lunches while also finding time to pose for a school photo and take part in fitness activities with the kids.
"I've been looking forward to coming in here actually," McCaw said.
"That video this little fella put together, and the school is pretty amazing. There was no way we could ignore that one."
He said the effort that the school had put into the video really caught his eye.
"It can't have been easy. I know what it is like to get in front of the camera and be able to nail it the first time and they did a pretty good job of acting, putting it together and then also the editing and I think the amount of views that you saw on it, people were pretty impressed."
Richie McCaw landed at Kimi Ora Community School yesterday to a flurry of excitement. Photo/Paul Taylor.
He reminisced about the last time he was in the region - supposedly a few years ago when he played rugby against Argentina.
"It is pretty easy for me to be able to pop in for a couple of hours and say 'hi'. When a community has been through a tough time it is nice when you can maybe let them forget about that for a while," McCaw said.
Just before departing, the former All Blacks skipper told Blaze and head of performing arts and the man behind the video, Peter Tihema, that he "had space in the helicopter" for them.
Atahuia Tipu, Richie McCaw and Blaze Petuha made sure to get a photo taken together. Photo / Duncan Brown
It was the first time the duo had been in a helicopter and Mr Tihema was buzzing afterwards and said it was "awesome".
"He is a really quiet and really humble guy. We spoke about the video and he said well done. I was glad that he liked our video."
Mr Tihema said the kids would be tired now but were so thrilled to have met the legend.
"It has come full circle. Never when I was creating did I expect that a couple weeks later he would actually be landing at our school, so it was awesome."
They flew to Hawke's Bay Airport, where they dropped McCaw off to catch a flight back to Christchurch and then headed back to Flaxmere.
Blaze was "blown away" when he saw his idol in real life and said he "really had fun", with his highlight being flying in the helicopter and "meeting him really".
The most important "piece of advice he took in was "don't give up, even if you're not the best in the school".
The student, who plays in the same position as McCaw did, hopes to one day make it to the All Blacks, but also possibly pursue a new-found love in acting.
Mr O'Dowda said it was a great day and everything they hoped it would be.
"Flaxmere is normally in the news for all the wrong reasons and it is really nice to have a really positive story on something cool happening in the area."
Napier MP Stuart Nash and Tukituki National MP and former Hastings mayor Lawrence Yule were among those in attendance.
Mr Yule said the children would never forget the visit.
"This community and this school has had a bit of a challenged history and but it is on a role now and getting Richie here is a part of it. They won't forget it."
"I just think it is fantastic, what Blaze did in that video, in my opinion, is second to none and it just shows how the neat the kids are that are filling our community."
Mr Nash said "this is a good story, and leadership comes in different forms, and I think the principal here, Matt [O'Dowda], is a true leader".
"He is a true leader in every sense of the word, just as much as Richie was on the rugby field. Matt is in the school."
"You look at all the kids, they're happy, they're healthy, they're engaging – did you hear them sing?"
Kimi Ora is among four schools the Fonterra Milk for Schools programme has chosen as the competition winners, including Eltham Primary School, Taranaki, and Okaihau Primary School, Northland.
