Cane to Coles: Keep your mouth shut
Sam Cane said the hardest part about being named All Blacks captain was keeping it a secret for three months. And he admitted to spilling the beans on at least one occasion.
Talking to New Zealand rugby legend Dan Carter on the latest episode of Carter’s Kickin’ It podcast, Cane revealed the moment he discovered that he was going to succeed Kieran Read as All Blacks captain was during a catch up with new coach Ian Foster.
‘‘There’s no real special story. I suppose the hardest part was keeping it a secret because I found out back in February,’’ Cane said.
‘‘Ian Foster, he’d been newly appointed All Blacks coach a few months earlier, and I knew he’d been around to a couple of the other senior All Blacks to just catch up and chew the fat, and maybe digest a bit of last year’s World Cup and the All Blacks environment and where he sees it going forward.
‘‘He came around to my place and sat down over a coffee and had some good conversations and then it was right at the end, just as he was about to leave. He just said he’d like me to be captain and asked what I thought about that.
‘‘Obviously I was really taken back because I didn’t see it coming. I just thought he was coming around to chat footy. But obviously it’s a massive honour and a huge privilege. I can only liken it to the feeling of when you first get told you’re an All Black, it sort of just blows you away.’’
Cane said he immediately told his wife, who was over the moon when she heard the news.
‘‘As soon as Fozzie drove out the driveway I went and told Harriet. My wife Harriet, she was pretty stoked, she started bouncing up and down and was pretty happy for me.’’
The Chiefs flanker waited a few weeks to tell his parents as he wanted to break the news in person. But there was also one other person who found out almost two months before the rest of the country, and that was All Blacks teammate Dane Coles when he bailed up Cane immediately after a Super Rugby game.
‘‘I held out and it was pre-season and I went out for dinner with mum and dad and told them in person which was pretty cool to be able to see their reaction face to face. Other than that I didn’t tell anyone until my old mate Dane Coles after we played the Hurricanes hits me up face to face and says ‘have you talked to Fozzie yet?’
‘‘I was like I can’t lie to his face so I had to tell him,’’ Cane said. ‘‘I said keep your mouth shut, which is easier said than done for Colesy.’’
Cane has captained the All Blacks on three occasions already, and Carter believed he was a smart choice to succeed Read.
‘‘As someone that has played alongside you, it was only a matter of time,’’ Carter said. ‘‘The amount of respect and mana you have from your team-mates is second to none and that’s a hugely important part of leadership and that All Blacks captaincy.’’