It's the end of an era in New Zealand sport.
A pillar of sports medicine, Dr John Mayhew has called time on his last top-level team.
Affectionately known as "Doc" to our biggest sports stars, Dr Mayhew has been on call for all the big names when things break down and he's been doing it for more than three decades.
He spent 15 years with the All Blacks and just as many with the Warriors, but this season was his last.
“[In] '88 I got involved with the All Blacks and you know until now, it's over 30 years, it's been continuous, and I've loved every minute of it," he said.
After leaving the All Blacks, Mayhew boldly spoke out against New Zealand Rugby's clean out of the 2003 World Cup coaching staff.
“The way the rugby union deal with people, and I have concerns that what we do to people like John Mitchell, John Hart, Wayne Smith and hopefully he'll get involved again which will be a rare occurrence,” Mayhew said in 2004.
The regret from those wholesale changes led to the continuity approach New Zealand Rugby still use today.
Having outlasted five Warriors coaches, Mayhew has seen plenty in rugby league too.
“What I see at the Warriors is a very passionate club, they've got an incredibly loyal fan base and I think they get, at times, let down by the administration,” he said.
“The Warriors seem to appoint people without due process at times and I think we've seen it in recent years with the appointment of the head of high performance, and things like that."
The Warriors wouldn't comment.
As for the Doc, chief medical officer at a global insurance giant is a change of pace.
“I think my wife will wondering what I'm doing at home every Saturday and not travelling to Australia every second weekend,” he said.
But part-time roles in both union and league are still on the cards.
SHARE ME