Richie McCaw likely to make return to Super Rugby in semi-final against Queensland Reds

HE'S back. Richie McCaw has played a single club game in seven months but is still ready to ruin Queensland Reds' finals party.

HE'S back. Richie McCaw is the only 32-year-old flanker in the world who could play a single club game in seven months and still be ready to ruin the Reds' finals party.

Reds rival Liam Gill is certainly expecting to see McCaw's familiar style injected into Saturday night's cut-throat Super Rugby qualifying final in Christchurch.

"We're anticipating that Richie will play some role for the Crusaders. He lifts their side and now he's back playing you'd expect he'd want to be part of it," flanker Gill warned.

McCaw is rugby's Black Caviar. Pushing his body through as many punishing match and training kilometres as the famed racehorse over the past 13 years earned him this rare holiday from Super Rugby to replenish.

The 116-Test great dropped his first ball but built strongly through his comeback match for Christchurch Rugby Club last Saturday in front of a curious 2000-strong turnout.

It warranted national television coverage in New Zealand but the only line that interested the Reds was this: "If if turns out to be the case, playing next week, I don't see that being a problem."

McCaw's targeted Test return is against the Wallabies on August 17 so playing some part in the play-offs is now imperative.

Richie McCaw

McCaw will mostly likely be used as a super sub because he can cover both openside Matt Todd or slip into blindside flanker in the second half.

It was McCaw who helped turn the game last year when the Reds visited Christchurch and played well enough to cause a boilover rather than digest a painful 15-11 loss to the Crusaders.

Gill was penalised late in the game for a dubious hands-in-the-ruck penalty that gave the Crusaders a tryless escape through penalty goals.

That is the closest the Reds have got to winning in Christchurch this century because David Wilson's 1999 side is the last to take a scalp there.

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"When I started as coach at the Reds (in 2010) we wanted to improve by playing the best as often as we could so we organised trials against the Crusaders on top of the games during the season,'' Reds coach Ewen McKenzie said.

"Our guys always enjoy playing them, we have ideas how to go about it and these games have brought out some of our best rugby."

The Reds will have to remodel their side and maximising thrust from the wings is essential. Losing in-form wing flyer Rod Davies to a season-ending knee injury is a major blow because Digby Ioane (shoulder surgery) is already gone.

In the 14-12 win over the NSW Waratahs on Saturday night, Davies effectively sniffed for chances close off the shoulder of playmaker Quade Cooper to replace Ioane in that role.

Dom Shipperley must step up in that capacity in Christchurch.

Centre Anthony Faingaa (hamstring) will come back in for his relentless defence and wide breakdown work because a pressure game is needed to jolt the Crusaders out of their rhythm.

The Reds enter the playoffs in fifth. They face a virtual "Mission Impossible" to win the title because it would take successive wins on the road in Christchurch and probably Hamilton and Pretoria to do it.

Only the 1999 Crusaders side was capable of winning two play-offs on the road to claim a title and that was before the three-stage, six-team system made it even tougher from 2011.

Match-winning halfback Will Genia and captain James Horwill will be back on board.