How do you measure the worth of an All Blacks captain?
Is it by performances, results, team unity (generally helped by good results), or the determination of the coaches to keep you in the team for as long as possible?
Sam Cane’s announcement on Monday that he will be standing down as All Blacks captain and leave his New Zealand Rugby contract a year early, thereby making this year the last he will be available to wear the black jersey, probably prompted a few emotions among rugby fans in this country and beyond.
Among them may be the question: Was he pushed or did he come to the decision himself?
Cane is 32 and is rehabilitating a back injury which means he has hardly played for his Japanese club Suntory this season.
He broke his neck in 2018 and played in the World Cup the year after. His mind might be willing, and to come back from that terrifying injury would suggest Cane possesses a special type of mental strength, but his body is less so.
So once the news broke about Cane’s decision – that he will cut ties with New Zealand Rugby at the end of the year to take up an extended three-year with Suntory – the pieces began to fall into place for some.
This was a way for Cane, who knew he wouldn’t be captain under new head coach Scott Robertson, to save face before he was left out completely, according to former All Blacks fullback Israel Dagg, a theory that may have gained traction in the last few days.
“I’ve got a lot of time and respect for Sam Cane, played with him many times and I’ve never met a tougher bloke,” Dagg told SENZ Radio.
“A bloke that just fires into breakdowns, puts his body on the line week-in, week-out, and will go down as one of the greats for New Zealand.
“But there is something hanging over my shoulder here.
“I get a sense that this was forced. I get a sense that there was a shoulder tap from the one and only (Robertson), saying: ‘Gidday son, I think the writing is on the wall in terms of where you are seen in New Zealand rugby, Scott Barrett is going to take over the captaincy’.
“I think this was forced to be completely honest. They’ve been having conversations about it online, but the reality is he was shoulder tapped and told to make that next step and his next step is getting the Yen over in Japan.”
There was a line in Robertson’s media interview a day later that resonated, too. "It was really emotional for him," Robertson said when retelling how Cane informed him of the decision. "He Facetimed Jase Ryan and I and made sure he could look us in the eyes and tell us what he was thinking. By the end of the conversation it was clear he had a great opportunity.”
Those thinking along Dagg’s lines may have been wondering: Whom wanted to look who in the eyes when explaining their decision? Cane or Robertson?
It was Cane. Those with knowledge of his deal say it was very much his decision, and that New Zealand Rugby were more relaxed about releasing him from the final year of his contract than the All Blacks coaches were, and forwards coach Ryan in particular. NZ Rugby felt Cane had earned the right to take the money after his service in black spanning 95 Tests over more than a decade.
For the All Blacks, Cane was seen as having a special presence in the environment and with the potential to make the transition from the Foster era to the Robertson one more seamless. Significantly, Ryan values toughness and character above all else. In short, Cane was a man the All Blacks wanted to hold on to for as long as possible.
We may not see him in a black jersey again, of course. Cane’s injury means he won’t be available for the All Blacks until the two Rugby Championship Tests against Argentina in September at the earliest. Even then he may not be able to force his way back.
So Cane’s legacy will not be a straightforward one. His dismissal in the World Cup final effectively cost the All Blacks the victory, but few could blame him for what was clearly an accident.
He looked pale and ill in the press conference afterwards and appeared genuinely fearful of the reaction back home. However, he was amazed at the support upon his arrival, a support that continued and helped heal the pain.
His overall performance in the quarter-final win over Ireland was stunning, a masterclass of determination and courage that was a near perfect reflection of his character, and yet for some he struggled to break out of Richie McCaw’s or even Ardie Savea’s shadow.
As McCaw’s successor in the No.7 jersey he had the toughest of acts to follow but he always conducted himself with grace and humility.
What can't be disputed is that he was one of the toughest and most consistent defenders to have played for the All Blacks.
Dagg says he will finish as a great. The All Blacks coaches wanted him to stay on. That probably says it all.
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